Amazon introduces Kindle ebook reader
by Rob - November 20th, 2007.Filed under: ebooks.
I got to play with one of the beta-test units a while ago, and immediately fell in love. Sadly, they’re only available in the US right now — can’t wait for them to come to Canada!
The e-ink display is gorgeous, the ergonomics (especially the big page-changing buttons) are much better than the Sony eBook reader, the promise that new releases will be priced at $9.99 or less (as will all New York Times bestsellers), the inclusion of a decent dictionary for free, plus unlimited Wikipedia access all rock.
Yeah, at $399 it ain’t cheap, but man, is it ever cool. Not only is this the best dedicated ebook reader I’ve ever seen, but the distribution method (for free via wireless connection to the Sprint network, at no cost to the end user), and the pricing model is the best I’ve seen to date.
For the curious, novels of mine available for the Kindle are Hominids, Humans, Hybrids, and a first as an ebook, End of an Era — plus a couple of dozen of my short stories.
As many of you know, I’ve long been an ebook fan — I own dedicated devices including the Franklin eBookMan, the RCA REB-1100, and the Fictionwise eBookwise-1150, plus several Palm OS devices. My trusty Sony Clie TH55 is going to stay my principal reader (because of its portability, magnificent screen, support of multiple formats, backlight, and more), but when the Kindle comes to Canada, I’m going to snap one up.
The Robert J. Sawyer Web Site