kindle

When avid reader Oprah Winfrey raved about the digital reading device called Kindle, it shot to the top of the holiday must-have list.

As an updated device from Amazon.com, called Kindle 2, hit the market Tuesday, CNET TV Senior Editor Natali del Conte visited the "CBS Early Show" to give viewers a look at the new e-book reader and compare it to the latest versions of similar devices.

The Kindle "has lived up to the hype," del Conte says. "It's one of those things you don't absolutely need, but once you get it, you can't live without it."

Among Kindle 2's improvements over the first one:

• It's thinner. • The original held 150 books; the new one holds 10 times as many. • 3G downloading means you'll get books downloaded on the fastest mobile network available in the United States; download a book in fewer than 2 minutes. • It has text-to-speech reading of books. • It plays MP3 music files.

The Kindle 2 is still pretty pricey, at $359. But del Conte says it's worth the bucks "if you're an avid reader. If you average it out, you're going to be saving money on books, because buying the books online is less expensive (than doing so conventionally), and you purchase the device only once. There are a lot of ways to read books online, if money is an issue."… Read more

O'Reilly Media founder Tim O'Reilly makes a provocative claim relative to Amazon's successful e-book reader, the Kindle: embrace open e-book standards, or be run over by them.

It's a bold prediction, considering what Apple has demonstrated with the iPhone. It may also be wrong.

Indeed, though I'd like O'Reilly to be right on this, I think that the iPhone, which he uses to prove his point, actually demonstrates against it. O'Reilly writes:

(Apple) seems to have a knack for balancing the benefits of both open and closed architectures that Amazon has yet to … Read more

SEATTLE--Amazon wanted to make the Kindle 2 hot, but not too hot.

It gave it a slimmer design and more storage, but there are a lot of things Amazon could have added, but didn't. Things like a color display not only would make the device pricier and give it a shorter battery life, but would also make the gadget uncomfortable to hold.

"One of the great things about Kindle is it doesn't ever get hot," Amazon Vice President Ian Freed said in an interview at Amazon's downtown office here. That's important, Freed said, given that the company has one main goal with the Kindle--making the product as invisible to users as possible when they are reading.

"The most important thing for the Kindle to do is to disappear," Freed said. That was the goal with the first device and was also a key factor in deciding what would go in the sequel, which started shipping on Monday. There are the obvious factors, like the thinner, sleeker design. But there are also things like an improved cellular modem. As a result, Kindle users will find themselves out of range in fewer places to get updates or buy a new book. … Read more

If you're itching to get the lowdown on just everything the Kindle 2 can--and can't do--Amazon's now posted the user manual. It's on both the Kindle 2 product page as part of the specs (clicking on the link will make the PDF pop up on your screen) or in Amazon's special Kindle documentation section where existing Kindle owners can download the AZW version to transfer to their original Kindles for reading and weeping (sorry, it always hurts a little to own a first-gen device when the new one comes out--but it'll be OK, I … Read more

Everyone's talking about the new Kindle, but here's a product that may present an even more radical innovation in the e-book sector: The Talking Book, created and distributed by the non-profit Literacy Bridge, is a low cost audio player/recorder with special features for Knowledge Sharing and Literacy Learning. It was developed entirely by volunteers and costs less than $10. The device involves an ecosystem to produce and share locally relevant audio content, allowing users to record their own messages and distribute them within local networks through a device-to-device copying capability. Other features include slow play for reading … Read more

Lots of news in gadgets this week, which is welcome after the usual post-CES lull. If you didn't have time to catch it all in real time, we've helpfully compiled a list of some of this week's best stories. Consider it Crave's Valentine to you. <3

• In honor of the holiday everyone loves to hate, we here at Crave compiled a list of the gadgets we've loved and lost, or got so frustrated with we wanted to throw them against the wall. Check out the gadgets that broke our hearts.

• The Kindle 2 arrived … Read more

Nintendo is smashing the competition in game consoles and Rafe thinks he knows the reason why. The G/D ratio will probably become a new economic leading indicator. We also determine just how long you should wait for Windows 7. And by determine, I mean Rafe and I fight over it and I win. And what do you think of the Microsoft store?

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Sources: Windows 7 moving toward 2009 release http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10162609-56.html

New Windows … Read more

Words, words, words. We're all about e-book readers and obscure vocabulary today.

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Introducing Kindle 2

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John in Israel wants to know about getting radio on his iPhone. In … Read more

Today we get down and dirty with David Carnoy, Executive Editor and resident tech carnoysseur at CNET.com. As a self-published author (check out his book at KnifeMusicBook.com), he gives his unique take on the recent Amazon Kindle 2 announcement, iPhone eBook alternatives, and whether or not the Kindle can cordially coexist with tangible novels and newspapers.

We also ask him to stay for a few stories, including a study out of Europe that finally takes a logical stance on video game censorship. We also try to congratulate David on the recent birth of his twins, but get sidetracked … Read more