"KINDLE MANIA TAKES THE UK BY STORM"That's what Pocket Lint's Paul Lamkin reported a couple of days ago, at any rate, when news that the Kindle (UK: K3) is now the biggest selling product on the UK site was, to Lamkin, "proof that we're a nation of Kindle-maniacs."
He added that we should check their Amazon Kindle review to "see what all the fuss is about." That takes us to several images, so here's the link to their full review.
Here are a few excerpts from that review -- since I've chosen quite a bit, you can see there's a lot more and you should go to the site for the rest of it:
' Controls and connections lie across the bottom of the Kindle, offering a volume controller for audible and music content along with a 3.5mm headphone jack. There is a Micro-USB connector and a sliding power switch. A mic opening is also present here, but at present lacks any supporting features - we suspect it would be for a simple voice notes function.
...
The keys have a slightly abrasive feel to them, but the action is clean enough. In terms of response, this is governed by the screen, which is quick to react and a real improvement over E Ink screens of the past which were a little slow to register and change.
...
Being a connected device, and supported by Amazon, the Kindle will let you subscribe to various newspapers and magazines, all for a fee. We elected for a trial of the Financial Times; presented as it is it is perfectly readable, and using the 3G connection in the device, it will automatically be loaded with the latest content when you rush out of the door in the morning to catch the train.
...
For many, the sheer simplicity of the system makes it really appealing. No computers, no wires, no need to authenticate anything with Adobe Digital Editions to deal with the DRM. It also isn’t restricted to your Kindle only: Amazon also offers Kindle access through your PC or Mac, iPad, iPhone/iPod touch and Android handsets, and we’ve also seen Kindle on the BlackBerry. So you don’t need to fear that your content is “locked in” to your Kindle. Cleverly, it also auto-syncs the position you have read up to, meaning you’ll be able to read a few chapters on your phone whilst sitting on the bus, and pickup on your Kindle when you go to bed.
...
To see what Amazon’s pricing looks like alongside EPUB-selling rivals WHSmith and Waterstones, we compared the top 5 titles from the New York Times best selling hardcover fiction list (prices as at the date of this review publication). Whilst this isn’t entirely conclusive, it’s an indicator or where the Kindle Store lies.... 
There is free content too, as Amazon have Kindle editions of many out-of-copyright classics. This is one area where other readers have worked hard, offering EPUB versions of these texts which can be sourced online, but Amazon has dealt with this too.
The reading experience on the Kindle is excellent. The screen looks great and doesn’t suffer from reflections or glare, fulfilling the aim of being as close to reading on paper as possible. ... As a complete cross-platform ebook solution, it is the most cohesive around, but remember that if you opt for a non-Amazon device in the future (Sony or BeBook for example) you won’t be able to move over your Kindle content.
...
the Amazon Kindle offers exceptional value for money, considering that some rivals are asking for twice as much and offer no content solution. You lose on some of the format freedoms, but you gain on simplicity. The Kindle Store prices are good too and this is an important consideration. ... '
PUBLISHERS COMPLAIN THAT AMAZON'S TERRITORIAL CONTROLS ARE 'EASILY CRACKED'
The Bookseller has a story on how a few publishers have done tests on Amazon's territorial controls and "regularly circumvented them."
Maybe they ought to take a look at the fact we're in the Internet age where country boundaries don't mean much and reconsider some of their digital-rights dramas that don't pertain to normal books but to software and find a way to make things work for everyone instead of for no one, including them at this point.
An Amazon UK spokesman responded in a rather dry way, "Each customer has a content catalogue associated with their region or country, and we display the appropriate catalogue for each country."
Kindle 3's (UK: Kindle 3's), DX Graphite
Check often: Temporarily-free late-listed non-classics or recently published ones
Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources. Top 100 free bestsellers.
Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.
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