[access-uk] Re: Kindle ebook reader
- From: "Tristram Llewellyn" <tristram.llewellyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 10 Feb 2009 10:23:34 -0000
I would go with Steve on this one, and the inclusion of the TTS feature
is described as experimental in information I have seen. However a more
fundamental issue however means that it is unlikely the Kindle in its
present form makes it to a UK audience. It uses a mobile network called
sprint which is similar to regular moibile to deliver content (it
doesn't use wi-fi). Spring is only avaiable in the USA and this is is
why it is not offered in the UK.
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
Of Steve Nutt
Sent: 10 February 2009 08:01
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Kindle ebook reader
Hi David,
I bet any money that you won't be able to navigate book by book and
through the menus etc, without sight. Betg it only reads an opened
book.
Interesting though.
All the best
Steve
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
Of David Russell
Sent: Monday 9 February 2009 18:43
To: Access-Uk@Freelists. Org
Subject: [access-uk] Kindle ebook reader
This is all I can find about the new Kindle ebook reader.
New Kindle ebook reader
Reuters - Amazon unveiled the latest incarnation of its digital book
reader, the Kindle, today in a slimmer version with more storage and a
feature that reads text aloud to users.
The new Kindle, which will still sell for $359 on Amazon's web site, is
available for preorder, and will ship Feb. 24, the company said.
The new version fixes a problem with involuntary page turns, is thinner,
and sports a new five-way controller that allows users to jump between
articles and sections of newspapers. A power charger is more portable
and a cover that comes with the device is more secure, the company said.
The new Kindle is "thinner, faster, crisper, with longer battery life,
and capable of holding hundreds more books," said Amazon Chief Executive
Jeff Bezos in a statement released alongside a company event at New York
City's Morgan Library.
Amazon shares were down 0.7 percent at $65.05 after the news of the
release.
First launched by the Seattle-based company in November 2007, the Kindle
allows users to read books and newspapers wirelessly on a device
weighing less than a typical paperback.
It took sales away from Sony Corp, whose Sony Reader beat Amazon to
market, and Amazon touted its existing relationships with book
publishers as a plus.
Kindle2 to Launch February 24
-- Publishers Weekly, 2/9/2009 7:21:00 AM
With a media line that stretched nearly to Madison Avenue and such
publishing heavyweights in attendance as Random House's Marcus Dohle and
HarperCollins's Brian Murray, Amazon unveiled the Kindle2 in an
elaborate, and crowded, presentation this morning at New York's Morgan
Library. The new device is significantly slimmer than the
original--about as thin as a pencil--has a text-to-speech function that
can read the book out loud, and easier and improved navigation. The
device also includes improved graphics and more storage--it will hold
1,500 books, Amazon chairman Jeff Bezos said, and its battery will hold
a charge for two weeks.
Kindle2 will debut on February 24 and will still be priced at $359. For
customers who have a Kindle on backorder, Amazon will automatically
upgrade the purchase to the new e-reader. Bezos said for existing Kindle
owners, anyone who orders a new one within 24 hours "will be put at the
top of the queue." It was unclear if current Kindle owners will receive
a discount for upgrading.
In his remarks, Bezos said Amazon had been selling e-books "for years"
and "it wasn't working until 14 months ago" when the Kindle was
launched. He displayed a graph which showed flat e-book sales from 2003
through 2008 when business spiked, but there were no numbers attached.
Bezos did say e-book sales now account for 10% of sales (and didn't
mention the usual caveat that that figure is for books available in both
print and e-book formats). Ian Freed v-p for Kindle said he hoped the
company would be able to keep Kindle2 in stock, something that has
sometimes been a problem with the current version. He said Amazon has
increased capacity to meet expected demand. A new Whispersync feature
syncs the new Kindle with the old and Bezos said Amazon is working on
ways to sync the Kindle to other mobile devices.
The presentation included an appearance by Stephen King, a
self-described fan of the Kindle and who was persuaded by Amazon to
writer a short story to be offered exclusively on the device. In the
novella Ur, King includes a scene which is a long product placement for
Amazon and the Kindle, and noted that in the piece the main character's
Kindle gives him super powers.
** To leave the list, click on the immediately-following link:-
** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=unsubscribe]
** If this link doesn't work then send a message to:
** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
** and in the Subject line type
** unsubscribe
** For other list commands such as vacation mode, click on the
** immediately-following link:-
** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=faq]
** or send a message, to
** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the Subject:- faq
** To leave the list, click on the immediately-following link:-
** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=unsubscribe]
** If this link doesn't work then send a message to:
** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
** and in the Subject line type
** unsubscribe
** For other list commands such as vacation mode, click on the
** immediately-following link:-
** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=faq]
** or send a message, to
** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the Subject:- faq
______________________________________________________________________
This email has been scanned by the MessageLabs Email Security System.
For more information please visit http://www.messagelabs.com/email
______________________________________________________________________
** To leave the list, click on the immediately-following link:-
** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=unsubscribe]
** If this link doesn't work then send a message to:
** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
** and in the Subject line type
** unsubscribe
** For other list commands such as vacation mode, click on the
** immediately-following link:-
** [mailto:access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx?subject=faq]
** or send a message, to
** access-uk-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the Subject:- faq
Other related posts:
