Kindle 3 vs Kindle 2 in size + Hands-on report by PC World's Perenson - Photos also

SEE THE MAIN NEW KINDLE INFO SECTION for details.

This image at the left shows how much smaller the new Kindle 3G/WiFi and Kindle WiFi-Only are when seen next to the Kindle 2 International model.

I saw this image from Amazon when reading Wilson Rothman's excellent summary for MSNBC of the new Kindle features, putting it all into perspective.  It was refreshing after reading another report, one representing the Kindle as a giant reptile that won't die although the unnamed writer really wants it to be buried.

"HANDS-ON WITH AMAZON'S ZIPPY, ALLURING KINDLE"
That's the headline by Melissa J. Perenson at Washington Post's posting of the PC World report today.

' As soon as I took the Kindle in hand, I knew that this Kindle marked new territory...
...
For the first time, I could comfortably hold a Kindle e-reader in one hand. At 8.7 ounces, the Kindle is not the lightest such device on the market...But it is lighter than Barnes & Noble's Nook (11.6 ounces for Nook Wi-Fi, 12.1 ounces for Nook Wi-Fi + 3G)... The unit felt very balanced in-hand, and the buttons felt like they were in convenient, ergonomic places.
...
...in my experience, the darker border enhances readability, as would be expected given the visual perception a dark border provides. But the display is dramatically better in its own regard...
... the difference felt more dramatic when holding the device (an act also made easier by the rubberized backing). '

 She mentions the smaller bezels, a redsign that helps the 6-inch screen now dominate although there's still enough room round the edges to comfortably hold the unit.
  She also feels the buttons have been redesigned "to great effect" and that placing the Prev/Next buttons on both sides makes it convenient for both left- and right-handed readers.

  I'm surprised that the slimmer buttons for page-turning are now depressed AWAY from the screen, which she prefers, and she doesn't seem to have experienced the old inadvertent page turns, calling it "a vastly superior experience."

  She finds the keyboard buttons easier to type on than the Kindle 2's.

  The reorganization of the navigation buttons was easy for her to adapt to, "and certainly better than the comparatively stiff joystick" though further time with this when she gets her shipping unit will give her a better idea, she says.

 The navigation is "noticeably faster" as she was able to "breezily scroll through menu items with practically no lag" (I look forward to THAT) -- and she mentions the Kobo is "interminably slow" so that must be really bad.)

  She didn't realize the Kindle 2 line-spacing could be changed by pressing the alt-shift and number keys to decrease or increase the spacing between lines (it's not well-documented) and appreciates the explicit line spacing options given with the text-key ["Aa"] as well as the 3 typeface choices (something I never cared about but I do hate the special fonts some publishers use along with too much line spacing in some "Topaz" editions -- am thinking of books on the "LOST" tv series).

 The Webkit-based Web browser "provides a better experience than before."
I should hope!  And that is still a cautious statement.

  The improved battery performance is, Amazon told her, achieved through software.  It's quite an improvement in the numbers given, but I'd like to know how much battery life is used by the the night-light in the special Amazon cover.

She sums it up with

' In my limited hands-on time with the new Kindle, this gadget made an unusually quick, and positive, impression.  While I need to spend more time with it to vet my initial impressions, the new Kindle's solid build quality, improved design, integrated store, and cross-platform transportability (books are usable on any Kindle reader app, including iPhone, iPad, Android, BlackBerry, and PC) all add up to a winner poised to top the pack. '

Apologies for not remembering to LINK the report late last night. There is considerably more by Melissa Perenson in her report that I didn't include.
Be sure to read the full hands-on review.

UPDATE
PHOTOS BY POCKET-LINT
Photos of the new Kindle by Pocket-Lint, article by Stuart Miles

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Check often:  Temporarily-free late-listed non-classics or recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.

iPad as an e-reader? - Not in sunlight. Update3

Len Edgerly, host of the excellent TheKindleChronicles and TheReadingEdge podcasts, is also a long-time Apple fan, and then some.  You can read his Twitter tweets for the last two days to see just how much, as he was in line at 4:30am to get his iPad.  He loves it and has written and video'd first impressions.  The aspect that will interest readers of e-ink e-reader blogs is how the iPad does in direct sunlight, and the images borrowed for this blog entry leave little doubt on that.
  You can read the words in the original, larger image.

Len also did a video of his first impressions.  There is wind noise in the beginning but it clears up within a minute or so.  Near the beginning he shows the iPad and his Kindle (U.S.) side by side, outdoors.




Teleread's Paul Biba points us to an excellent article by Jane which, in addition to spelling out the beauties of the iPad, also draws needed attention to why it is not meant for reading in sunlight (where the Kindle does especially well).  Paul inserts the picture comparison and some text from Jane's report:

'`This is something that most reviews have skipped over:
"The iPad is fairly heavy. It weighs 1.5 pounds versus the Kindle’s 10.2 oz. Plus, it is unuseable in bright sunlight. You really, really need to have some shade to be able to see much of anything. You can see the comparison between the two. The indoor picture is the exact same screen, finger prints and all." '

The article by Jane has plenty of pro's for the iPad otherwise, so please read it.  The iBook reader app is beautiful indoors, though there is no note-making feature on it yet (doable on the Kindle app for iPad).


Since this is an image-happy blog entry, here's a delighful picture by the Denver Post.  The larger photo, slowly viewable upon a click, is done with Adoble Flash but, ironically, cannot be seen by iPad users due to lack of Flash support.

UPDATE 3 - APRIL 6, 2010 - 3:40 PM PM PST - Original posting was at 2:07 PM PST)
  While identifying the source, I somehow forgot to identify the two main people in the photo.  This is of Len and Darlene Edgerly, up early to get the iPad and enjoying what they see.  This is the same Len Edgerly who made the photos and video in the first section above, in his trials of using the iPad outdoors in sunlight.  Outside of that direct sunlight scenario, which Len and other Kindle users with iPads will be using their e-ink Kindle for, he is thrilled with his iPad, as you'll see in his Twitter stream that I linked you to.

 The Denver Post offers to let us share the larger photos from the slideshow, so I made a straight-viewable non-Flash version also, that iPad users can view.
  Your browser may reduce the size of this 950 pixels wide photo and, if so, then PC users can just press the function key, F11, to see it full screen and then press F11 again to get back the toolbars.  (You can also press "Ctrl" and "+" keys together to increase the size (PC) or "Cmd" and "+" keys (Apple).)  On a laptop you normally need to use a special function key-combo.

SUMMING UP
The readability in sunlight is a not-trivial consideration for those intending to read books outside when on errands or in an outdoor cafe or sunning somewhere.  Also almost all reviewers note the relative heaviness of this device for mainly-reading.  See the very thorough review by Melissa J. Perenson for Businessweek, which includes these aspects.

OTHER UNEXPECTED MISSING FEATURES (besides those covered earlier along with pricing analysis):
Printing
I was surprised to read that you can't print from the iPad basically - it's recommended that you send a document to a computer that will print it.  However, some are making special apps to provide printing.  I think iPad II will have a lot of features added to it.

(UPDATE APRIL 5, 2010 - 3:49 PM - Original posting was at 2:07 PM) - FURTHER UPDATE (#2) at 4:53 PM, thanks to commenters to this topic.
PDFs ARE NOT READABLE BY THE IPAD
I had actually been a little shocked to read in two places that the iPad had no native PDF support.  Thanks to Mary McManus and "Anonymous" for alerting me to the fact that apps are being sold (at reasonable prices) that deal with the PDFs.

It turns out that GoodReader handles both reading of original layout and reflowing of text.  There's an iAnnotate app that lets you add notes to a PDF and there's also something called ReaddleDocs that's more expensive, but GoodReader seems the current favorite at 99 cents.  That's impressive.

Will be back with more tonight.

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See the ongoing Guide to finding Free or Low-Cost Kindle books and Sources
Also, a page of links that confine searches to mid-range priced e-books.