Alternatives to the Amazon Kindle

On Friday, Mike Q and I presented on mobile classroom technology at the 12th Annual Massachusetts Community College Conference on Teaching, Learning and Student Development. Our Presentation was titled The Future of Mobile Teaching & Learning and we discussed how the Apple iPhone and the Amazon Kindle , along with the iPhone software development Kit (SDK), will transform mobile teaching and learning. The session detailed what is different about these devices and showed how they are significant using hands-on demonstrations and examples.

Towards the end of the presentation, we were asked about alternatives to the Kindle and I thought it would be interesting to list three of the more popular ones here:

Astak 6" EZ Reader
Like the Kindle, The Astak 6" EZ Reader has a Vizplex screen that is very high resolution, so that it reads well in low light environments. It includes an SD card slot, USB port and mp3 player. Future models (should be released soon - maybe this month) will include the EZ Reader Plus (adding Wi-Fi) and the EZ Reader Pro (adding Wi-Fi, Touchscreen and note-taking along with other innovations. In August, the company hopes to release the EZ Reader BigBook, with a 9.7 inch FLEXI screen and a host of new features. The company says this device will "READ TRUE" on an 8 x 10 item an that would be very nice when it comes to textbooks.
Approx Price: $329

iRex Digital Reader 1000S
The iRex Digital Reader 1000S has a large 10.2" 1024 x 1280 16-level grey scale Wacom® penabled® touch touch screen (requires use of Wacom stylus) which is very nice, allowing you to make handwritten notes in your digital documents, just as you would with a conventional pen. The iRex also includes an SD card slot and USB connector. The DR 1000 SW with stylus is planned and will include WIFI and Bluetooth connectivity.
Approx Price: $749

SONY PRS-700
The SONY PRS-700 has a 6-inch display that also touchscreen technology. It comes with a stylus but it is not required - for example - you can turn pages by sliding your finger across screen. The SONY also has a virtual keyboard that can be used for annotation and searching. The SONY also includes a built-in LED reading light for low-light situations.
Approx Price: $400

If you are in the market for an e-book reader, you should take a look at these alternative devices along with the Kindle.

Some Great E-book Newspaper Questions

Mark Viquesney from MATEC Networks and the TechSpectives Blog posted some interesting questions in response to my blog post Electronic Newspapers Save Time, Money, Gasoline and Excess Calories. I decided to answer his questions with a new entry. His questions and my answers follow.

Question 1: Is the cost per year for a Kindle version of the paper cheaper than the normal paper?

On the newsstand the Boston Globe costs $2.50 for the Sunday edition and $.75 for the Monday-Saturday editions. In a 30 day month figure there are 4 Sundays per month and 26 other days. Doing a quick calculation:

(4 Sundays/month)*($2.50/Sunday) + (26 other days/month)*($.75/other day) = $29.50 per month

We also have to figure on the cost of mileage/wear and tear when I’m away on vacation and have to drive to pick up the paper. The federal travel reimbursement rate just went up to 58 cents per mile and it’s a 14 mile round trip to the store:

($.58/mile)*(14 miles/day) = $8.12 per day

In a 30 day month:

($8.12/day)*(30 days/month) = $243.60 per month

Adding things up for the month we’re looking at:

($29.50 per month for the paper) + ($243.60/month for gas and wear and tear on the car) = $273.10 per month buying the paper the old fashioned way.

The electronic version of the Globe for the Kindle sells for $9.99 per month and there is no driving required.

Question 2: How many pounds of paper have you saved by not buying papers?

I'm making a rough estimate here but let's figure the Monday-Saturday editions weigh .5 lbs and the Sunday editions weigh 2 lbs - I don't have printed edition papers here because I now get them electronically!

(.5 lbs/Non-Sunday copy)*(26 days) + (2 lbs/Sunday copy)*(4 days) = 21 lbs of newspaper per month that I am not consuming

Question 3: Would you buy a Kindle paper that was cheaper if it had the ads in it like a normal paper? Or would you rather just skip all the ads all the time and pay more up front?

I'm not a fan of ads so I don't miss them at all. $9.99 per month is reasonable for me so I would not be interested in a cheaper version with ads. If it was free - well - that would be pretty tempting!

Once I got used to the smaller screen, I find the reading experience much better on the Kindle. For example, I'm not starting an article on one page and being directed to another page to finish reading it. I've also got a built in dictionary if I get stuck on a word and I can highlight and export text if I find something interesting. And....... (this is my favorite) nothing gets thrown away. Daily copies are archived on my Kindle in a search-able format. Have you ever wanted to refer back to something you read in a paper maybe 2 weeks or a month ago? That paper is likely long gone and using newspaper websites commonly requires paying to access older content. I've got it all on my 10 ounce Kindle.

Thanks Mark V. for these great questions!

Electronic Newspapers Save Time, Money, Gasoline and Excess Calories

The past week I was out in North Truro on Cape Cod, MA. On the Cape I have my usual morning routine that, in the past, has involved getting up early, jumping in my car and driving 14 miles round trip to Provincetown for a newspaper and usually..... donuts!

This year, instead of driving for the paper (and donuts) I was waking wake up and downloading the Boston Globe to my Kindle. I currently subscribe to an electronic version of the Globe for $9.99 per month - I get an electronic copy of the paper 7 days a week without the ads. $9.99 is a pretty good deal for a full month of the Globe - just the Sunday edition costs $2.50. I also don't get stuck with stacks of read newspapers that I have to eventually bring to the dump (Truro Transfer Station).

In addition to the Globe I also like to read the Boston Herald - especially when it comes to reading about New England sports teams. On Friday the Celtics got to be too much for me - the Herald is not available electronically so...... i got in my car and drove to Provincetown to get the paper. Guess what else I got.

By Saturday morning I was back on the Kindle and off the donuts.

The Kindle, Amazon and Good Customer Service

A buddy, John W. from New York, purchased a Kindle and received it on January 16. John sent along the following email to me on January 17 with his first impressions:

The Kindle came at lunch time yesterday. Usual detritus in the shipping carton - Gevalia coffee maker ad, etc. They even sent me a free demo Schick razor! LOL. Kindle packaged well. Comes in clamshell type white carton that obviously cost some money.

The unit itself is amazing. After charging it up and turning on the wireless, I got full signal and the Kindle auto populated my owner information and downloaded the titles I had pre-purchased. The leather cover gets a bad rap. It is black leather, with a grey suede interior and leather tabs to hold the Kindle in place. It locks a small tab in place on the back to hold it in. People on-line are complaining because it appears flimsy, but if one takes time to read the directions, it works quite well. An elastic strap is attached to hold the cover closed when not in use. One person in one of the forums even fashioned his own replacement from a modified Moleskin reporters notebook. Ahh, creative minds...............

As for the eInk. Wow. It is totally not what you expect and truly looks like paper. Jeff Bezos has mentioned that the Kindle is white because he wants people to forget they are using it while reading and he is right on. I read one short work of fiction last night and I immediately got used to it. The sticking point is the cover, you have to do some jockeying to get comfortable with it.

I used the NowNow service to ask a question. NowNow comes with every Kindle, you can send a question to an actual team of people and get a real answer. Mine came back in like 10 minutes. I asked if there are any keyboard shortcuts for Kindle, and I got 2 messages back with lists. :) Now, that is service!

The only drawback is the time I waited to get it. I ordered 12/5 and got 1/16. I hear that the eInk displays are in short supply, therefore limiting Amazon. Well, anyway, I guess that is a good thing.

I truly love this device. I will send you more thoughts as I play with it.....

Overall a pretty good first impression by John. Last night (February 19) he sent me another update:

I have been working 10-11 hr days. Let me tell you how much I love my Kindle. I have a second one waiting at home for me now. My first unit developed a thin line (width of a hair) on the e-ink display when I page forward, so Amazon sent me a new one to replace it. Now, that is customer service! You go on their help page and click on "Call me back ..... really!", enter your telephone number and they call right back! Amazing technology.

I've read 10-12 books on it so far - I am a fiction addict and I absolutely love it! I will write more as I have time....

Excellent first impressions and excellent customer service - I want one!

Thanks John!!