Kindle Review
It seems almost hard to imagine that the Amazon Kindle is already on its 5th generation. The benefits for those that have not bought a Kindle from Amazon yet but are considering doing so, is that with the 5th generation, even more optimizations and enhancements are made to an already great product.
What has changed?
The 5th generation Kindle launched around the same time as the touch screen version. The Amazon Kindle is, for lack of a better explanation, a repackaged and cut down version of the Kindle 4. Meaning it does not have many new features or technologies added. Some may see this as a negative, but it is not. The reason is that the Kindle by Amazon was already the best e-book reader on the market in terms of price, book choice, and the screen. The price is a fair one, especially when you look at the technology and features that you get.
What is the Amazon Kindle's biggest improvement for the 5th generation? Amazon suggests the device is approximately 10% faster than the previous generation but to be fair, the results seem negligible. The way that the pages turn has changed visually. The page does not go all black before loading a new page anymore, instead the areas that need changing flicker and redraw. This not only looks more elegant, but also does not make you feel like you are staring at a device.
The screen
The most important thing to an e-reader (aside from the selection of products that you can read) is the screen. The Kindle has the same 600 x 800, 16 grays E-Ink display that the previous version has and it remains the best possible way to read on the go. Especially if you compare the E-Ink screen to an LCD screen, you will notice that it remains legible, even when you are in direct sunlight. If you plan on reading in bed though, you will need a bedside light. The Kindle is not backlit.
Changes in the layout
While the screen is the same size, the packing of the rest of the Kindle is very different. It measures just 166 mm by 114 mm. This means it is the smallest member of the Kindle family. Gone is the QWERTY keyboard and the layout has been simplified even further. Along with the rocker in the middle, there are only four buttons. These are Menu, Home, Back, and Keyboard (which you use to bring up the on-screen keyboard). On either side of the screen, there are forward and back paddles. The slider in previous generations that was used to turn the Kindle on and off has been replaced with a simple power button.
The negatives
It
seems like we are just trying to nitpick on something that is clearly a great
product, but it seems only fair to list some of the negatives. For starters,
the Kindle at Amazon is shipped without any accessories. Accessories include a
cover and a charger that you will need to buy separately. While the Kindle uses
a micro USB connector, which means you probably already have several compatible
charges lying around, it is shipped without a charger to keep costs down. It
ships with just a USB cable. Meaning you can charge it on your computer if you
want to save some money on accessories, but who wants have to charge on their
computer?
The internal memory has also been reduced from 4 GB to 2 GB. While it is understandable that Amazon wants people to buy Kindle's latest version, it does not quite feel right that actual storage room is being taken away. That said however, you should still be able to fit over 1,000 books on your Kindle, which seems like more than anyone would ever need unless they were starting a library. After all, what is an Amazon Kindle without books and magazines?
Overall verdict
Amazon
and Kindle are a winning combination for anyone who has not yet made the transition
to e-readers. Especially for the price it is impossible to get a more supported
and sturdy e-reader. If you are wondering, "where can I buy a Kindle?"
it is important to remember that you can get a Kindle in
