I hear my new book is out in Kindle version now: The Year She Fell.
And no, I am not hinting to the family that a Kindle will be a great Xmas gift. :)
Hey, as long as I am not hinting, if you have a Kindle, tell me about it? Is the more expensive one with 3G worth the extra $? Can you surf the web with that or just get Amazon books? Also, are downloads restricted just to the Kindle store?
Alicia
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If you just want to check out your book, you can download Kindle Reader to your desktop, laptop or smartphone. I have it on my iPhone and it's free.
I have a Kindle 2 and had it for over 1.5 years and I LOVE it. I love that I hardly ever have to charge it. The Kindle 2's battery lasts "14" days (so really around 7 days). The newer Kindle 3 lasts "4" weeks (I'm guessing it's closer to 2 weeks), and that's reading it for hours every day. The biggest things I love about my Kindle was 1. I can carry multiple books around so if I get bored with one, I can switch to something new, and 2. no one can tell what I'm reading (too many good books have embarrassing covers).
About the 3G, internet surfing is not restricted in the USA to just the Kindle store, but it might be restricted to just the store in other countries. You can't download media not supported on the Kindle with your 3G connection (so no downloading large video files or something like that).
I've used my Kindle's 3G to read wikipedia, news articles, and forums. My email service didn't work well with the Kindle screen, but that might have been improved now. The Kindle 3 has a different (better) browser than the Kindle 2.
I personally would choose the 3G version again since for $50, you get unlimited 3G for the life of the product. It makes it easier to get new books on the go, too. I tend to download samples of books onto my Kindle at night, but I don't get around to reading them until I'm out away from my home network. With the 3G, I can purchase the book if I want to after I finish reading the sample.
I hope that clears up some of your questions.
I had the same question as Alicia. Thanks for clearing that up, Melissa.
So with the 3G one, there's just wifi access? Do you need to be at a hotspot?
Sorry to be clueless, but technology changes so rapidly. I still haven't figured out how to take a photo with the cellphone (That I can do) and then email it to me.
Alicia
I have a Kindle 2 and a Kindle 3... if you plan on needing to download/surf the web where there is Wifi to connect to, the Wifi works great. If you need to do any work online where there is no Wifi available, definitely opt for the G3 option. The Kindle 3 is MUCH faster than 2, the internet options are actually viable -- (Kindle 2 was so slow it was painful), the contrast is better, more storage, longer battery life. And I charge it about once a month. More if I'm using the light attached to the cover (which operates from the Kindle's battery).
I LOVE my Kindle, love the 3rd Gen even better than the 2nd Gen (my husband stole mine, so I needed a replacement).
Oh, also, you can download books from anywhere and transfer them to your Kindle so long as they aren't DRMed (or whatever that acronym is) to another product. So if someone is personally selling a book through their own website, you can transfer it to your Kindle as long as it is attached to your computer. You can also email docs to Amazon and for less than a buck they will convert them into the Kindle format and beam it directly to the device. It is hugely convenient.
"So with the 3G one, there's just wifi access? Do you need to be at a hotspot?"
The 3G version lets you use wifi and AT&T 3G. (see this page for the AT&T 3G coverage map. It's the second map, in blue).
If you're not in an area that gets 3G and you're not anywhere near free wifi (like your house or a local coffee shop), then you can still read on your Kindle, but you just can't download books or surf the internet.
BTW, 3G internet speeds is a little bit faster than modem speeds, but no where close to broadband (cable and dsl internet) speeds so it's not good for graphic heavy sites. Most popular websites have a "mobile" (low graphics, faster loading) version, though, so that shouldn't be too much of a problem. There's also some way to view websites on the Kindle 3 in 'article' mode that takes out images, ads, or something. I don't have it on my Kindle 2 so I can't comment about how well it works.
Also, the Kindle is VERY easy to learn, if that matters to you. Everything is under the "Menu" button or the "Aa" (font) button. It's one of the perks of creating a device that's made for only one thing.
Thanks! You all convinced me. I have to have one.
Alicia
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