29. July 2010

Two new Kindles from Amazon

As expected a new, no two new Kindles just arrived at amazon.com and will ship from August 27th on.

You now can choose between a $139 WiFi only (available in graphite) and a $189 Free 3G + WiFi (availabele in graphite or bright-white) version of the 6 inch Kindle.

So, the Kindle got WiFi – finally, that is good news, but rises the question, why the more expensive Kindle DX did not get it?

Here are the new features:

  • New, High-Contrast E-Ink Screen – 50% better contrast than any other e-reader. The clearest text and sharpest images.
  • New and Improved Fonts – New crisper, darker fonts
    • Kindle now has three font styles -  standard Caecilia font, a condensed version of Caecilia, and a sans serif option
    • Support for New Characters -  Cyrillic (such as Russian), Japanese, Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), and Korean characters in addition to Latin and Greek scripts
  • New Sleek Design – 21% smaller body while keeping the same 6″ size reading area
  • 17% Lighter – Only 8.5 ounces, weighs less than a paperback
  • Battery Life of Up to One Month – A single charge lasts up to one month with wireless off
  • Built-In Wi-Fi – Shop and download books in less than 60 seconds
  • 20% Faster Page Turns – Seamless reading
  • Enhanced PDF Reader – With dictionary lookup, notes, and highlights
  • New WebKit-Based Browser – Browse the web over Wi-Fi (experimental)

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27. July 2010

Kindle 2 out of stock

Rather suddenly the Kindle 2 is out of stock at amazon.com. The recent price cut to $189 could be a reason, but it would not be typical for amazon not planing in advance.

Since there even is no date given, when the Kindle 2 might be available again and due to similar experiences with the Kindle 1 this might point to the arriving of a new Kindle 3. Since we just saw the sudden arrival of the new graphite Kindle DX this seems rather possible.

The last time, when the Kindle 1 suddenly went out of stock in end 2008, early 2009 users who had ordered the Kindle got the Kindle 2 instead.

06. July 2010

Amazon Kindle DX another price drop

Amazon has just dropped the price of its remaining inventory of new Kindle DX Wireless Reading Device, Free 3G, 9.7″ Display, White, 3G Works Globally – 2nd Generation units to $359 each. So far it’s just the normal Kindle DX with all the new features of the firmware update to version 2.5.x

So it comes as usual with free global 3G.  Until last week it was the newest Kindle DX and was selling for $489!

Well that is still a lot of money, but here it comes, if you don’t mind to take a refurbished model of the same Kindle DX – they are usually as good as any brand new one – the price now goes down to $299 !  These Kindles are factory refurbished and sealed. The only difference to a brand new one is that it does not ship with the AC adaptor plug. This accessory must be purchased separately.But in 99% you will charge it via USB anyway.

All purchases eligible for Amazon customer service and 30 day return policy.

01. July 2010

New Kindle DX2 sells for $379


Amazon has just introduced new Kindle DX 2 for $379. Of course the price for the white Kindle DX also went down from $489 to $379.

So at the moment there are two Kindle DX versions: The new Kindle DX 2 in graphite wich is going to be released on July 7th, 2010. And second the Kindle DX 1 in white. It is being referred to as Kindle DX 2nd generation.

The Kindle DX 2 is basically Kindle DX with better screen contrast and a $110 lower price

There are claims by users at the official Kindle Forum that the screen of the DX 2 is clearer. Amazon stated. that the screen contrast was improved by 50 percent to now 10:1

All New, High Contrast E-Ink Screen: Our graphite Kindle DX uses our all new, improved electronic ink display, with 50% better contrast for the clearest text and sharpest images

Beautiful Large Display: The 9.7″ diagonal E-ink screen is ideal for a broad range of reading material, including graphic-rich books, PDFs, newspapers, magazines, and blogs

Read in Sunlight with No Glare: Unlike backlit computer or LCD screens, Kindle DX’s display looks and reads like real paper, with no glare. Read as easily in bright sunlight as in your living room

Books In Under 60 Seconds: Get books delivered wirelessly in less than 60 seconds; no PC required

Free 3G Wireless: No monthly payments, no annual contracts. Download books anywhere, anytime

Long Battery Life: Read for up to 1 week on a single charge with wireless on or up to two weeks with wireless off.

Carry Your Library: Holds up to 3,500 books, periodicals, and documents

Buy Books Once, Read Them Anywhere: Kindle books can be read on all your devices. Our Whispersync technology saves and synchronizes your Kindle library and last page read across your Kindle(s), PC, iPhone, Mac, iPad, Android phone, and BlackBerry device

Social Networks: Posting meaningful passages to Twitter and Facebook directly from your Kindle

Global Coverage: Enjoy 3G wireless coverage at home or abroad in over 100 countries.
Built-In PDF Reader: With Zoom capability to easily view small print and detailed tables or graphics

Auto-Rotating Screen: Display auto-rotates from portrait to landscape as you turn the device

Read-to-Me: With the text-to-speech feature

Low Book Prices: New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases from $9.99.

14. June 2010

Kindle update 2.5. is finally out

Amazon just officially released firmware version 2.5 for Kindle 2 and Kindle DX. It will be delivered automatically via Whispernet but if you do not want to wait any longer, you can download and install the update manually.

Just go to www.amazon.com and follow the instructions.

Read entire post …

Kindle update version 2.5.3

My Kindle DX just updated from version 2.5.2 to version 2.5.3. So far I can not tell any differences. Since the .bin file had only a size of about 57kbyte I guess it was just a minor bug fix. Will keep track of that

04. June 2010

Kindle Update is rolling out

Good news to all Kindle 2 and Kindle DX owners:
A post in the Kindle forum at amazon.com states, that the bugs in version 2.5 are fixed and the update is finally rolling out to the users.

The poster says he had a phone conversation with a young man from Kindle Tech support who told the bugs have been worked out of the 2.5 update and amazon is beginning the roll out now!

The Details:

Read entire post …

25. May 2010

Kindle 2.5 Update

Different Kindle DX users report that the 2.5 software update is finally coming.
Amazon had set a target of late May for their 2.5 update, which enables PDF pan and zoom and improves library organization with collections.

A Facebook- and Twitter-friendly app that enables the user to share book excerpts. The other much demanded function is a password protection.

05. May 2010

Waiting for 2.5 version of the Kindle software

While everyone with a Kindle 2 or a Kindle DX is desperately waiting for the software update to version 2.5 the help page at amazon.com already explains the new features and how to use them with your kindle in detail and with screenshots.

So you can already figure out how to organize your books into collections, how to share clippings on twitter and facebook or how to see, what other Kindle users did highlight in their books.

The most wished for feature of version 2.5 is undoubtedly the possibility of organizing your books:

Creating Collections

If you store a lot of content on your Kindle, you can create collections to improve your organization. A collection is a category you create on your Kindle Home screen. You can then move your books and other reading material from the Home screen to the collections you create. Your Kindle will sort your content by collections after you create your first collection.

Content Organized into Collections

To create a collection:

  1. Select “Create New Collection” from the Home screen menu.
  2. Enter a name for the collection.
  3. Select “Save” with the 5-way controller when finished.

To rename or delete a collection:

  1. Highlight the collection name on the Home screen.
  2. Move the 5-way controller to the right to reveal the collection options.
  3. Select the desired action with the 5-way controller.
  4. Follow the on-screen instructions.

Note: Deleting a collection from your Kindle does not change the content stored on your device. Items previously placed into the collection that are stored on your Kindle will appear on the Home screen after the collection is deleted.

To sort your Home screen content by collection:

  1. Move your cursor to the top of the Home screen to highlight “Showing All Items” and your current viewing option.
  2. Move the 5-way controller to the right to reveal available viewing options.
  3. Select “Collections” from the options.

Managing Content in Your Collections

After you create one or more collections you wish to use for organizing your Kindle’s content, you’re ready associate items on your Kindle with those collections. Here are a few handy collection features:

  • Collections are stored on Amazon: When you create a collection on a device, we’ll save your collection so it appears in Archived Items on other devices registered to your Amazon.com account. This allows you to transfer collections across registered Kindles.
  • Books are associated with collections until removed: If you add a book to a collection on your Kindle and then delete the book from your device, it remains associated with that collection in Archive Items. If you download the book again, it will automatically appear in the appropriate collection on your Home screen.
  • Books can appear in more than one collection: You can associate a single book or other item from your library with multiple collections if you wish.
  • Collections don’t change device or Archive Items content: If you delete a book from a collection or delete an entire collection from your Kindle, it does not change the actual items saved on your Kindle or in your Archive Items on Amazon. When you delete a collection from your Kindle, any downloaded items from that collection will appear the Home screen instead of in the collection.

To add or remove collection items:

  1. Highlight the collection name on the Home screen.
  2. Move the 5-way controller to the right to reveal the collection options.
  3. Select “Add/Remove Items” with the 5-way controller.
  4. Highlight and select a title you wish to add or remove. Items currently in the collection will display a check mark to the right of the title.
  5. Select “Done” at the bottom of the screen when you’ve finished editing your collection.

To import a collection from another Kindle:

  1. Select “Archived Items” from the Kindle Home screen.
  2. Select “Add Other Device Collections” from the Archived Items page.
  3. Select the desired collection to import and select “ok” to confirm.

Note: Importing a collection from another device does not import the books or other items to your Kindle if they aren’t downloaded already. However, books already on your Kindle that are associated with a collection will automatically appear under that collection name on your Home screen.

Annotations: Highlights, Bookmarks, Clippings, Notes

Information about using Kindle is also available in your Kindle User’s Guide—you can download a copy on the Kindle Documentation page.

Overview of Annotations

Annotations (bookmarks, highlights, notes, clippings) you make on a Kindle book are stored in your Kindle library on Amazon.com when your Kindle is connected to Whispernet. When you open the title on any registered device, you’ll be right where you were the last time you read and your annotations will be included.

To view your annotations: Open your title, press the Menu button and select “My Notes & Marks.”

Adding Bookmarks

You can place a bookmark at any location and place multiple bookmarks in whatever you are reading. You can select “My Notes & Marks” from the Menu to return to any bookmarked location. Bookmarked pages have a “dog-ear” icon appears in the upper right corner.

To place a bookmark:

  1. Go to the page that you want to bookmark.
  2. Press the Menu button.
  3. Highlight and select “Add a Bookmark” using the 5-way controller.

Tip: You can quickly create a bookmark by either holding down the Alt key and pressing the B key, or by moving the 5-way up or down to go into cursor mode and then pressing the 5-way controller twice.

To view a bookmarked location:

  1. Press the Menu button and Select “My Notes & Marks.”
  2. Highlight and select the desired location from the list.

To remove a bookmark:

  1. Go to the bookmarked page.
  2. Press the Menu button.
  3. Highlight and select “Delete Bookmark.”

To remove several bookmarks at one time:

  1. Press the Menu button and select “My Notes & Marks.”
  2. Underline the bookmark you want to remove with the 5-way controller.
  3. Press the Delete key.
  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 to remove additional bookmarks.
  5. Select “Close Notes & Marks” when finished.

Highlighting Passages

You can highlight text in Kindle like you would use a highlighter pen on paper and view them at any time by pressing the Menu button and selecting “My Notes & Marks.” The text you highlight appears with a gray underline.

To highlight one or more lines:

  1. Use the 5-way to position the cursor where you want to start highlighting.
  2. Press the 5-way to anchor the cursor.
  3. Move the 5-way to select the desired text. Use Next Page or Prev Pages to highlight text across multiple pages.
  4. Press the 5-way at the place where you want the highlight to end.

To remove a highlight:

  1. Press the Menu button and select “My Notes & Marks.”
  2. Underline the bookmark you want to remove with the 5-way controller.
  3. Press the Delete key.
  4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 to remove additional highlights.
  5. Select “Close Notes & Marks” when finished.

Viewing Popular Highlights

Coming Soon – Available with the 2.5 software release.

Amazon displays Popular Highlights by combining the highlights of all Kindle customers and identifying the passages with the most highlights. The resulting Popular Highlights help readers to focus on passages that are meaningful to the greatest number of people. Some books don’t have enough highlighting in them to have Popular Highlights. Popular highlights are marked with a grey dashed underline in your reading. You can see Popular Highlights for all books that have them at kindle.amazon.com.

To view Popular Highlights:

  1. Open a book on your Kindle.
  2. Press the Menu key and select “View Popular Highlights” from the options.

To turn Popular Highlights on and off:

  1. Navigate to Kindle’s Home screen and press the Menu button.
  2. Select “Settings” from the Home screen menu.
  3. Select the desired option next to “Popular Highlights.”

Participating in Popular Highlights

The information for the Popular Highlights feature comes from all Kindle users who own the book and save notes and highlights to their Kindle Library. The information used for Popular Highlights is aggregated in a similar way to the aggregation of order data in the feature “Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought.” We show only passages where the highlights of at least three distinct customers overlap, and we do not show which customers made those highlights.

If you don’t want the passages you highlight in your books added to the aggregated Popular Highlights data, you have the option to turn off Annotations Backup on your Kindle.

Note: If you turn off Annotations Backup and then delete the book from your Kindle or lose or break your Kindle then you won’t be able to recover your notes and highlights. Your last page read also won’t synchronize between Kindle devices and applications.

To turn off Annotations Backup:

  1. Navigate to Kindle’s Home screen and press the Menu button.
  2. Select “Settings” from the Home screen menu.
  3. Select the desired option next to “Annotations Backup.”

Adding Notes

Kindle allows you to add comments, make notes, and mark up passages just as you might in a printed book.

To add a note:

  1. Move the cursor to where you want to place a note using the 5-way controller.
  2. Type your note.
  3. Select “save note” at the bottom of the screen.

A superscripted number appears where you inserted your note. Notes are numbered in the order they appear in the content and update automatically if you add more.

To edit or delete a note:

  1. Select the note’s number using the 5-way controller so the note appears at the bottom of the screen.
  2. Press the Return key to edit the note or the Delete key to delete the note.
  3. Use the keyboard to make changes if editing.
  4. Select “save note” to save any changes.

Making Clippings

You can “clip” an entire periodical article and save it to the “My Clippings” file.

To clip an article:

  1. Go to the article you want to clip.
  2. Press the Menu button.
  3. Select “Clip this Article” from the menu.

To view your clippings:

  1. Press the Home button to display the Home screen.
  2. Select “My Clippings” from the Home screen.

Editing the “My Clippings” File

All of your bookmarks, highlights, notes, and clippings are stored in the “My Clippings” TXT file on your Kindle. You can transfer and copy the file to share and use your clippings.

To transfer the “My Clippings” file and open it on your computer:

  1. Connect your Kindle to your computer using the USB cable.
  2. Use your computer’s file browser to view the Documents folder on Kindle.
  3. Transfer the “My Clippings” file from Kindle to your computer.
  4. Open the “My Clippings” file on your computer using an application that can read or import a .TXT file.

If you wish, you can make changes to the file and transfer it back to your Kindle. Changing your “My Clippings” file does not affect any notes, bookmarks, or highlights you’ve made in the actual content. The next time you read the content, you can still use them for navigation and reference.

To remove the “My Clippings” file from your Kindle:

  1. Press the Home button to display the Home screen.
  2. Underline “My Clippings” on the Home screen.
  3. Move the 5-way controller to the left.
  4. Press the 5-way to select “Delete.”

Kindle adds a new “My Clippings” file the next time you add a clipping or annotation to any content.

Sharing Highlights and Notes on Facebook and Twitter

Coming Soon – Available with the 2.5 software release.

If you’re reading and happen across a passage you’d like to share with friends or followers through social networking sites, Kindle gives you the option to post it to Facebook or Twitter.

Registering Your Social Networks

Before you can share what you’re reading, you’ll need to link your Amazon.com account to your account on Facebook or Twitter.

To manage your social networks:

  1. Navigate to Kindle’s Home screen and press the Menu button.
  2. Select “Settings” from the Home screen menu.
  3. Select the “manage” option next to Social Networks on the Settings page.
  4. Follow the instructions on the screen to link or unlink an account.

Sharing on a Registered Network

Posting to Facebook or Twitter is as easy as highlighting a passage and adding a comment. When you select the share option, your comments will be sent automatically to your registered social networking sites, appended with a backlink to a web page showing the passage you highlighted.

To create a highlight and note to share:

  1. Place the cursor at the beginning of the passage using the 5-Way controller and press down to anchor it.
  2. Highlight the passage using the 5-Way controller.
  3. Enter your note or comment about the passage you highlighted.
  4. Select “save & share” from the options at the bottom of the note window when finished.

If you don’t have a Facebook or Twitter account associated with your Amazon.com account, you’ll automatically be prompted to manage your social network registration before your message is posted.

To share from your existing notes and marks:

  1. Open the book that contains the note or highlight.
  2. Press the Menu key and select “View My Notes & Marks.”
  3. Highlight the item you wish to share in your Notes & Marks.
  4. Press Alt + Image of Enter key on kindle Keyboard. on the keyboard to share.

You can also navigate to a section in your book that contains a note or highlight, select it with your cursor, and press Alt + Image of Enter key on kindle Keyboard. on the keyboard to share.

Searching on Kindle

Kindle’s search function allows you to find related items in your content and on the Internet.

To perform a search:

  1. Type in your search term, the Search line will automatically appear. You can use whole words or partial words, and no distinction is made between lower and upper case. You can enter up to 255 characters.

    Illustration of search input field on Kindle.

  2. Move the 5-way to the right to highlight the content or location to search and press the 5-way to select. The arrow indicates that more Search options are available if you scroll in the direction indicated.

    Illustration of search options available on Kindle

Types of Searches

Here’s a quick description of the available search options:

  • Find: Searches the item you’re currently reading for the search term(s).
  • My Items: Searches all of your content (including text, metadata and annotations in downloaded items, archived items, personal documents, and local reference materials) for the search term(s).
  • Store: Searches for your term(s) in the titles, descriptions, and content of items available for purchase from the Kindle Store.
  • Google: Searches Google.com for indexed websites containing the search term(s).
  • Wikipedia: Searches Wikipedia.com for entries containing the search term(s).
  • Dictionary: Searches your default dictionary on your Kindle for the search term(s).

Viewing Search Results

Kindle displays a Search Results page when the requested search is completed. Use the Next Page and Previous Page buttons if there are more results than fit on the current page. If your results contain a specific item or website, you’ll be able to underline and select specific items using the 5-way controller.

My Items

Kindle displays all titles that contain your search term(s) and shows total instances for your term(s) in each item to the left of the title. To see all results for a specific title, select it with the 5-way controller.

Illustration of available search results on KindleAfter you select a specific title from the search results or if you limited your search results to a specific title originally, you’ll see a results page that displays all the locations where the search term(s) appear. You can select and view the locations listed using the 5-way controller. Use the Back button to return to your results page.

Illustration of reading location entries from search results on Kindle

Kindle Store

A Store search takes you to the Kindle Store where you can browse available titles.

Illustration of results from Kindle Store search on Kindle

Definitions

When you look up the meaning of a word, Kindle displays definitions from default dictionary. You can use the 5-way controller to select specific words within the definition to see them defined at the bottom of the screen.

Illustration of definition detail from search results on Kindle

Remote Searches

When you’re connected to Whispernet and select “wikipedia” or “google” as your search option, Kindle opens Basic Web and displays the search results from the chosen website. If links are available, you can navigate to other web pages using the 5-way controller.

Setting Show and Sort Options

The Home screen allows you to choose the specific content type displayed. You can select a “Show” option to indicate what type of content you wish to see and then organize the listed content by selecting a “Sort” option.

To change how your content is organized on the Home Screen:

  1. Move the 5-way up to the top of the screen to underline the current Show and Sort selections. By default, these are typically “Showing All Items” and “By Most Recent First.”
  2. Move the 5-way to the left to see the Show options or to the right to see the Sort options.
  3. Select your desired Show or Sort option using the 5-way controller.

Show Options

Here’s a list of the Show options available.

Illustration of Show options for type of content displayed on Kindle.

  • Personal Docs: Shows only the Personal Documents you have stored on your Kindle.
  • Subscriptions: Shows only the periodicals and blogs you have stored on your Kindle.
  • Books: Shows only the books and audiobooks you have stored on your Kindle.
  • All My Items: Shows all of the content you have stored on your Kindle.

Sort Options

Here’s a list of the Sort options available.

Illustration of options to sort content on Kindle Home.

  • Most Recent First: Sorts your content by the most recently added or recently opened items first.
  • Title: Sorts your content alphabetically by title of the item.
  • Author: Sorts your content alphabetically by the author’s last name or publisher’s name. If you choose this option, periodicals will be sorted by their dates.

Downloading New Content

If you just purchased content from the Kindle Store or are waiting for the most recent issue of a periodical to be delivered, you can use Kindle’s Home menu to start the download.

To download content pending delivery:

  1. If you are not already on the Home screen, press the Home key.
  2. Check the wireless status indicator to make sure you are connected to Whispernet. If not, select “Turn Wireless On” from the Home menu.
  3. Press the Menu button and select “Sync & Check for Items” using the 5-way controller.

Illustration of the Sync & Check for Items option on the Kindle

Downloading Archived Content

Kindle displays the items you’ve downloaded on the Home screen. If you have Kindle content stored in your Kindle library that isn’t displayed, you can download it from your Kindle library on Amazon.com when connected to Whispernet.

To download Archived Items:

  1. Select “Archived Items” from the Home screen or “View Archived Items” from the Menu.
  2. Select the item from the Archived Items screen.

Removing Kindle Content

All books you purchase are automatically backed up on Amazon.com. When you remove a book from your Kindle, it appears in your Archived Items.

Note that if you wish to permanently remove a book so that it will no longer appear in your Archived Items please see Managing Your Kindle on Amazon.com.

To remove content:

  1. If you are not already on the Home screen, press the “Home” button.
  2. Underline the item you want to remove with the 5-way controller.
  3. Move the controller to the left and select “Remove from device.”

To change your mind, move the 5-way up or down to cancel.

Removing Personal Content

Personal documents you transfer to your Kindle are not backed up at Amazon.com. If you wish to keep a copy of personal items for backup before deleting them from your Kindle, you’ll need to save them to your computer or another storage device.

Removing Content with Annotations

When you remove a Kindle book you bought from Amazon that is available for re-download in your Kindle library, we automatically save all of your annotations for the book.

The “My Clippings” file on your Kindle will still remain as a separate file containing all the clippings you added regardless of whether the content is a book, subscription, or blog, regardless of whether it was purchased from Amazon or not. See Customize Your Reading for more information.

Keeping Subscription Content

Older issues of newspapers and magazines appear inside a grouping called “Periodicals: Back Issues.” Selecting the grouping takes you to a screen that displays the back issues you have on your Kindle.

Kindle automatically deletes newspaper and magazine issues that are more than seven issues old to free up space for new content. An exclamation point next to a magazine or newspaper issue indicates that it will be deleted soon. If you’d like to keep a copy of an issue, follow these steps:

To keep a back issue:

  1. Open the specific issue from the Kindle Home screen.
  2. Press the Menu button and select “Keep This Issue.”

You will then see the word “keep” to the left of the issue title in Home.

How to access documents on your Kindle. How to organize, bookmark, highlight, and archive Kindle books and content.

29. April 2010

Kindle Software Update ahead!

Kindle DX

Amazon announces Kindle Version 2.5 for late may, containing some long awaited improvements!

Finally some kind of tagging system will be coming,  help you organize your books and documents into one or more collections.

Zooming into PDFs and pan around to easily view small print and detailed tables or graphics.

There will be two new larger font sizes and sharper fonts for an even more comfortable reading experience.

Last but not least now you can password protect your Kindle.

Amazon Software Update Page: “The 2.5 software update for Kindle and Kindle DX is coming soon. We are rolling out the new software update to a limited group of Kindle users and plan a broad release in late May 2010. Check back here for updates on the release schedule.”

Read entire post …

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