SMIDGEN

Kindle Wireless Reading Customer Review...

By totallychicken "Joyce"

A Modest Rebuttal to Hands-On Review Critiques

I've had my Kindle Wireless Reading 2 for about a week now and it certainly something to behold. I did not purchase the 1st generation, although, I did get to briefly use one owned by a friend.

My Backstory: Before purchasing, I was obsessed with the reviews and predictions I found online and reading about some of the critiques such as the thick border, the lack of touchscreen, lack of battery/SD slot, lack of a back light, awkward/difficult keyboard layout, minimally faster page flipping, and the super-high price. All these issues worried me and I was on the verge of canceling my order, but I am SO glad that I had enough faith to stick with it! As a user, here's what I have to say in RESPONSE TO THOSE CRITIQUES:

THICK BORDER: I am glad that the border is thick, because when I go to pick it up, it gives me ample area to grasp it with. I don't know many people who would feel comfortable picking up electronics by their screen (potentially mashing up the pixels/e-ink wells, smudging the screen, or scratching the surface) but I would NOT feel comfortable risking that with a thinner border. For me, the border is a plus.

TOUCHSCREEN: While a touch screen would make things a lot faster, particularly in the Basic Web function, I've read that a touch screen would reduce the screen's clarity which would not be favorable in my mind. Also, if it were to be a touchscreen, the chore of having to wipe off fingerprints would not be fun.

BATTERY/SD SLOT: Meh, I don't miss them. The Kindle Wireless Reading comes with a mini USB cable that can connect to your PC, and although I haven't used it, I think it'd be very easy to just store your unused books on your hard drive. As for the battery, Amazon's explanation was that it'd thicken the Kindle Wireless Reading, so I'm fine with it b/c the slenderness of the K2 is such a plus. The batter lasts a LONG time, too. I bought the 2 year warranty just in case, plus, it covers accidental damage!

BACK LIGHT: So...where would you need a back light in this day and age to read? Maybe in a movie theater, but it'd be just as distracting as those incessant texters, so why be a bother? On a camping trip? Maybe if you didn't bring a flashlight or a lamp to really "rough it". Honestly, there is hardly a situation where you'll need to read in the dark. If it's before bed, just get a lamp for your nightstand.

KEYBOARD: The button layout looks odd because it's so regularly spaced in rows versus the keyboard's staggered style, but it isn't any harder to use than a cellphone's tri-letter entry or blackberry keyboard. The buttons are not hard to press at all. Every K2 button has a satisfying *click* to it so you know you pressed it. Also, the size the keyboard takes up is an issue for some, but when I'm sitting on the ground, I like to rest it upright on my lap against my legs like an easel and the keyboard tends to get obscured by my jacket/shirt puffing out in front of me. If the keyboard weren't as large as it is, I'd be obscuring my text, so I'm actually happy it is that size.

PAGE FLIP SPEED: Just like how I prefer to grasp the page a few sentences before the end of a page, I tend to press the "Next Page" button a bit sooner than I finish reading the page. The lag actually helps in that respect, and even so, the lag between pushing the button and the new page appearing is much faster than I could ever physically flip any book page without shearing it from the spine. Not a big deal at all.

PRICE: Well...for a product this good, it's hard to expect much less. Sure, it could go for mid-$100's and that WOULD make it more accessible to the mass market. However, I think all the positives of the K2 greatly make it worth the price which I'll talk about below.

My FAVORITE FEATURES of the K2:

- Inside-edge buttons - These have saved me from accidentally pressing buttons many times.

- No lame welcome screen - This is self-explanatory. The warm up time is a split second and it doesn't dilly-dally around.

- Instant book purchasing - Fast service and FREE samples that are lengthy enough for you to get a good idea of what you're buying.

- E-ink and matte screen - No harsh computer-screen look to it does not fatigue my eyes at all, and the matte helps reduce glare from light bulbs and the sun.

- Search - As a book reader, I've had way too many "Now where did I read that quote again?" moments and this eliminates it from ever happening again! It's amazing!

- Wikipedia/Dictionary - Again, added reference, amazing!

- Basic Web - So...I hope that Amazon doesn't start charging for this service, because if they did, I probably wouldn't want to buy it anymore. So, obviously, this is an EXPERIMENTAL feature on the K2, so who knows if it'll last, but omg, free internet access...WIRELESS internet access...I think I've died and gone to heaven. I won't state numbers, but you iPhone and Blackberry users know what I mean with the monthly fees. Granted, the K2 doesn't do images very well, flash/complex apps/or images at all, but it can essentially do everything your basic cell phone internet can. So Amazon, if you read this, please don't start charging for the internet service, I would be very sad and I'm sure many others would be, too.

IMPROVEMENTS for next time:

1. On some of the menu screens and the home screen, it would be very nice for it to have a scrolling feature where when you keep selecting up at the top, it will bring your cursor to the bottom of the list or vice versa, back up to the top from the bottom.

2. Security features: I'm a little concerned about if my Kindle Wireless Reading got stolen...You can de-register your Kindle Wireless Reading, but I'd be really upset to know that someone else is using my hard-earned K2...I'm not asking for a remote detonator like in Mission Impossible, but perhaps a remote deactivation to ensure it can't be used by other users?

3. Smarter page/link scrolling in Basic Web: I realize this isn't one of the main features or the point of the Kindle Wireless Reading, but it really takes quite a while and a bit of playing around to reach links.

4. Weight: It's a little bit (a smidgen) heavier than I would prefer, but not too much to be a burden.

5. Glitches: (?) Maybe it's just me, but when I was reading the first few times, the screen would flash and it would bring me back to the home page...I hope it was an isolated incident because hasn't happened since. Has this happened to anyone else?

Finally, the whole Text to Voice thing: It is a cool feature, but the fact that some authors won't let the Kindle read aloud should NOT deter anyone from buying a Kindle. It was a fun feature, but I won't miss it too much. I prefer to read on my own anyways...and after all, isn't encouraging reading the point of the Kindle Wireless Reading, anyways?

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Kindle Wireless Reading Highly Recommend!