Amazon's Kendle 2

[Roman414]

So has anyone bought one of these yet? I think it might be a good thing for me, but it is a bit pricey. Wish I could try before I buy, but I guess not.

[john.crissman]

I don't have any first hand experience of it but my brother-in-law purchased one a couple weeks back and promptly returned it. He was dissapointed that the pages took 2-3 seconds to load/turn.

[castlecraver]

I wish someone would explain to me why these are so popular. You can get a low-end "netbook" for the same price, which would be far more versatile, and get your e-books via PDF, etc. I honestly don't see the attraction.

[SRock]

I was looking at the original Kindle this past Christmas and in the end I bought my wife the Sony PRS-505 and it is awesome. The display is fantastic. I did a ton of research and in the end felt that for the money the Sony was a better choice for her than the Kindle. I haven't had a chance to check out the Kindle 2 yet.

[MotoMike]

they are popular because the display is super. similar to paper in appearance. they use micro sphears that react to current in a matrix of conductors under them. each sphere can is divided into quarters each of which can be either white pr black. they spheres are pixel size so hight resolution is possible. they are just under a clear thin sheet so that they appear to be on the surface as paper. Going on old guy memory here, so don't hold me to the fine points. Scientific American did an article on them maybe 6 months ago.

I think they are opening the door of great portable displays for electronic books. I expect this technology to improve quite a bit and to come down in price, so I am waiting. but it does appeal to me.

[SRock]

Sony had the "real paper" look to their display before Kindle was released and it is spectacular on the 505.

[norton]

The terms of service seem a bit extreme.

http://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/1097

I'll probably just keep reading pdfs, books and HTML.

[letterk]

When are they going to make them not ugly?

[erudolph]

I was looking at the original Kindle this past Christmas and in the end I bought my wife the Sony PRS-505 and it is awesome. The display is fantastic. I did a ton of research and in the end felt that for the money the Sony was a better choice for her than the Kindle. I haven't had a chance to check out the Kindle 2 yet.

One of the Kindle 2 reviews on the Amazon site is from an owner of a PRS-505 who loves it better than they do the Kindle, but they say they use the Kindle because there are so many more books available for it. Have you found that to be the case?

[arcman]

Heh (http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/3/9/)

[Evbo]

If you have an iphone, you can download Amazon's Kindle application from the application store. The app is free; you just pay for the books you buy.

I downloaded a book this weekend. It works great, and I didn't have to buy another device (for $359!) to read it.

[kwk285]

I got one of the new Kindles. Yes it is a bit pricey. It was a splurge but so far I really like it.

I travel a fair amount for work and I like the fact that I can hold all the books and magazines that I want to read on this one small device. I will be able to hold upwards of 1000 books on it.

Also, in my job, I read a lot of studies that are sent to me in PDF format. I talked with some people that read them on a kindle.

The text on it is very easy to read. My eyes don't tire out like they do when I read on a computer screen. In the last year I have started to use reading glasses in the afternoon and evening. On the Kindle, I am able to change the font size and not have to both with reading glasses.

[Aevum]

i just ordered a sony 505, i didnt want to get the kindle due to the amazon only restrictions,

[Sue]

Can anyone give me an example of the size of the font choices for the Kindle 2 or Sony? Possibly comparable with MS Doc font sizes?
Sue

[SRock]

i just ordered a sony 505, i didnt want to get the kindle due to the amazon only restrictions,

My wife has the 505 and we both love it! I bought it for her for Xmas and we've already read dozens of books on it!


Can anyone give me an example of the size of the font choices for the Kindle 2 or Sony? Possibly comparable with MS Doc font sizes?
Sue

Sue,

The Sony PRS-505 has three font sizes (Small, Medium and Large). The largest I'd say is around a 15 or 16 font as compared to MS word. But you have to keep in mind that you will hold the book closer to your eyes than your computer normally is. I have 20/15 vision and can easily read the smallest font (naturally :grin:). My wife has terrible vision and with her glasses/contacts she can also read it on the smallest font. We leave it on small. On the smallest setting it is about the same as the text/font in an average paperback book. On large it seem huge! Also, for what its worth I researched these for over 6 months before buying the 505. I don't like the Amazon only attitude of the Kindle and the newest Sony with touch screen seems a little fuzzy to read and isn't doing as well in the reviews as the 505. The Sony PRS-505 has the nicest display IMHO. It truly looks like a real book and you only need as much light to read it as you would any other real book.

I hope this helps!

[kwk285]

Sue,

If you go to the Kindle page on Amazon, you can see the six font sizes about 3/4 down the page on a picture on the side.

I keep mine on the default, which I believe is the third option.

I visited my dad last month and showed him my Kindle. He is 71 and his eyesight is going away a little bit. I showed him the different font options. He was able to read so much easier on it then reading a regular book with reading glasses. He called me the other day raving about how is is able to read a lot more again.

[Sue]

Thank you for your replies. I guess I didn't scroll far enough to view the available fonts. My vision fluctuates often; on the down side it can bottom out to below 20/400 at times. I used to read at least two books a month minimum. I ran across Kindle looking for a specific book on CD. It was a surprise -- didn't know something like this was available. Now it is going to be a difficult decision between Kindle and the Sony. Amazons terns seem a bit over-the-top.
Sue