Amazon Kindle 2 Review: Why It’s The Most Popular eBook Reader Today
You may not have heard about the Kindle when it first hit the market. Compared to some technologies such as the iPhone and new versions of Windows, the Kindle was a fairly quiet release. If you are an avid reader, you were probably more than a little intrigued. But intrigue grew into popularity with the release of the much-improved Amazon Kindle. And now with the Kindle DX, the most advanced reader on the market, Amazon has become the single most popular maker of ebook readers.
If you don’t own a Kindle yet, you may be wondering what makes the device so popular. Is the technology that phenomenal or is it just all hype? It’s actually a blend of both. While many are sticking it out with the good old book, the Kindle does take reading to a whole new level. Just imagine being able to take your whole library with you anywhere. Its portability and the capacity to hold thousands of books (about 3,000 for the DX, 1,500 for the Kindle 2) is what makes the gadget appealing. Although the new Kindle DX is larger in size than the Kindle 2, both are no thinner than a regular magazine.
While the Kindle 2 has been the standard that other companies are trying to compete with, the just-released Amazon Kindle DX is in a class all its own. It features a large 9.7-inch screen with auto-rotating feature which makes it easier to view PDF files, and has the capacity to hold more books than other portable ebook reader. Simply put, the Kindle DX is the device to beat. Unfortunately, all these features come at a steep price.
The price may be the reason so many people don’t have a Kindle yet. The Kindle 2 is expensive at 350 dollars, but the Kindle DX is really hard to swallow at 489 dollars. For that kind of money, you would have high expectations. But the new DX doesn’t come with a cover, free books and it is very limited in what kinds of files it can view thanks to strict copy protection. The Kindle 2 still offers an array of options, but doesn’t cost nearly so much.
Because it is a fairly new piece of technology, the Kindle is still exploring its marketplace. It offers a great wireless connection to the Amazon marketplace, but it still isn’t available outside the country. This is simply because the Kindle is not yet established. Many people still see it as just something to read books on. But not too long ago, the iPod was only something that played music. And now, you’d have a harder time finding someone who doesn’t own one than someone who does. The fact is that the Kindle really is a revolutionary piece of technology and it has certainly made an impact. It’s only a matter of time before everyone with a bookshelf frees up some space in their room and does all their reading from an ebook reader. And as it stands now, Kindle is perched to be the ebook reader of choice for a long time to come.