So, as most of you know by now, I ditched the Kindle hardware platform in favor of an Apple iPad with Kindle software (as well as iBooks, Kobo, etc). But now the Kindle Fire is catching a lot of attention.

What do you think about the new Kindle Fire? Are any of you iPad users thinking about getting it?

I love that Amazon has a nice market for the Kindle. It keeps competition stiff, and ultimately I hope it leads to more affordable ebook pricing. But I’m not sure I want a device that is so focused on just reading. The Kindle Fire seems to offer some gaming, web browsing, and movies. It really does attack some of the areas that the iPad is strong in.

Something to think about…

That’s right. I’m reading my Kindle constantly. In fact, I’m reading it more than I ever did before. I use to read my Kindle several times a week, and now I read it many times a day. You might now be wondering what in the world caused such a dramatic increase in the use of my Kindle. No one died, don’t worry. I simply found a new way to enjoy it:

I bought an iPad.

That’s right. I’m not reading Kindle on my Kindle. I’m reading Kindle on my Apple iPad. This probably causes some of you to panic, yell, or scream. “How can you possibly be enjoying your Kindle more on the iPad”, you’re thinking. “Surely the iPad doesn’t have the eInk screen, or the integration of buying anything from the Kindle store without going into a web browser. So why do you like it?”

The truth is, I didn’t think I was going to like it either. I mean, I was going to buy an iPad anyway. I’m an iPhone addict, and I knew the experience would probably translate well over to the iPad. Besides, I also develop iPhone and iPad applications for the startup I’ve created. But I didn’t buy the iPad thinking I was going to replace my Kindle entirely. I had a place reserved in my heart for the eInk bearing white Kindle 2.

As I started to play with the iPad over the last month as an eBook reader, I started to quickly realize that this was a much nicer experience than what Amazon was giving me before with the Kindle 2. Gone were the agonies of slow page turns. Gone was the inability to read in the dark without a flimsy plastic book light. It was a truly new way to read my books.

Bad Kindle, Sad Kindle, Goodbye Kindle

Don’t get me wrong. There was plenty to love about the Kindle family of devices. The eInk screen and the always-on anywhere-you-are Amazon Kindle Store were the primary reasons I loved the Kindle, and still do to this day.

But here’s what I didn’t like about my Kindle 2 experience:

• Each page was too small. I was constantly clicking the page turn button, because I’d run out of content on the page to read. I could turn the font way down, and it would fit a considerable more amount of text, but then I was squinting. Wait, didn’t I get the Kindle because it had eInk and reduced my eye strain? Now why am I straining to read tiny text?
• Page turns were too slow. Owners of the original Kindle are probably rolling their eyes at me right now, since the Kindle 2 turned pages significantly faster than the Kindle 1. Yeah, you’re right. But it was also way too slow for me. The pause in my ability to read from turning the page was too long for me to always keep my focus on the book’s plot line, but too short to be able to ponder or expand upon what I had been reading. It was simply a distraction. Not always, but often enough.
• Browsing the Amazon Kindle Store was too slow. When I first got the Kindle 2, I was so excited that it had free cellular-based wireless Internet access to purchase books that I overlooked the fact that the UX (user experience) for the Amazon Kindle Store wasn’t quite up to par on the device. I mean, since it was basically showing you simple web pages, you had to wait for each page to load, and then you had to wait for the Kindle to render the page. Once you clicked into a category, you the had to click into a book, or click on the next page. Then you either clicked the link that said “Return to the Store” (paraphrased), but that took you back to the very front of the store, not to where you were at in your search results. Or, you pressed the back button. In either case, again you had to wait, wait, wait, wait… Every time you did anything, you had to wait. Perhaps I’m too impatient, but I finally got tired of waiting. Note that I thought that the downloading of the actual books was quite fast, it was just navigating the Amazon Kindle Store that I thought was unfortunately a bit aggravating. Why didn’t they just download the whole catalog (or sections of it) to the device, and then render it locally? I’m certain it would have been a better user experience.
• Amazon doesn’t care about the Kindle devices. Blasphemy that I say this, right? But it’s mostly true. When Amazon released the first Kindle people were mostly happy. It was new, and it offered some nice things for the time that no other eBook reader ever dared to do. Then Amazon released Kindle 2, which was really mostly about updating the cosmetics of the casing and the user interface. But then Amazon stopped innovating. They decided to not release any significant software updates and improve upon how people use the Kindle. Not a single meaningful software update came out that added a way to manage all your book purchases (if you have more than 30, you’re tearing your hair out trying to navigate through it all), nor did it offer any performance improvements. Over a year went by, and Amazon made the message clear: they’re not going to improve your Kindle 1, Kindle 2, or Kindle DX experience. Sure, they may come out with a Kindle 3, or Kindle HD, or whatever you want to call it, packed with color eInk, a larger screen, and a fancy new UI. But that’s too little, and way too late. They’ve had 2-3 years to show us that they care about the platform enough to release some updates, and they didn’t. So when the Kindle 3 comes out, it won’t be updated for another year or two, as far as I’m concerned.

Hello, iPad!

The Apple iPad has a gorgeous high resolution (1024×768) color screen, and touts a hefty 10 hour use time. Let me be really clear when I say this: my iPad’s battery lasts for 11 or 12 hours of active use! If you put the thing into standby frequently (as most people do), it can last many days (although, I’m not sure how many, since I can’t stop playing with this thing so it is always on). The majority of the device’s weight and internal space is dedicated to the batteries. Quite an amazing feat really. So you could technically sit there for 10-12 hours straight and finish a book or two and not even need a recharge.

The iPad has several applications for reading eBooks, each with their own sources of content.

Here’s what I love about the iPad:

• Long lasting battery between charges. Let me be really clear when I say this: my iPad’s battery lasts for 11 or 12 hours of active use! If you put the thing into standby frequently (as most people do), it can last many days (although, I’m not sure how many, since I can’t stop playing with this thing so it is always on). The majority of the device’s weight and internal space is dedicated to the batteries. Quite an amazing feat really. So you could technically sit there for 10-12 hours straight and finish a book or two and not even need a recharge. Sure, it’s not quite as long as the Kindle, but it does a boatload more than the Kindle does too, and it’s much longer than anyone every expected a device like this to pull off.
• Bookstore agnostic. Sure, Apple wants to push their iBookstore and their iBooks application. But they’re not preventing any healthy competition from running on their App Store. That means I can read my Apple books, my Amazon books, my Kobo books, my Zinio magazines, or my Marvel comics. In fact, there are so many applications and stores available on the iPad now, that it makes a Kindle device seem so useless in comparison. If you really know you only like Amazon Kindle books, and don’t feel constrained, then the Kindle does its job for you. But, if you’re like me, you want choices. And boy do we have choices.
• Sex appeal. Holy cow, this thing is gorgeous. It feels nice in the hands. People stop and ask about it more than they did when I had a brand new Kindle or Kindle 2 when they first came out; not that it matters if people stop by curiously though. The interface has a similar feel to the well appreciated iPhone, and the applications are simply well thought out. It’s an incredible user experience. You feel like you’re a kid in a candy store all over again. Even at the peak of my Kindle experience, I never ever felt that way.
• Full device backup. Maybe the Kindle doesn’t really need this, but I love that I can quickly restore all of my applications, books, and saved files onto my device whenever I want. Perhaps even a brand new replacement. In fact, I had purchased an iPad Wifi, only to want the iPad 3G model a few weeks later. Transferring everything over was so simple.
• New ways of reading. I think it’s really fantastic that some of the news companies actually took the time to reinvent how their electronic newspaper or magazine would function. Newspapers and magazines were bastardized on the Kindle; Amazon really screwed that up. Amazon had a custom Kindle file format that allowed the use of special graphics and fonts, but they didn’t encourage their content providers to use it very much. Thus, the book, magazine, and newspaper presentation really suffered. It didn’t live up to the hype. But, there’s hope here with the iPad, because lots of companies are innovating truly remarkable interfaces on it with ways to interact with books, magazines, and newspapers. Apple’s iBooks isn’t in itself a tremendously different experience from the Kindle’s, but there is a lot of opportunity here for it to be, or some thirsty developer to come up with it.
• Updates, updates, updates! Apple has a proven track record of releasing consistent and often minor software updates that add small features and improve the performance of most of their products. This alone is a nice way to justify paying a couple hundred dollars more on the Apple iPad because you know that you’ll get some lasting value out of it, perhaps as long as 3 or 4 years. A hefty update comes around at least once a year, and most of the time it’s a free one.
• My Kindle books are alive and well. Lastly, and possibly one of the most important to me, is that all of my previous and future Kindle purchases are accessible in the Kindle app for the iPhone and iPad. The reading experience is even nicer than it was on the Kindle devices (in terms of attractiveness and functionality, but not eInk). And all of my book purchases are safe and available for me anywhere. Amazon got this right. After all, it’s clear to me: Amazon is out to make a profit by selling content, not hardware devices. And this is one of the big distinctions between Apple and Amazon, because don’t forget, Apple is really a hardware company.

But if you’re still uninterested in the iPad, even after my superb dissing of the Kindle device family, please buy a Kindle today. Otherwise, how about one of these iPads?

The day has finally arrived, that Mac users can now enjoy their Kindle eBook purchases on their desktop computer screens. Amazon has released Kindle for Mac. This complements the existing Windows and iPhone Kindle applications.

Install Kindle for Mac

All of these applications are free to download, and any purchased eBooks are synchronized between all of them on demand, including your current page. This makes a reasonable alternative to purchasing a Kindle if you haven’t yet bought one. Although, the Kindle still stands up well for long term reading (longer than about a half hour) as its very pleasant to hold, and incredible calming on the eyes.

Loading Splash Screen

Don’t let the pretty splash loader screen fool you once you’ve installed it though. The Mac application is not quite up to “Apple Design Standards” so don’t expect it to feel like a native Mac application. It doesn’t have that same polish as iTunes, but it is definitely a start. If Amazon spends some time enhancing it, it could be a real winner on this platform.

Home Screen

As expected, Kindle eBooks look quite decent on a large screen. It is debatable whether or not a large screen sitting on a desk is an appropriate place to read a novel, but it’s a fantastic way to lookup research information or some other technical documentation.

Illustrated Cookbook Recipe

I found that my The Cook’s Illustrated How-To-Cook Library looked quite well on Kindle for Mac, and it seemed like an ideal eBook to use for looking up reference documentation. If I had an iMac in the kitchen, this would surely be on it. And since this eBook supports Text-to-Speech, it could technically read me a recipe while I cook. But then of course it would read me the next recipe, and the next recipe, and the next recipe. I would probably start to make Shrimp Lasagna Pizza topped with Baked Brie. So I guess there’s some issues with that. (It should be noted thought that while I like bacon, I absolutely can’t stand shrimp!)

Recipe Direction with an Illustration

And at least eBooks with illustrations (the ones that even have them that is) look decent. What I’d like to see is more eBooks with photos and illustrations, and a better way to organize my eBooks altogether. We still don’t have folders! Is Amazon even listening?!

Download a Kindle application for your platform:

Kindle for Mac
Kindle for PC
Kindle for iPhone
Kindle for BlackBerry

How have your experiences been with the Kindle applications for platforms other than the Kindle itself? Sound off in the comments.

I wanted to share my thoughts on the Kindle DRM hacks that occurred over the 2009 winter holidays. For those unfamiliar, recently a team of hackers broke open the digital rights management (DRM) features of Kindle books. This DRM protects the content and effectively “locks” the books to your particular Amazon account, allowing only your personal devices (PC, Kindle, iPhone, etc) the ability to view the books you have purchased. The hackers were able to completely circumvent this DRM, making it possible for anyone to convert their purchases (or perhaps other people’s purchases) into a DRM-free MOBI file. This .mobi file is still readable on the Kindle, but will also let any other MOBI compatible eReader or program view the book. Additionally, it now makes it possible for purchases to be shared with other people, albeit illegally.

Normally, I applaude hacker communities to break apart hardware and software in efforts to extend functionality or serve as educational exercises for how to further secure various platforms. For many, many years I have strongly agreed with activities that give users more flexibility to the hardware they buy, especially when the manufacturer implements limits that prevent basic functionality (such as Apple with the iPhone). And really, I still support it.

However, with that said, I am very concerned with the possible outcomes attached to the recent Kindle DRM hacks. While quite revolutionary, Amazon’s relationship with publishers and the offering of low-cost eBooks may be further at risk moving forward. It seems that publishers already have the upper hand, considering they are capable of forcing Amazon to remove key features (such as the text-to-speech) from the platform with simple threats. It’s very understandable, since Amazon made large steps forward in changing the publishing industry; that can frighten anyone in the publishing industry. This makes for an instable, but new and exciting world of opportunities for everyone involved.

Knowing that Amazon may be struggling to keep publishers offering eBooks for $9.99 and under, we must realize that excessive theft of eBooks moving forward will only force publishers to subsidize the losses by increasing the cost of books significantly (even if some of the pirates would never have purchased an eBook to begin with). This hack will intensify publisher requests that Amazon fix their DRM problems, further removing Amazon from the ability to innovate and improve the platform, because let’s remember this: Amazon is no longer the only player in the field, and likely has no ability to force their publishers to avoid DRM entirely. Sadly, this will force paying consumers to consider other platforms that have lower pricing (due to better agreements with publishers as cause of more effective DRM), or, accept the responsibility to pay higher product prices.

As an entrepreneur and software developer, I do believe that people should pay a fair price for quality products, and not just get everything for free. The people making quality products need the ability to sustain their efforts to build those quality products. They should be rewarded. If they aren’t, the products will no longer be of top quality, and your favorite products will begin to disappear, leaving only the corporate giants to making them (big business has often shown us that their products are not always superior; often quite terrible). DRM allows the publishers to feel secure offering their wares to the public electronically, and Amazon’s excellent negotiation tactics have helped us get reasonable pricing ($9.99 and below for most books).

With all that said, I don’t believe that DRM is the right approach to begin with, but, it’s the only thing keeping publisher pricing reasonable. Without DRM, I believe the Kindle book pricing would more closely reflect print pricing, making the platform less attractive and versatile. Publishers would also avoid participation, reducing the availability of eBooks on the Kindle platform by huge numbers. Subverting the DRM entirely may lead to mass theft of these products, possibly upsetting the balance that Amazon has created with their publishers. I worry that my investment in the Kindle platform by purchasing the Kindle and many eBooks may be at risk, if the platform begins to become unsustainable or incredibly overpriced.

Only the future can really reveal itself, day by day. I do vie for a day when information is ubiquitously available, for prices so reasonable that anyone can afford to educate themselves anywhere in the world (hopefully electronically). In the meantime, I hope that Amazon can mend the imbalances possibly caused by this recent attack at the DRM, even if breaking the DRM was “the right thing to do.”

Read more about the Amazon Kindle DRM hack:

Hackers break Amazon’s Kindle DRM (The Register)
Kindle DRM cracked (Hack-a-Day)

What are your thoughts on this issue?

Kindle Firmware Version 2.3

Amazon has finally released an update for the Kindle with version number 2.3. This update comes over 6 months after the release of bug patch firmware version 2.0.3. This is the first firmware update for existing and new Kindle 2 (US Wireless), Kindle DX, and Kindle 2 (Global Wireless) users that actually adds features (unlike previous 2.0.x patch that removed Text-2-Speed functionality from some ebooks).

New Features

The primary new features for the Kindle 2 (US Wireless and Global Wireless) are:

• Longer battery life with wireless on. This feature has been reported to be for Global Wireless users, but does seem to exist for US Wireless Kindle 2′s as well according to some articles.
• Native PDF reading. Long at last, all Kindle 2 users can now natively view PDF files without having to first convert to another format.
• Manual screen rotation to portrait or landscape. You may now rotate the screen manually in 4 different directions (2 landscape, 2 portrait).
• Ability to convert PDF files to Kindle format. While this does not actually seem like an entirely new feature, you may convert PDFs to native kindle format by typing “Convert” in the subject of the email when submitting your PDF to your @kindle.com address. This will obviously not work with local USB transfers.

The primary new features for the Kindle DX are:

• Better cropping of PDF files. Documents are now properly cropped to maximize use of the screen real estate, and show less white margins.
• Ability to convert PDF files to Kindle format. Like above, this does not seem like a new feature, but does let you explicitly convert the PDF to the Kindle format, instead of just sending down the PDF.
• View pages longer. Screensaver comes on in 20 minutes instead of 5 minutes.

Hands On

Icon for PDF Files

At first, the update seemed unavailable to me via WhisperNet (and of course wireless was turned on and there was a signal). Since the firmware just came out, I assumed Amazon was rolling this out in phases over the population as many tv settop box companies do. A quick search showed that the firmware update was available from Amazon’s Kindle Help website for performing manual updates via USB. Amazon has made three firmware versions available, each corresponding to the type of Kindle you own. Kindle 1 users are not eligible for this update unfortunately (the latest version is 1.2 for Kindle 1).

Once you’ve downloaded the appropriate .bin file, be sure to copy it to the Kindle via USB. Plug the USB cord into your computer, and drag the file over to the base path. Do not place the .bin file in a subfolder, or you will be unable to update the Kindle until you do put it in the top root path. Now eject/disconnect your Kindle. The “Update Your Kindle” option in the Settings Menu should be available to you now. The update takes about 5-10 minutes.

Loading the first page of a PDF

After you’ve updated it, you should be on Kindle 2.3. This can be confirmed at the bottom of the Settings page.

My build number is 399380047. Yours will probably be different if you have the Kindle 2 Global Wireless edition, or a Kindle DX.

Cover image loaded for first page of a PDF

Once you’ve added PDFs to your Kindle (by either emailing them to your @kindle.com address, or dragging them into the “documents” folder via USB), you will see the word “pdf” next to items that are PDFs. This is similar to free samples that you download, which show “sample.”

It appears that the PDF rendering engine requires a “conversion” to an image for each page in the PDF, which appears to occur on demand. When you click into your PDF, it will show a message showing the page you last left off on, indicating that it’s loading it.

Shortly after (about 3-5 seconds) it will load the page. The first page seems to render more slowly than successive pages in the current document.

It’s not that simple though

Text in a PDF is not very legible on such a small screen

An unfortunate downfall with PDFs on the Kindle 2 is that the text is incredibly small in most cases since it’s trying to squeeze a larger format onto a smaller screen. Most PDFs are formatted for larger print, and were not necessarily laid out in a way that allows fonts to be more legible on a smaller screen.

Orientation Selector

However, Amazon included the ability to change to landscape mode to make this more legible. Press the Aa key to change the screen orientation. When you choose a landscape mode, you will notice that you can now read the text more comfortably, however, you will now have to scroll the page once or twice to see it completely.

Viewing part of a PDF's page when in Landscape mode

In most of my tests, I have only been able to see 1/3rd of the page at a time. Do note that Amazon changes the functionality of the cursor so that the directions make sense, depending on which orientation mode you’re in.

This can be very annoying when your PDF has a lot of blank pages separating chapters, or padding various areas (such as the front of the book) because you have to skip 2 or 3 pages per blank page.

Thanks Amazon, it’s a start!

But let’s hope this is the beginning of a slew of new updates on a regular basis. There are numerous basic features that users are clammering for that would make this the killer eBook platform. (You do have a lot of competition now Amazon. You want to keep up right?)

Some things I hope we see in the near future:

1. Basic Folders. Let’s face it, I can’t navigate all these custom documents, purchases, and free books. I need the ability to stuff these into real folders (and not some weird tag hacking junk). A long list, ordered by date or name, is unacceptable!
2. Book Lending. Even though publishers are disabling this feature on the Nook in droves, I think it’s an awesome idea. This would attract a ton of people to the eBook world, because a large complaint they have is the inability to let a friend read it when they are done.

I’m an easy man. Only 2 necessary features!

Further Reading

More can be read about the latest Kindle firmware update via these articles:

• Kindle gets better battery life, native PDF support | Crave (CNET)
• Amazon Improves Kindle Battery Life and Adds PDF Reader (Mashable)
• Amazon Kindle Adds Better Battery, PDF Reader (FOX Business)
• Amazon Boosts Kindle Battery Life, Adds PDF Reader (eWeek)
• Amazon Boosts Kindle Battery Life, Adds Native PDF Reader (MaximumPC)

How about your experiences?

What are your experiences updating to the new 2.3 firmware, and do your PDFs look fantastic?

There are all sorts of rumors lately, about Amazon possibly releasing the Kindle 3 (or Kindle Student) any day. Even the a writer at the Wall Street Journal recently wrote about the impending release of a larger format Kindle (ideal for newspaper reading).

If this is true, those of us who purchased the Kindle 2 only months ago, might feel a little scorned since we would probably have considered the larger format from the get-go. If the next device won’t come out for at least 6 months after the release of the Kindle 2 (August), then that is probably a very fair release date. However, if it’s coming out next week as these rumors are implying, then it seems premature, and it may be OK for people to feel a bit scorned about a third release that came out less than 3 months after the Kindle 2 was released. I know I will. I know it’s hopeful wishing, but a hardware trade-in program would be a very welcomed process from Amazon.

Is it really coming?

Kindle Site is Unavailable

Out of curiosity, I pointed my web browser to http://kindle.amazon.com, and I was greeted with the image above. Does this mean that Amazon is prepping their site for the upcoming release? Perhaps. The details will unfold this week.

Hacking the Kindle to get it to do more than it was intended is certainly not a new thing, but lately it seems to be much more possible. The Director of the Kindle at Amazon is even publicly open to people hacking and reverse engineering the Kindle to extend its functionality. Here is a round up of the current hacks available for the Kindle 2:

1. Unicode Fonts Hack – Change the font to another one of your liking, or to another language or script altogether! Blog Kindle came up with this hack and has kindly provided a solution. It is completely reversable.



2. Kindle 2 Screensaver Hack – The Kindle and Kindle 2 come with some very nice imagery used as a screensaver that is displayed when the Kindle goes to sleep. The screensaver isn’t to protect the screen because there is no harm to the pixels to have content displayed at all times. The main purpose is to show off some art when you’re not using the Kindle (which of course doesn’t use any extra battery since it’s eInk). However, this hack lets you customize which images show up. Blog Kindle has also written about this hack.
3. Savoury – Automatically convert PDFs and ePub documents to Kindle/Mobi format. It will not convert DRMed files! Jesse Vincent created this hack (along with hacks for lots of other devices as he exposes himself to them thanks to wicked curiosity). He can be found on Twitter as @obra.

   

4. Network Tethering to your Kindle 2 – This easter egg was disabled by Amazon in Kindle firmware 2.0.3.

Amazon has recently acquired LexCycle, the company who built the leading free eBook application on the iPhone called Stanza.

Stanza aggregates content from multiple free and paid eBook providers, and made it very easy to discover, organize, and read content on the Apple iPhone. In recent times, Amazon released Kindle for iPhone, which allows you to read your Kindle content from an iPhone (but not browse the Kindle Store for purchasing at this time).

One can only hypothesize that Amazon wants to reduce mobile eBook competition, and bring some of this intellectual property in house in order to product the best mobile eBook experience to the Kindle line.

In the end, I think it’s a great opportunity for the LexCycle team to now further their innovative abilities by having the backing of Amazon (as long as Amazon truly blesses them with that opportunity and doesn’t just shut them down).

I’ve been a huge fan of Stanza, so I’m excited to see what Amazon does with this acquisition to improve the Kindle experience.

You know, one of the things that bugs me with the Kindle (yes, there are a few things) is that it removes the artistic value of publications. Specifically, you miss out on a few characteristics:

• Paper type and quality
• The smell of dead trees aged by their siblings in a book store
• The binding of the pages
• The physical qualities of the cover (hardback, padding, art, texture)

While it may never be truly possible to dynamically simulate these things (that is, until they are able to create custom bound full ePaper books filled with blank pages that you can “connect” into a service), there are some things that I hope Amazon considers as they move forward:

• Clean up the “Home” page. We need categories! Paging through lots of samples, purchased books, subscriptions, and our own content is painstaking difficult to navigate through.
• Cover images! We should have the ability to browse by book cover (the same one you already have in the Kindle Store would work fine) so that we can get a feel for the book as we would if we saw it on a shelf.
• Emit a stinky musty smell of dead trees. OK, I’m kidding about this one.

What do you think about having cover images on the Home screen?

Reported by blog kindle last week, Amazon released a small update to the Kindle operating system as version 2.0.3, which by now your Kindles should have automatically upgraded to. blog kindle reports that the update only appears to have minor bug fixes but nothing visually has appeared to have changed. They also note that if you have hacked your kindle, you will have to uninstall your hacks before the update will apply.