Umm how is this insightful - it's not true. You CAN surf the WEB on the Kindle. It's not a terribly full featured browser but it does have Java and it can be used to browse. I seem to recall Google Maps working on it for instance. ALT +1 while in the browser brings up your current location for instance.
I own an iPhone, unlike my Kindle I cannot use it for 20 hours between charges. The screen is too small for reading, the resolution is not nearly as nice on the eyes, the Kindle is easier to navigate with. I can also purchase any of a zillion books from the Amazon store and read them in seconds - no can do on my iPhone. Yes, there are better looking eReaders and if they supported the Amazon store I might be interested in one of them.
Yup, the Kindle is single function unless you count MP3 playing (?!). I don't care, it does that single function GREAT, has a terrific display, and is convenient. If you owned one for even a short period of time you'd understand this.
I do pretty much what you do, read, close it up, put it in a pocket, open and read more. I go through two or three books sometimes like this before I need to charge my Kindle. I never lose my place in the book either and if I'm reading 4 or 5 books they all fit in the same pocket just fine. My biggest issues are that they put the charge plug on the bottom where ti gets in the way and the right side page turn is too easy to hit. When I finish my book I almost always have another onboard and if I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere like an airport terminal I can buy a discounted book quickly and have it ready to read in seconds. Not so easy with paper I've found as the shops in the airport have crap for selection and HIGH prices to say the least.
But hey, go ahead and delude yourself that what you're doing is somehow more convenient if it suits you. I'll agree you've saved some money up front overall but the price of the Kindle was the least of my considerations. Being able to carry 15-20 books with me at a time and get new ones to read most anywhere is nearly priceless.
Index? How about full text searching across all of the books on the device. I think this trumps your index by miles, no? I can find my purchased books far more easily on my Kindle than I can my bookshelf, as my books shelf is now double deep having run out of room about 4 years ago. I simply do not have the space for all of my books!
As pointed out by someone else I can keep my content if I destroy the device. However I find that I tend to take care of my $250 Kindle rather than abuse it. I have no worries about having it around the bath or pool though, I'm simply not that careless.
The Kindle may not change your reading habits but it's certainly changed mine and that of others I know who own one. I am reading FAR more than I was before and have begun digging into older classics to boot - just finished Robinson Crusoe. As for the name - Kindle the imagination is what you want to think of not burning books...
You need to look at prices more closely then. The Kindle books are discounted off of the Amazon price usually by 2-3 dollars apiece. Saving 2-3 on a $9 book is hardly minimal IMO. I have yet to see a single Kindle book priced the same as the paperback counterpart and certainly never at the cover price. The highest price I've paid for a Kindle book is $9.99 and while I know some reference or technical books go higher they are still discounted and certainly not your "mass paperback" example.
I read "mass paperbacks" and right now my Kindle has about 20 of them on it to include the entire Harry Potter series (from PDF). You really think I could carry that as easily in paper form as I can on my Kindle?! Seems to me the Kindle is a far better way to transport books and when I finish one in an airline terminal I'm not forced to pay extortion level pricing for another from the local shop. If I've run out of reading on it I can easily have one delivered wirelessly in seconds.
Yes, the Sony is much nicer looking! However I know of at least one Sony owner who parked his and bought a Kindle simply because the selection of books for the Kindle and the ease with which they can be bought stomped the Sony. Personally when I'm reading on my Kindle I don't much care what it looks like only that the display is crisp and that I can get the content that I want - sadly not always doable even with Amazon's selection.
I'd love for the device to look as sharp as the Sony but really the looks of the device are second to it's functionality.
you've yet to see an eInk display? When you find a tablet PC that can last 20 hours on a charge and charges FAST let me know. Never mind that the Kindle display rocks, the battery life alone stomps any laptop around. It's also lightweight with only the new Netbooks coming anywhere close in portability.
For reading something interesting and fun it's PERFECT. I read about a book a week to every other week so I am pretty familiar with it. However when I read a book that I needed to bookmark and take notes in I ran into issues. One issue was that the other person I was reading with used a different font and when I'd try to ask opinions of things I'd find that the numbering system was inconsistent because of the font difference - that sucked! I couldn't say what did you think of the paragraph on page 55 like I could with a paper book. Frankly the numbering on the Kindle is a mystery to me. In the end she and I purchased paper copies for markup and notetaking. I had a great big pile of bookmarks on the Kindle but trying to highlight or markup was simply a PITA.
So, in that endeavor the Kindle failed us both. If I were in a classroom situation it would probably have been a similar situation with both of us unhappy. Arguments against eBooks in this situation are likely valid IMO.
However for reading normal stuff, books for pleasure, the Kindle is damned nice. The screen is SHARP and I can read it in any light that I'd be able to read another book. I can travel with 5-6 unread books without breaking my shoulder or stuffing a bag. I can carry 20-30 read books easily too. If I want a new book I can get one most anywhere and indeed I've done just that in an airport terminal a few times. I can download free books too which I've done. Converting PDF is also doable and I did it in at least one case where the publisher refused to produce an eBook but fans copied it (I own the paper copy).
Bottom line - I didn't buy a Kindle to somehow save money, that wasn't the point! It's nice that Amazon discounts Kindle books and all but I bought mine for the convenience. Being able to carry so many books so easily when I read so much was why I purchased the Kindle. If I never make up for it's cost in purchased books I do not care. The Kindle has allowed me to read far more than I was previously able and has made the process of picking out a book and getting it near instantaneous. I think these things make the Kindle a worthwhile investment that has nothing to do with saving money....
BTW I may be buying a Kindle for a young teen soon. My reasoning is that I want this child to be able to easily read and to improve their reading skills. I think the Kindle is perfect for this.
Progress - maybe. If the XBMC developers pick up on the ffmpeg patches and use them I will be SO very very happy! They grabbed the CABAC stuff back when it was being REJECTED by the ffmpeg guys so fingers crossed they like this too:-)
Very nice and good info - thanks! It's a shame it's not a single easy way to access acceleration but I guess we'll see if the XBMC or other developers use it. The XBMC guys seem to like using curtting edge ffmpeg code so my fingers are crossed for NVIDIA at least!:-)
"NVIDIA® PureVideoâ Decoder software, a plug-in for Microsoft® Windows® Media Player and Media Center Edition, delivers smooth MPEG2 video and unmatched color fidelity when watching DVDs, videos, and TV programs on your PC. It features Dolby® Digital surround sound audio and supports the MPEG2 video features on your Microsoft DirectX® compatible graphics processor."
I'm sorry, I do not see Linux listed there anywhere, do you? Yes, my HARDWARE is H.264 capable but unfortunately no manufacturer to include ATI, Intel, or NVIDIA, has released a DRIVER for Linux that enables it. What I really really want is feature parity between the Windows drivers and the drivers for Linux. They own the code right? They built the hardware right? So why do I only get MPEG2 acceleration? Yes, I've read that they cannot open source that code because of licenses (so much for owning) and I've heard them claim other things too. Where's the beef? License it for Linux already. Do it as a binary blob closed source like the existing NVIDIA drivers and document it such that it's easily handled for the programmers. That's what I want, I'm not holding my breath. Yes there are efforts to write this support using bits already exposed but WOW would it be better if the manufacturers would simply do it in the damned drivers! Can I have audio over HDMI while we're at it? Apples and oranges maybe? I still want it...
And no apparently CoreAVC isn't an option for the XBMC guys, they do not want to code for a pay for play library.
So you're advocating Windows? I'd love to do H.264 decoding on the GPU in Linux, which driver and which video card do that for me?
I use XBMC, we're stuck with using the CPU for now but at least we can use both cores. So far the AMD CPUs haven't fared well with that software for full 1080P H.264 decoding either.
I will NEVER forget being forced to buy a CAT5 cable while on travel once upon a time. Upon returning to my room with it I was faced with one of those damned impossible to open packages. Thanks to TSA I had no knife, no scissors, no normal way to slash open the damned package. I ended up sawing it open on the metal frame of the bed like a madman! Truly disturbing to get so desperate to open one of the damned things.
I really miss cardboard packaging and I hope that Amazon's example starts a trend...
Use a SATA laptop drive. Runs cool, uses desktop connectors, and is decently priced if you get them out of one of those portable USB enclosures WD makes. Worked for me!
True however they will happily bankrupt the estate if they can. Parents often wish to pass on wealth to their children, an expensive stay in the hospital or an extended care facility can completely wipe out even the prosperous. Even keeping a family member in your home with some nursing assistance is shockingly expensive if it lasts for very long. I can completely understand why someone might take their own life when they have realized what their care will cost.
You'd be surprised what even the "insured" are expected to pay when it comes to life altering accidents or illness. I've seen this occur to people three times in my life and it is NEVER pretty.
Am starting to think you are a shill here but I'll try to take this seriously.... When was the last time you popped open a modern digital device like an iPod transmitter, WiFi card, or other digital transmitter and found a VARIABLE RESISTOR in it controlling power?! Are you serious? A firmware flash maybe but an analog variable resistor? Would like to see a SMT one of those heh....
Was that a LOT of money or was that $300? Because frankly $300 isn't a LOT of money in the grand scheme of home theater TV much less sitting down and watching some normal crap TV. Tell me you spent $3K and have some real honest serious proof that this is going to cause issues and I'll have some sympathy.
As it stands right now I want to see more widespread high speed 'net access and this sounds like a good way to perhaps get it. I haven't found arguments against it persuasive and would like to see some independent research - not something from companies with huge vested interests.
I'd be with you on this if I didn't see thin blue line stickers on so damned many cars driving the roads in my area! I can sit at a light, look around, and often see at least one of those stickers placed on a vehicle around me. Speaking to someone I know who was married to an officer I got quite the education on how she had been let go out of speeding tickets and other infractions after first proving that she was married to an officer. The sticker is seen and infractions allowed to slide by. An officer who tickets someone who is "family" isn't treated well by fellow officers.... So yeah, I have an issue there. There should be NO distinction and yet there is - and a very clear one at that it seems.
Speaking of frothing.... This wasn't an "active choice" to free a child molester it was a judge using common sense and realizing that this was a search without a proper warrant and throwing it out just as he would\should if an officer kicked your door down without a proper warrant.
Or maybe get a proper warrant and follow procedures properly? Sorry, I am no fan of kiddie abusers but if we bent the rules the way you'd like them for this instance then what comes next? I break down your door as an officer, find nothing, and suffer a fine for having made a mistake? Sorry, the officers must follow rules same as you and I or they will become simple bullies. Oh wait....
Better a few guilty men go free on a technicality than allow officers to become a law unto themselves.
Amazon may not have unrestricted books but the zillion or so other sources of books have them just fine. If you can get it in PDF you can convert it yourself or let Amazon do it for free. For 10cents they will even deliver it to you wirelessly. Sure, it would be nice if Amazon sold them DRM free but they have explained why they cannot yet do this - the publishers won't go for it. So for now the DRM is there and those of us who own a Kindle aren't finding it to be too bad. I mean really this isn't like music where I have 2 dozen different places I want to use it - at least not YET. Near as I can tell the Kindle is already a success - DRM included.
Actually for tech books it rocks - you can put TONS of books on there and then search across all of them quickly! Just be sure to check prices on the tech books first as they tend to be higher than the $9.99 max that normal books seem to cap out at or so I'm told by guys who buy tech books for their Kindle. I cannot bring mine into the office so mine has nothing but pleasure reading on it. Being able to lay it flat and tap buttons while eating etc. is pretty nice, no flopping around of pages and no broken spines on books to deal with.
I can say though that the internal memory can hold a TON of books and that even thick books like Harry Potter don't take up much space - I converted from PDF and was surprised at how small that series was! I have a multi-gig card in mine and so far, to my surprise, I've yet to have to use it and I've got quite a few books on mine. The size of the books means they download FAST too! Note that the 2nd gen reader supposedly has larger onboard memory and no expansion slot - not sure I much like that honestly. I want the slot!
Why buy another doodad? Because it DOES work well, has longer battery life, is easier on the eyes, has a larger screen, and well doesn't have this weird scrolling issue that concerns you? Really, you ought to try one out, the ugly things are actually pretty nice and while I wish they looked more like the Sony reader which is pretty, stylish, and light the Kindle kicks it's ass for access to stuff you can read without jumping through hoops. Guys I know who own the Sony reader (and have iPhone BTW) have bought Kindles while their Sony reader gathers dust and their iPhone charges.
Mind you, I own an iPhone too. I do not see myself replacing the Kidnle with it however...
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Umm how is this insightful - it's not true. You CAN surf the WEB on the Kindle. It's not a terribly full featured browser but it does have Java and it can be used to browse. I seem to recall Google Maps working on it for instance. ALT +1 while in the browser brings up your current location for instance.
some tips: http://thekindle.wordpress.com/2008/01/15/kindle-bonus-undocumented-shortcuts-features-and-easter-eggs/
I own an iPhone, unlike my Kindle I cannot use it for 20 hours between charges. The screen is too small for reading, the resolution is not nearly as nice on the eyes, the Kindle is easier to navigate with. I can also purchase any of a zillion books from the Amazon store and read them in seconds - no can do on my iPhone. Yes, there are better looking eReaders and if they supported the Amazon store I might be interested in one of them.
Yup, the Kindle is single function unless you count MP3 playing (?!). I don't care, it does that single function GREAT, has a terrific display, and is convenient. If you owned one for even a short period of time you'd understand this.
I do pretty much what you do, read, close it up, put it in a pocket, open and read more. I go through two or three books sometimes like this before I need to charge my Kindle. I never lose my place in the book either and if I'm reading 4 or 5 books they all fit in the same pocket just fine. My biggest issues are that they put the charge plug on the bottom where ti gets in the way and the right side page turn is too easy to hit. When I finish my book I almost always have another onboard and if I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere like an airport terminal I can buy a discounted book quickly and have it ready to read in seconds. Not so easy with paper I've found as the shops in the airport have crap for selection and HIGH prices to say the least.
But hey, go ahead and delude yourself that what you're doing is somehow more convenient if it suits you. I'll agree you've saved some money up front overall but the price of the Kindle was the least of my considerations. Being able to carry 15-20 books with me at a time and get new ones to read most anywhere is nearly priceless.
Index? How about full text searching across all of the books on the device. I think this trumps your index by miles, no? I can find my purchased books far more easily on my Kindle than I can my bookshelf, as my books shelf is now double deep having run out of room about 4 years ago. I simply do not have the space for all of my books!
As pointed out by someone else I can keep my content if I destroy the device. However I find that I tend to take care of my $250 Kindle rather than abuse it. I have no worries about having it around the bath or pool though, I'm simply not that careless.
The Kindle may not change your reading habits but it's certainly changed mine and that of others I know who own one. I am reading FAR more than I was before and have begun digging into older classics to boot - just finished Robinson Crusoe. As for the name - Kindle the imagination is what you want to think of not burning books...
You need to look at prices more closely then. The Kindle books are discounted off of the Amazon price usually by 2-3 dollars apiece. Saving 2-3 on a $9 book is hardly minimal IMO. I have yet to see a single Kindle book priced the same as the paperback counterpart and certainly never at the cover price. The highest price I've paid for a Kindle book is $9.99 and while I know some reference or technical books go higher they are still discounted and certainly not your "mass paperback" example.
I read "mass paperbacks" and right now my Kindle has about 20 of them on it to include the entire Harry Potter series (from PDF). You really think I could carry that as easily in paper form as I can on my Kindle?! Seems to me the Kindle is a far better way to transport books and when I finish one in an airline terminal I'm not forced to pay extortion level pricing for another from the local shop. If I've run out of reading on it I can easily have one delivered wirelessly in seconds.
Yes, the Sony is much nicer looking! However I know of at least one Sony owner who parked his and bought a Kindle simply because the selection of books for the Kindle and the ease with which they can be bought stomped the Sony. Personally when I'm reading on my Kindle I don't much care what it looks like only that the display is crisp and that I can get the content that I want - sadly not always doable even with Amazon's selection.
I'd love for the device to look as sharp as the Sony but really the looks of the device are second to it's functionality.
you've yet to see an eInk display? When you find a tablet PC that can last 20 hours on a charge and charges FAST let me know. Never mind that the Kindle display rocks, the battery life alone stomps any laptop around. It's also lightweight with only the new Netbooks coming anywhere close in portability.
So no, it's not just a DRM'd laptop thingy.
For reading something interesting and fun it's PERFECT. I read about a book a week to every other week so I am pretty familiar with it. However when I read a book that I needed to bookmark and take notes in I ran into issues. One issue was that the other person I was reading with used a different font and when I'd try to ask opinions of things I'd find that the numbering system was inconsistent because of the font difference - that sucked! I couldn't say what did you think of the paragraph on page 55 like I could with a paper book. Frankly the numbering on the Kindle is a mystery to me. In the end she and I purchased paper copies for markup and notetaking. I had a great big pile of bookmarks on the Kindle but trying to highlight or markup was simply a PITA.
So, in that endeavor the Kindle failed us both. If I were in a classroom situation it would probably have been a similar situation with both of us unhappy. Arguments against eBooks in this situation are likely valid IMO.
However for reading normal stuff, books for pleasure, the Kindle is damned nice. The screen is SHARP and I can read it in any light that I'd be able to read another book. I can travel with 5-6 unread books without breaking my shoulder or stuffing a bag. I can carry 20-30 read books easily too. If I want a new book I can get one most anywhere and indeed I've done just that in an airport terminal a few times. I can download free books too which I've done. Converting PDF is also doable and I did it in at least one case where the publisher refused to produce an eBook but fans copied it (I own the paper copy).
Bottom line - I didn't buy a Kindle to somehow save money, that wasn't the point! It's nice that Amazon discounts Kindle books and all but I bought mine for the convenience. Being able to carry so many books so easily when I read so much was why I purchased the Kindle. If I never make up for it's cost in purchased books I do not care. The Kindle has allowed me to read far more than I was previously able and has made the process of picking out a book and getting it near instantaneous. I think these things make the Kindle a worthwhile investment that has nothing to do with saving money....
BTW I may be buying a Kindle for a young teen soon. My reasoning is that I want this child to be able to easily read and to improve their reading skills. I think the Kindle is perfect for this.
Progress - maybe. If the XBMC developers pick up on the ffmpeg patches and use them I will be SO very very happy! They grabbed the CABAC stuff back when it was being REJECTED by the ffmpeg guys so fingers crossed they like this too :-)
Very nice and good info - thanks! It's a shame it's not a single easy way to access acceleration but I guess we'll see if the XBMC or other developers use it. The XBMC guys seem to like using curtting edge ffmpeg code so my fingers are crossed for NVIDIA at least! :-)
From their download link ->
"NVIDIA® PureVideoâ Decoder software, a plug-in for Microsoft® Windows® Media Player and Media Center Edition, delivers smooth MPEG2 video and unmatched color fidelity when watching DVDs, videos, and TV programs on your PC. It features Dolby® Digital surround sound audio and supports the MPEG2 video features on your Microsoft DirectX® compatible graphics processor."
I'm sorry, I do not see Linux listed there anywhere, do you? Yes, my HARDWARE is H.264 capable but unfortunately no manufacturer to include ATI, Intel, or NVIDIA, has released a DRIVER for Linux that enables it. What I really really want is feature parity between the Windows drivers and the drivers for Linux. They own the code right? They built the hardware right? So why do I only get MPEG2 acceleration? Yes, I've read that they cannot open source that code because of licenses (so much for owning) and I've heard them claim other things too. Where's the beef? License it for Linux already. Do it as a binary blob closed source like the existing NVIDIA drivers and document it such that it's easily handled for the programmers. That's what I want, I'm not holding my breath. Yes there are efforts to write this support using bits already exposed but WOW would it be better if the manufacturers would simply do it in the damned drivers! Can I have audio over HDMI while we're at it? Apples and oranges maybe? I still want it...
And no apparently CoreAVC isn't an option for the XBMC guys, they do not want to code for a pay for play library.
So you're advocating Windows? I'd love to do H.264 decoding on the GPU in Linux, which driver and which video card do that for me?
I use XBMC, we're stuck with using the CPU for now but at least we can use both cores. So far the AMD CPUs haven't fared well with that software for full 1080P H.264 decoding either.
I will NEVER forget being forced to buy a CAT5 cable while on travel once upon a time. Upon returning to my room with it I was faced with one of those damned impossible to open packages. Thanks to TSA I had no knife, no scissors, no normal way to slash open the damned package. I ended up sawing it open on the metal frame of the bed like a madman! Truly disturbing to get so desperate to open one of the damned things.
I really miss cardboard packaging and I hope that Amazon's example starts a trend...
Use a SATA laptop drive. Runs cool, uses desktop connectors, and is decently priced if you get them out of one of those portable USB enclosures WD makes. Worked for me!
True however they will happily bankrupt the estate if they can. Parents often wish to pass on wealth to their children, an expensive stay in the hospital or an extended care facility can completely wipe out even the prosperous. Even keeping a family member in your home with some nursing assistance is shockingly expensive if it lasts for very long. I can completely understand why someone might take their own life when they have realized what their care will cost.
You'd be surprised what even the "insured" are expected to pay when it comes to life altering accidents or illness. I've seen this occur to people three times in my life and it is NEVER pretty.
Am starting to think you are a shill here but I'll try to take this seriously.... When was the last time you popped open a modern digital device like an iPod transmitter, WiFi card, or other digital transmitter and found a VARIABLE RESISTOR in it controlling power?! Are you serious? A firmware flash maybe but an analog variable resistor? Would like to see a SMT one of those heh....
Was that a LOT of money or was that $300? Because frankly $300 isn't a LOT of money in the grand scheme of home theater TV much less sitting down and watching some normal crap TV. Tell me you spent $3K and have some real honest serious proof that this is going to cause issues and I'll have some sympathy.
As it stands right now I want to see more widespread high speed 'net access and this sounds like a good way to perhaps get it. I haven't found arguments against it persuasive and would like to see some independent research - not something from companies with huge vested interests.
Redundant but here's the site with that pumpkin - featured on DIGG awhile ago which is how I found it -> http://www.villafanestudios.com/pumpkins.htm
I'd be with you on this if I didn't see thin blue line stickers on so damned many cars driving the roads in my area! I can sit at a light, look around, and often see at least one of those stickers placed on a vehicle around me. Speaking to someone I know who was married to an officer I got quite the education on how she had been let go out of speeding tickets and other infractions after first proving that she was married to an officer. The sticker is seen and infractions allowed to slide by. An officer who tickets someone who is "family" isn't treated well by fellow officers.... So yeah, I have an issue there. There should be NO distinction and yet there is - and a very clear one at that it seems.
Speaking of frothing.... This wasn't an "active choice" to free a child molester it was a judge using common sense and realizing that this was a search without a proper warrant and throwing it out just as he would\should if an officer kicked your door down without a proper warrant.
Troll indeed!
Or maybe get a proper warrant and follow procedures properly? Sorry, I am no fan of kiddie abusers but if we bent the rules the way you'd like them for this instance then what comes next? I break down your door as an officer, find nothing, and suffer a fine for having made a mistake? Sorry, the officers must follow rules same as you and I or they will become simple bullies. Oh wait....
Better a few guilty men go free on a technicality than allow officers to become a law unto themselves.
Amazon may not have unrestricted books but the zillion or so other sources of books have them just fine. If you can get it in PDF you can convert it yourself or let Amazon do it for free. For 10cents they will even deliver it to you wirelessly. Sure, it would be nice if Amazon sold them DRM free but they have explained why they cannot yet do this - the publishers won't go for it. So for now the DRM is there and those of us who own a Kindle aren't finding it to be too bad. I mean really this isn't like music where I have 2 dozen different places I want to use it - at least not YET. Near as I can tell the Kindle is already a success - DRM included.
Actually for tech books it rocks - you can put TONS of books on there and then search across all of them quickly! Just be sure to check prices on the tech books first as they tend to be higher than the $9.99 max that normal books seem to cap out at or so I'm told by guys who buy tech books for their Kindle. I cannot bring mine into the office so mine has nothing but pleasure reading on it. Being able to lay it flat and tap buttons while eating etc. is pretty nice, no flopping around of pages and no broken spines on books to deal with.
I can say though that the internal memory can hold a TON of books and that even thick books like Harry Potter don't take up much space - I converted from PDF and was surprised at how small that series was! I have a multi-gig card in mine and so far, to my surprise, I've yet to have to use it and I've got quite a few books on mine. The size of the books means they download FAST too! Note that the 2nd gen reader supposedly has larger onboard memory and no expansion slot - not sure I much like that honestly. I want the slot!
Why buy another doodad? Because it DOES work well, has longer battery life, is easier on the eyes, has a larger screen, and well doesn't have this weird scrolling issue that concerns you? Really, you ought to try one out, the ugly things are actually pretty nice and while I wish they looked more like the Sony reader which is pretty, stylish, and light the Kindle kicks it's ass for access to stuff you can read without jumping through hoops. Guys I know who own the Sony reader (and have iPhone BTW) have bought Kindles while their Sony reader gathers dust and their iPhone charges.
Mind you, I own an iPhone too. I do not see myself replacing the Kidnle with it however...