Kindle - First Impressions
You may have seen my previous post on my compulsion to buy a Kindle. Well quelle surprise I caved after getting to have a play with a family members Kindle over the holidays.
It arrived today and so I thought I would quickly post some first impressions before writing a full review when I've spent more time with it
Q: Are you ready for some unboxing porn?
A: Of course you are!
Apologies for the rubbish picture quality, but unfortunately though the Galaxy S is a great phone it has a rubbish camera (more of that in another post)
It's brilliant that companies are focussing on creating a positive experience when you first come in to contact with a new shiny thing and I was really impressed with the excellent packaging. Minimal and understated, but really classy and well made at the same time.
I was also impressed that the charger is a really nice looking unit and that power and data is supplied by a single Micro USB (Devices without standard connectors are my biggest gadget pet hate)
I can see why people have tried to rip the screen off believing it to be a dust cover because it looks so much like matt plastic. It took me a moment to realise that it was displaying a welcome message.
The Kindle feels light and easy to manage. I can imagine happily reading with it for hours (And after writing this I intend to). The screen is fantastic I haven't stopped being impressed with the magic effect of seemingly printed words changing before my eyes. It definitely fulfils Arthur C Clarke's third rule: Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. The fact that when you buy a Kindle it comes pre-linked to your Amazon account is also brilliant because it allows you to dive straight in with nothing to get in your way.
The overriding impression that you get when holding the Kindle is that it feels special in the way that Apple has been able to nail with it's recent products and the Galaxy Tab I was playing with earlier today really didn't.
My Kindle's first big outing is going to be on my four day business trip to Milan next week so I'll write up my experiences when I get back.
Ciao for now.
Published 4 Jan 2011