Who says Amazon.com is only limited to selling books? Today, Amazon has joined the ranks of being one of the major technological innovators. In fact, Sony’s Reader has found great competition from one of Amazon’s newest products: the Kindle Reader.
Its name could have a much stronger impact, considering that “kindle” means “enlightenment,” or the birth of great ideas—and it is, if you’ll learn to look past beyond its many flaws:
1. Being connected has its pitfalls. The wireless connection of Kindle spells both boon and bane for the product. It’s good because you can basically carry your favorite books, blogs, and other whatever reading material literally no matter where you go. The downside is its browser isn’t really its main priority. Rather, it gives so much emphasis on being a book reader. Thus, don’t be surprised if you’re going to meet numerous error messages. The only consolation perhaps is the fact that you the images really don’t appear so awful.
2. It stopped looking good. It’s surprising how critics never failed to mention Kindle’s designs if they’re asked of its disadvantages. It seems like the designers behind the product have lost their touch in creativity. It appears bland and too plain. It doesn’t make any better when pictures started showing everywhere, depicting it as close to being ugly. In reality, though, Kindle may not be equal to Apple in the looks department, but it’s still look like a cool gadget, at least at first glance.
3. It’s flip, not scroll. People are so used to scrolling, no matter how tiring this routine can be. Think of PCs and cell phones. However, you may have to accustom yourself to flipping when you’re using Amazon’s Kindle. Perhaps it’s because it tries to truly imitate a person reading a book. You flip on the pages—you don’t scroll.
4. Convergence doesn’t exist. Why was the iPhone such a huge hit? More than its design, it attempts to merge two of the most important devices today: phone and iPod. Convergence is the buzzword, considering that individuals love anything that will make life much more convenient. Kindle doesn’t seem to possess that, though. It becomes a more advanced ebook reader, with wireless connectivity on the side.
5. It can’t read important file formats. There are certain formats that are only applicable to Kindle. These include .txt and MP3 files. File formats such as Word, HTML, and JPEG are unreadable. If you need to read an important Word file, you still have to send the document to Amazon, who will later convert and send it to you. Even though this is free of charge, definitely, you’ll find the entire process taxing and totally time-consuming. To make matters worse, Amazon and Kindle doesn’t support RTF documents when, in fact, it’s a subset of Word document, which is apparently supported by Kindle.
Despite the many “faults” of Amazon Kindle, it doesn’t take away the fact that it’s a revolutionary gadget. It’s so easy on the eye and comfortable to carry around. And besides, if you’re truly a bookworm, wouldn’t be building your own library and placing it in your bag more than enough?
