Kindle: Mixed Report

I got my new Kindle this week, the electronic reader from Amazon, and I've downloaded a couple of books, a couple of magazines, and two newspapers; and I've spent a total of about four hours reading.

Here are my first impressions.

What's Good

Size and Feel. The device is about the size of a small book or day planner, and it comes with a leather cover giving it the appearance of a real book. Actually, it feels like holding my Bible when it's closed. It's lightweight, and it feels good in your hand.

E-ink. The electronic ink is really cool. It looks just about like a book page, and it emits no light. It's much easier on your eyes than a computer screen.

Connectivity. The device is wired to Amazon via free wireless connection, so you can download reading materialy instantly, and I do mean instantly. I got the whole NIV Bible in about 10 seconds. The New York Times shows up automatically overnight thanks to my free 14-day trial subscription. You can also browse the web, though that function is a bit awkward to use

That's about it for the positives. You have access to lots of content in a portable, lightweight package that's not too difficult to read.

What's Bad

Navigation. The navigation was clearly designed by a Microsoft drone and not a Mac Head. There's nothing intuitive about it--lots of menus and a dopey scroll bar. Getting around inside a book is tough, too, because there are few shortcuts and no internal jumps.

For example, it seems as if you could press one button and jump to the next chapter within a book. No such luck. You have to back out to the contents, then back in to the next chapter. Or, you can manually add your own bookmarks for chapter heads, but even getting to those requires use of the scrollbar and two clicks.

If that sounds peevish, try finding your way around 2 Chronicles when all you can see is 200 words of text at one time.

Ergonomics. All the buttons seem to be in the wrong place. Pages are turned by means of a tab along the edges of the device. The function is smooth enough, but it's hard to pick the thing up or remove it from its case without accidentally turning a page. The keyboard is probably a little better than that on a PDA, but the leather retaining strap occludes the ALT key, which is used constantly. Finallly, the on/off switch is on the back, so you have to fumble around between the cover and the back of the machine to turn it on.

Contrast. The background of the reading screen is a dull gray, not really white, so there is not enough contrast with the letters, especially in low light.

Lock-in. If you own a Kindle, Amazon.com owns you. There's no other way to get content for it.

Overall, I'd say this is the 8-track tape of the digital reading world. It's a great innovation, but it is likely to be replaced by improved technology before long.

So should you buy a Kindle?

I'd say if you like to read on the go or you like the idea of having all your reading material packaged in one, compact device, definitely yes. Don't worry about losing the tactile sensation of holding a book. You won't.

However, if browsability and legibility are your two primary concerns, you'll likely be frustrated by awkward menu system and small screen.

Will the Kindle replace the book? Probably not. This is a breakthrough, not a tipping point. But something else will. Soon.

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