Kindle

Amazon Kindle Touch 3G vs. Kindle Touch vs. Kindle (2011)

(Updated November 17, 2011) In addition to the Kindle Fire tablet, Amazon has a new lineup of three e-ink readers for 2011 to update the Kindle released in 2010.

The devices' lower price points represent an aggressive push by Amazon to boost its lead in the e-book space as competitors like Barnes & Noble's Nook, currently $99 for the latest touch-screen version and a CNET Editors' Choice, pose a growing threat.

All three new non-Fire Kindles offer the same 6-inch e-ink Perl screen found on the previous-generation Kindle. According to our hands-on review of the $79 Kindle: "In other words, the text on the screen looks exactly like it did on the previous model, which is to say: it looks good, but don't expect any improvements in contrast or sharpness."

The biggest difference between old and new is that all three 2011 e-ink Kindles ditch the physical keyboard (although the company is calling the older, still-available versions "Kindle Keyboard"). They all also have built-in Wi-Fi to download books and deploy other Internet-dependent functions when in range of a hot spot.

Amazon also addressed one glaring shortcoming compared with other e-readers when it enabled the ability to download and read e-books for free through participating local libraries and public schools. Unlike the Nook or Sony Reader, the Kindle still does not support the EPUB format, but nonetheless more than 11,000 public libraries now allow Kindle borrowing via industry leader Overdrive. You can search the site to see whether your local library or school is onboard.… Read more

Amazon unveils trio of Kindle e-ink readers

Amazon today showed off three new versions of its Kindle e-ink digital book reader.

The company unveiled the Kindle Touch for $99. It also showed off a 3G version, which will sell for $149. A cheaper and smaller non-touch-control Kindle will sell for $79, and will be supported with ads.

$199 Kindle Fire, $99 Kindle Touch unveiled (live blog)

Editor's note: We used Cover It Live to cover Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos unveiling of new Kindle devices today in New York. If you missed the live blog, you can still replay it in the embedded component at the bottom of this post. Replaying the event will give you all the live updates along with commentary from our readers and CNET writers. You can also read our edited transcript below about the company's key announcements.

To sum it up, Bezos unveiled a $99 Wi-Fi only, no-button Kindle Touch e-reader and a $149 Kindle Touch 3G--both designed to … Read more

Speck launches FitFolio case line for Kindle, Nook, Kobo, and iRiver e-readers

Speck's FitFolio is one of our favorite iPad 2 cases. Now the company is bringing the line to the e-reader arena, with FitFolio cases for the Kindle, Nook, Kobo Touch, and iRiver Story HD.

The FitFolio for Kindle 3 is already available for $29.99 (in multiple colors), but the cases for the other e-reader models aren't set to ship until next month, company reps told us at an event last night in New York, where we got a sneak peek at all the new cases.Two other Kindle 3 cases, the WanderFolio (see above picture) and BookShield … Read more

ABC previews new TV series as free Kindle e-book

You might not think of the Kindle as a marketing vehicle for a new TV show, but ABC is promoting its new TV series "Revenge" with an e-reader twist: you can download the pilot script for free on your Kindle and a code at the end will allow you to watch the pilot online before the show hits the airwaves.

Amazon reviewers are mixed on the new series, which features the tawny Hamptons as its setting. And some are finding it a little awkward to read a script rather than, well, a book.

Reviewer kacunnin writes:

The most interesting thing about reading the script for the pilot episode of the ABC prime time soap "Revenge" is checking out the differences between what was originally scripted and what was actually put on film. Since the free Kindle version of the script includes a link to the full-length pilot, readers get a rare chance to see how a television show is made and what kinds of changes happen between the writing and the filming.

This little Kindle promotion probably won't determine whether "Revenge" turns into a hit or not, but it's definitely an intriguing PR stunt that other networks may use in the future to market new shows. In 2009, Showtime released the pilot script for "Nurse Jackie" as a free Kindle e-book, but today there are far more Kindles and tablets (that run the Kindle app) in consumers hands.

(Via Beyond Black Friday blog) … Read more