Amazon Releases Kindle Reader 2 to the Delight of Bookworms and Authors Everywhere

Amazon Releases Kindle Reader 2 to the Delight of Bookworms and Authors Everywhere

The popular wireless reading device from Amazon undergoes an upgrade to better features, better book selections, and better services

Location – March 5, 2009 – According to an early Kindle Reader 2 review, it gets close to delivering the promise of the soul of the e-reader. That soul is, of course, a highly portable electronic device that can hold thousands of reading materials while maintaining the pleasures of reading from a printed book.

The Amazon Kindle Reader 2 is the latest generation wireless reading device first made available by the online retailer on February 23, 2009. Selling price is at $359 per unit inclusive of its power adapter, USB 2.0 cable, and rechargeable battery. Other accessories like leather book cover and protective skin are sold separately. Of course, there is a one year limited warranty with the Kindle Reader although an optional two- year extended warranty can be purchased for an additional $65. All in all, a good bargain.

As can be expected, there are many updates from the original Amazon Kindle Reader. On the exterior, the Kindle Reader 2 is lighter at 10.2 ounces and thinner at just 0.36 inches. This makes for easy portability and packing into even the most crowded of bags as well as easy handling while reading, which is definitely an improvement from the original version.

The design also features improved ergonomics most notably on the page-turn buttons, the 5-way controller, and the paper-like screen with higher image and text resolution. With the Kindle Reader 2, accidental page turns are prevented by the smaller buttons that flex inward; readers have to press on the outside corner to turn pages.

On the other hand, the 5-way button allows for easier navigation of the Amazon Kindle Reader. With four directions (up and down, left and right plus click to select), it allows readers to quickly select and highlight as well as to skip pages and articles in the Kindle e-books, magazines and newspapers. Of course, these features are complemented by the high-resolution screen, which after all is the very essence of an e-reader. With the latest in electronic-ink technology and boasting 16 shades of gray, readers are treated to clearer and sharper texts and images. For those close-up views, full image zoom is also possible.

On the interior, many upgrades have also been installed. From the original storage capacity of just 200 Kindle books, the new Kindle Reader 2 can store more than 1,500 Kindle e-books from over 250,000 digital titles available. And that number is growing daily because according to the Amazon site, “Our vision is to have every book ever printed, in every language, available on Kindle. The Kindle Store currently has more than 240,000 titles and we are adding more every day”. In fact, Stephen King published “UR” as an introductory book to the Kindle Reader 2.

And of course, Kindle e-books are not the only reading materials available. There are leading magazines, newspapers and blogs available for users, which can only broaden their information and knowledge base. Available for subscription are The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Time, BoingBoing, and the O’Reilly Radar, to name a few.

To enhance the reading experience, the Kindle Reader 2 boasts of faster page turns about 20% quicker, which provides for smoother reading. For those who love annexing their thoughts and ideas on the subject matter, the QWERTY keyboard allows digital annotations to the text, which can then be edited, deleted and exported.

At a loss for meanings? The Kindle Reader 2 has a built-in dictionary and a wireless access to the Wikipedia. Other icing on the cake includes a PDF reader, which can either be for free or on a paid per document basis. Instructions for the PDF reader can be found at the Amazon site.

But of course, the Kindle Reader 2 is not only a delight for bookworms but for authors, too. With the Digital Text Platform, self-published authors can upload directly to Kindle and become part of the wide array of Kindle books. Several formats are available through Whispernet with charges between US$0.99 to $200 for each download. Self-published authors will receive 35% of revenues based strictly on list price.

With all these better reader-friendly features, better and wider reading materials selections, and better wireless services, bookworms and authors have one more reason to celebrate and that celebration will center on the amazing Amazon Kindle Reader 2.

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Melanie Gray

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Faithwerks LLC

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