Quote :

"Its unique offline GPS navigation technology gives you a direct satellite link — no more worries about network availability."

Quote :

"can someone explain to me what does this mean?"

i assume they're referencing the difference between "regular" GPS and A-GPS (which wireless data networks use)

for example, my tomtom has all the maps already loaded and it just communicates via GPS to determine where i am...my thunderbolt using google nav loads maps via data (requiring phone service) as i need them

[Edited on October 7, 2011 at 1:09 PM. Reason : page two!]

10/7/2011 1:09:13 PM

I don't se how that is "unique offline GPS navigation technology" because its he same goddamn technology that is behind every stand-alone GPS, even the 50 dollar chinese POS from Pep Boys. But that's kinda how i saw it. Being a technophile I had a glimmer of hope that it means something more advanced and exciting

10/7/2011 1:46:31 PM

well, i could certainly be wrong...that's just how i interpreted it

you either need to have the maps in their entirety on your device or you have to have a means by which to download them as you need them...not sure what else you could do

10/7/2011 1:52:17 PM

Replacement Kindle arrived. Still worse than my Kindle 3 Keyboard. Looks like Amazon screwed up. Despite them saying it's the same display something is different.

10/7/2011 3:59:26 PM

i'd be interested in how ^ kindle compares with the newest nook e-ink screen...i say that because in my very limited experience with the e-ink nook, my kindle had a better (although not overwhelmingly) better screen

10/7/2011 4:13:02 PM

Well Amazon claims the pearl e-ink display is identical in the newer Kindles as the Kindle 3 keyboard but it's not. Going to wait on the touch and see if it has the same issue. It not I may pick it up instead.

Sucks though because the form factor and weight of it was perfect for reading.

10/7/2011 4:14:50 PM

Decided to get the $79 one. Now what should I read?

10/10/2011 11:34:23 PM

erotica

10/11/2011 6:55:07 AM

I really can't imagine what you guys are complaining about w.r.t. the screen. Any side-by-side comparisons? Weren't the kindle 3 keyboards black or something? Could it be the different contrast between the bezel and the screen?

10/11/2011 11:02:40 AM

Quote :

"I really can't imagine what you guys are complaining about w.r.t. the screen. Any side-by-side comparisons? Weren't the kindle 3 keyboards black or something? Could it be the different contrast between the bezel and the screen?"

When I did the comparison I had 2 Kindle 3 keyboards and 2 new Kindles (i got a replacement thinking it was just defective).

To eliminate the bezel throwing things off i took some opaque paper and cut a hole in it the size of the screen and did a comparison. The new Kindle's have noticeably worse contrast and the letters are fuzzier.

Just look at some of the lower star reviews on Amazon. People are complaining about this. I tried to ignore it but it was annoyingly bad compared to my Kindle 3 so I returned them. Maybe the touch will be better.

10/11/2011 11:10:10 AM

How much do you hate hardware keyboards that you're so desparate to try to replace a device that you admit looks great?

10/11/2011 11:13:28 AM

a lot?

10/11/2011 11:26:44 AM

It's more the form factor and the fact that I never use the keyboard. The newer Kindle weighs less, it's easier to hold in one hand, and it only has what I need. I never use the keyboard and often I accidentally hit keys on it while trying to hold it. I just want a simple reader without all the extra features the Kindle 3 keyboard has. I don't need sound or a keyboard I just want something to read novels on. Maybe the touch will be better. Until then I'll put up with the 3.

10/11/2011 11:44:15 AM

I'll agree with that. I had a Kindle 2, and the mere existence of the keyboard pissed me off enough to sell it after we got an iPad. The new Kindle is exactly what I want in terms of form-factor, meaning exactly what it was before minus the stupid keyboard.

10/11/2011 12:02:30 PM

Quote :

"It's more the form factor and the fact that I never use the keyboard. The newer Kindle weighs less, it's easier to hold in one hand, and it only has what I need."

this

though i don't "hate" it so much that i want to get another one...just that i wouldn't even consider the keyboard version were the ugly silver ones an option at the time (if that's any measure how useless i find the keyboard, i'd get what i consider to be the ugliest option over the larger, more useless one)

10/11/2011 12:59:46 PM

How does the Kindle handle books with an Appendix in the back? Such as any of A Song of Fire and Ice. I find myself flipping to the appendix or the map in front pretty often when reading the books. Is that easy to do with the Kindle?

10/21/2011 9:39:00 PM

No, not at all.

10/21/2011 9:40:29 PM

Some books that have footnotes referenced at the end actually turn the little number into a link so you can flip to the footnote and back to the page in one click, however it would probably involve navigating two or three layers of context menu to get to the map/appendix on a whim. Maybe if the map page had some unique searchable text you could quickly search to it, otherwise, no.

10/22/2011 10:54:17 AM

Amazon could be taking quite a hit with the newer Kindle... the reviews have been mediocre at best!

10/22/2011 3:25:02 PM

i was trying to figure this out last night and i couldnt get an answer from the website that was concrete.

what is the difference between the new base model kindle and the kindle touch? they both have on-screen keyboards, correct? so is the only difference you can turn the pages with the touch where as you use tactile buttons on the side with the base model? and then if you want a full physical keyboard, you get the 3rd gen?

10/25/2011 1:43:19 PM

^ I dont think the base model has an onscreen keyboard.

10/25/2011 1:47:42 PM

Yes the base model has no touch screen and the screen isn't as good as the Kindle keyboard.

10/25/2011 3:02:35 PM

so you simply cannot input anything on the base model? or only type using the directional thing and the onscreen menu of characters?

reminds me of the 2nd gen iPod shuffle that they removed ALL the buttons and realized that even minimalism can go too far on occasion...

10/25/2011 3:05:14 PM

Does the Fire have an email app?

My mom (who is never even remotely clued-in about technology) has expressed an interest in one of these. Think I will get her one for her birthday, but she wants to be able to email

10/25/2011 3:07:16 PM

Yes you use the directional keys for inputting data. Which is perfect for me. I've almost NEVER used the keyboard on my Kindle 3. It's for reading, not inputting data. The only time I ever input data is if I have to search Amazon for a book when I'm no where near a computer (which rarely happens).

IMO the keyboard is just a pain. It makes the device larger, and I keep accidentally hitting it. There's no point for it. If you need to input on a Kindle you're using it wrong.

10/25/2011 3:08:33 PM

Unless you like making notes

10/25/2011 3:24:51 PM

Get a tablet or use a real book. Kindle's for reading. I couldn't ever imagine taking notes on a kindle. Even the one with the keyboard. It's just too slow.

10/25/2011 4:18:13 PM

i use the keyboard for games, but that is about it

10/25/2011 4:37:29 PM

Quote :

"There's no point for it. If you need to input on a Kindle you're using it wrong."

i use the keyboard on my 2nd gen kindle to search for stuff in a book all the time

10/25/2011 5:05:50 PM

Nook Tablet just announced. TBH I like it much better than the Fire.

11/7/2011 12:18:26 PM

well they're both equally existent

11/7/2011 2:41:30 PM

Anyone get a touch yet? I want to see one in person before I jump on board to make sure the screen isn't worse like the non-touch version compared to the keyboard.

11/14/2011 1:10:11 PM

kindle touch or fire (tablet)?

from all the fire reviews it sounds like it sucks ass (for power users)...
http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/14/amazon-kindle-fire-review/
http://www.wired.com/reviews/2011/11/kindle-fire/
http://www.theverge.com/2011/11/14/2560084/kindle-fire-review
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/14/technology/personaltech/the-fire-aside-amazons-lower-priced-kindles-also-shine.html

- sluggish interface, staggering page turns, slow browser
- no hardware buttons (no navigation or volume)
- half the RAM (512MB)
- half the storage (8GB)
- no external memory card slot
- 1024 x 600, 169ppi pixel density
- amazon skin, limited access to honeycomb features
- no access to android market
- no camera
- no GPS
- no Bluetooth
- no Calendar or NotePad

Quote :

"Perhaps it's the step down from the standard 1GB, or perhaps it's the heavy-handed software overlay running atop Android, but the Fire never delivers smooth, seamless performance. While Amazon's own carousel of recently used items is slick and smooth, we had inconsistent results with APKs we sideloaded on here. Amazon's own media players work well, but third party ones that offered better compatibility with file formats universally did not."

Quote :

"It’s a chunky-thick, seven-inch, shiny black tablet. It’s actually running Android, the Google software that powers a lot of cellphones and other companies’ tablets, but you’d never guess it. Amazon has plastered over the Google design until not a speck of it is left showing. ... Amazon, like books, newspapers and video. It has no camera, microphone, GPS function, Bluetooth or memory-card slot. There is a serviceable e-mail program, but no built-in calendar or note pad. ... Most problematic, though, the Fire does not have anything like the polish or speed of an iPad. You feel that $200 price tag with every swipe of your finger. Animations are sluggish and jerky — even the page turns that you’d think would be the pride of the Kindle team. Taps sometimes don’t register. There are no progress or “wait” indicators, so you frequently don’t know if the machine has even registered your touch commands. The momentum of the animations hasn’t been calculated right, so the whole thing feels ornery."

Quote :

"When stacked up against other popular tablets, the Fire can't compete. Its performance is a occasionally sluggish, its interface often clunky, its storage too slight, its functionality a bit restricted and its 7-inch screen too limiting if you were hoping to convert all your paper magazine subscriptions into the digital ones. Other, bigger tablets do it better -- usually at two or three times the cost."

new and refurb 10.1" Tegra 2 Android 3.2 tablets can be had for $310-$350 easily.

Quote :

"When stacked up against other popular tablets, the Fire can't compete. Its performance is a occasionally sluggish, its interface often clunky, its storage too slight, its functionality a bit restricted and its 7-inch screen too limiting if you were hoping to convert all your paper magazine subscriptions into the digital ones. Other, bigger tablets do it better -- usually at two or three times the cost. Amazon focusing on 'lifetime' Kindle revenue, anticipating record device sales for Q4 So, the Kindle Fire is great value and perhaps the best, tightest integration of digital content acquisition into a mobile device that we've yet seen. Instead of having a standalone shopping app the entire tablet is a store -- a 7-inch window sold at a cut-rate price through which users can look onto a sea of premium content. It isn't a perfect experience, but if nothing else it's a promising look into the future of retail commerce."

[Edited on November 14, 2011 at 1:34 PM. Reason : ,]

[Edited on November 14, 2011 at 1:37 PM. Reason : .]

11/14/2011 1:31:53 PM

still not sure why non-e-ink anythings are grouped in with ereaders...currently, all color screens are inarguably inferior

11/14/2011 2:36:45 PM

Agreed. Kindle Fire isn't for reading though. Ideally you'd have a Fire plus a Touch.

11/14/2011 2:50:27 PM

^

11/14/2011 3:03:35 PM

Or a tablet with switchable screens. Or OLED. Or something that doesn't suck for reading.

11/14/2011 3:04:14 PM

My GF wants a kindle. Which version is the best? don't feel scrolling through this thread. I see the fire sucks, so thats good.

11/14/2011 7:40:41 PM

Well first. What does she want it for? Reading or other media? The verdict is still out IMO on the touch. The Kindle 3 Keyboard is great.

11/14/2011 7:44:28 PM

just reading. she has a droid for the facebook/multimedia stuff.

11/14/2011 7:55:37 PM

I assume the Kindles are coming to Bestbuy soon. I'd go check them out. I'd go for the Touch or Keyboard.

11/14/2011 7:58:42 PM

Quote :

"just reading."

Base model. It's awesome for just reading. I did spring for the non-ads version though.

11/17/2011 11:48:18 AM

Non-touch? My only hesitation there is the screen is poor quality compared to the Kindle 3 keyboard. Haven't seen a touch yet though.

11/17/2011 1:31:42 PM

Ars has a review up today, and they actually recommended the non-touch if all you want to do is read. I've never seen a kindle 3, but I had a kindle 2 and I have to say I'm fine with the screen. I'd still like to see side-by-side pictures of the 3 and the newer ones to get an idea of what people are talking about w.r.t. the screen quality, but overall it's perfect for me for just reading books.

11/17/2011 1:59:03 PM

So Nook Tablet wins I guess

11/18/2011 6:41:36 AM

Quote :

"The Kindle Fire isn’t a spectacular device, but it may be a revolutionary one. This sounds contradictory. But as I argued in August, every iPad competitor to date has promised to do more than Apple’s tablet—they’ve touted better performance, better compatibility with PCs, and the ability to run Flash. All of them flamed out when they couldn’t deliver. Amazon is taking a smarter approach: At just $199, less than one-half the price of the iPad, the Kindle Fire doesn’t even promise to be in the same league as Apple’s device. After using it for a few days, I found that it delivers: Amazon set out to build an underachieving tablet, and that’s exactly what it got."

http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/technology/2011/11/kindle_fire_review_amazon_s_new_tablet_isn_t_nearly_as_good_as_the_ipad_but_it_s_really_cheap.html

11/18/2011 3:34:49 PM

You know what else is cheap that doesn't underachieve? Other android 10.1" tablets for $300 that do all of the above that the Fire doesn't do.

11/18/2011 4:46:45 PM

My sister and I are going to get a Fire for our mom for Christmas. Has anyone gotten a case for theirs yet? We were thinking about finding one that can prop it up on a table.

12/2/2011 11:34:37 AM

http://www.engadget.com/2011/12/14/flex-lightings-led-film-will-brighten-your-e-reader-mood-vide/

Oh this makes me look forward to the next series of Kindles. Will be SWEET.

12/14/2011 2:15:23 PM

^ that's really neat...i want one NOW

12/14/2011 2:27:43 PM