Kindle

Amazon updated the Kindle product page this morning with a 10% reduction in the price of the Kindle, the price drop is a welcome one and also includes free 2-day shipping. So if you have been waiting for the price to drop before purchasing a Kindle, now is your chance to get one before stocks run out again!

The price drop was expected, as predicted by most analysts, further drops are expected in the future but that all depends on a stable supply of Kindle devices. The reason Kindle has been out of stock so frequently is because a single factory has been manufacturing the Kindles, so far supply has FAR exceeded demand, but just over a month ago Amazon brought on-line a second factory, which should create a more stable supply of Kindle devices.

Amazon is expect to drop the price around 15% a year, so by 2010 the device should be priced at around $300 in line with expectations, meaning I wouldn’t expect another price drop until around Christmas time.

Source: Amazon Kindle Store - Kindle now $359 with free 2-day shipping

As it turns out, not only can you read books on your Kindle, you can now eat it!

LilPeaPod from Team Sugar spent her Sunday afternoon cooking up this geeky cake delight and what a result. At first glance it actually looks like a Kindle device, we think it’s a shame it has to be eaten!

Looks delicious! We love the “Kindle Kake”! Check out the cake gallery.

Source: TeamSugar

Last December the news was that the Kindle’s up for auction were selling like hot cakes, I thought now that the hype and buzz surrounding the Kindle has calmed down a bit, we should go back and see what the situation is over at eBay.

In December, the Kindle was selling for an average price of $864.04, that was more than double the retail price. Predictably, since then thing have changed and this week the Kindle is selling for an average price of $421.33. The most a Kindle was being auctioned for that I could find $600.00, contrast that with the $1500 just a couple of months ago and its seems like Kindle has truly lost x-factor, at least on eBay it has.

So if you don’t like your Kindle it seems as though you can still sell without losing any money. So when Amazon gets more Kindles back in stock, the auction prices should drop a bit more so those of you who don’t own one already might be able to pick up one at a bargain price. That’s assuming Amazon ever gets any back in stock because it seems like forever now that there hasn’t been any in stock, of-course we’ll let you know as soon as Amazon gets them back in stock.

Amazon has just added two more newspapers to the selection of available newspapers, they are: Les Echos and The Philadelphia Inquirer.

This brings the total number of newspapers on offer to 13 (unlucky for some, apparently not to Amazon!), the 13 newspapers are;

1. The New York Times
2. The Wall Street Journal
3. The Washington Post
4. Investor’s Business Daily
5. San Francisco Chronicle
6. San Jose Mercury News
7. The Seattle Times
8. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
9. Le Monde
10. The Irish Times
11. Frankfurter Allgemeine
12. Les Echos
13. The Philadelphia Inquirer

I would personally like to see The Finiancial Times and The Los Angeles Times on the list. I really do hope that newspapers jump onto the Kindle, as traditional newspapers continue to lose circulation, Kindle might solve a few problems. Be sure to check out the links and sign up for your 14 days free trail. Which newspapers would you like to see on your Kindle?

Les Echos (Kindle Edition)

Les Echos is France’s preeminent financial daily, and covers all subjects relating to the economy and the business world at large. Available in the French language and organized into two sections of macro and micro economics, Les Echos also features property market developments, industry & technology, financial analysis and share tips, personal finance information, and lifestyle news.

The Philadelphia Inquirer (Kindle Edition)

Whether it’s local headlines, sports scores, arts, business, or travel and leisure information, read The Philadelphia Inquirer to find out what’s happening in the City of Brotherly Love. In addition to local fare, the major world news stories of the day are also featured.

The Kindle Edition of The Philadelphia Inquirer contains most articles found in the print edition, but will not include all images and tables. Also, some features such as the crossword puzzle, box scores and classifieds are not currently available. For your convenience, issues are automatically delivered wirelessly to your Kindle so you can read them each morning.

Thanks to Kindle Reader for the heads up.

Source: Amazon Kindle Newspapers, Kindle Reader

Yesterday I blogged about the Kindle being opened up. Not satisfied with just pictures, I opened up Google in search of something more detailed. I struck gold! I found this article on Dr. Blip’s PC-Doctor’s blog (awesome name and blog btw! you should check out the rest of the blog), its a detailed dissection of the Kindle and shows each component and what it does. It is quite technical and it’s a fascinating read.

The comments at the bottom of the article make for an interesting read as-well, some of the commenter’s speculate that Amazon are selling the device at a loss, although that is purely speculative since we don’t know how much it cost to manufacturer the Kindle or the R&D costs.

Source: Dr Blip PC Doctor - Inside the Amazon Kindle

Kindle only allows you to read DRM protected eBooks, so how would you can you read other eBooks on the Kindle? one way would be to add the Kindle DRM to your eBook!

Hacker Igor Skochinsky who hacked open the Sony e-reader has done it again, this time he has hacked open the Kindle to allow you to read mobipocket eBooks on the Kindle, its a novel solution, by using a couple of Python scripts, you can convert an eBook into Amazon’s AZW format, the scripts add a serial number DRM, unique to an individuals Kindle, which allows you to read them on the Kindle device.

Now there is a chance that it Amazon can ‘fix’ the hack, since Amazon owns Mobipocket, however I don’t think this is the path that Amazon will take. Aarjav Trivedi over at Kindle Hacks has blogged today about how the ‘Director of Kindle’ over at Amazon has no problem with the Kindle being hacked.

CAUTION: USE THESE SCRIPTS AT YOUR OWN RISK! WE CAN NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY DAMAGE CAUSED AS A RESULT OF THEIR USE.

Source: Igor Skochinsky
Python Script Download: Kindle Mobipocket tools 0.1
Python Script Download: Mirror
Source: Kindle Hacks

Lets face it, we all want to see what this little baby look like on the inside. Rapidrepair.com were one of the lucky few who were able to get their paws on a Kindle before it sold out. Being the geeks that they are, they decided to dissect it.

I must warn you that its not pretty! She may look sleek, slender and understated on the outside, she is anything but that on the inside.

I’m no hardware engineer, so I can not tell you exactly what each component does or how it was assembled, but it looks like there are an awful lot of gadgets in there, Kindle is essentially a mobile phone/PDA with a fancy e-ink screen, the thing that makes Kindle unique is the software. So if there is anyone out there who knows what each component does then don’t hesitate to leave a comment.

Enjoy!

Source: Rapid Repair - Amazon Kindle Take-Apart

Does it seem that far fetched? Rick Aristotle Munarriz over at The Motley Fool doesn’t seem to think so. Munarriz says that Amazon’s Kindle probably won’t change the world but what it will do is rock the publishing world to its core. Kindle will do this by offering an avenue for aspiring authors a way to get published, and Munarriz seems to think that not only will authors benefit, but bloggers as-well. Perhaps he’s right… maybe the old ways of doing things are ending and Kindle is ushering in a new era.

I’ve been one of Kindle’s biggest critics. When Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) rolled out its electronic reader last week, I described it as a $399 paperweight.

Who would pay up for a juice-sapping device that’s too chunky to pocket and too tempting to steal to leave out in the open? I let my cynicism rip even deeper, suggesting that the company was trying to orchestrate demand in an attempt to turn its Kindle into the next Wii or Tickle Me Elmo.

Then I saw the light.

Read the full story on The Motley Fool…

I would love to hear your thoughts, feel free to leave a comment at the bottom of the page.

For those more tech savvy Kindle readers out there Amazon has provided the source code for Kindle to be freely downloaded. I cant wait to see what developers will do with this information.

Amazon Kindle Source Code

After selling out in just 5.5 hours, prospective Kindle buyers are turning their attention to eBay where the price of an average Kindle is $864.04, that’s more then double the retail price of $399.00, one desperate bidder paid $1500 for theirs! Prices on eBay.com range from $600 to $1500.

Dont you wish you had ordered a couple of Kindles on launch day, you could have sold one of them on eBay which would have easily paid for the other one. With the remaining cash you could have downloaded a couple of titles from the Amazon store as-well.

Aside from limited availability, buyers from outside the United States are likely driving the Kindle’s price up, as they are not able to buy it directly from Amazon. However, prices will surely fall once more Kindle owners try to make a quick buck selling their device, just as many did with the Apple iPhone over the summer.

You can keep up to date with the latest Kindle auctions by heading over to Terapeak

Yeah it’s old news from November, but I still think it needs to be mentioned on this blog. It’s still amazing to me that Kindle sold out in just 5.5 hours.

However this was over a month ago and Amazon.com still says that Kindle is out of stock, and there is still no word on when new units will be available. With Christmas just one week away many people will not be able get one in time, so what do you guys think? is Amazon purposefully holding onto new units in order to build up buzz about the device ?

We will let you know the minute that Kindle is back in stock.

A Library in New Jersey has begun to offer Kindle’s to loan out. How cool is that?

The new Kindle ebook reader from Amazon.com is certainly not oriented for the library borrowing model, given that books purchased are limited to the device itself. But that hasn’t stopped the Sparta Public Library, NJ, in an affluent suburb 50 miles west of New York City, from buying two $399 Kindles and preparing to loan them to patrons. “[Director Carol Boutilier] is very proactive; she wants us to be on the leading edge of any technology,” explained assistant director Diane Lapsley. Unlike many libraries, Sparta doesn’t shy away from loaning devices along with content; it previously circulated iPods loaded with audiobooks as well as an earlier generation of ebook reader.

Read the full article on LibraryJournal.com… found [via]