Amazon's Bezos has lofty ambitions for Kindle

Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos believes the Kindle will be to reading what the iPod was to music, according to report published Sunday in the online edition of Newsweek magazine.

In what appears to be the Bezos' first interview about the company's upcoming electronic reader, Amazon's chief told the magazine that the Kindle can store up to 200 books and connect to the Web with the help of a system called Whispernet. Amazon, a company that has become synonymous with buying books online, will also offer Kindle owners a selection of more than 88,000 digital books at launch time, according to Newsweek.

Last week, CNET News.com reported that Bezos will unveil the Kindle at a media event in New York on Monday. An industry source said that the device will retail for $399 and receive automatic downloads from major newspapers, magazines and other publications. The source also said that Kindle features e-mail.

The e-mail service enables owners to receive word documents or PDF files that can be stored in the device's library just like a book, Newsweek reported. But what makes the handheld truly unique is that it downloads books off the Web--and it can do that "in less than a minute," Bezos told the magazine.

E-readers used to confine e-book buyers to wherever their computers were located. Digital books had to be first downloaded to a PC and then synced to an e-reader. Amazon is freeing them to buy wherever they can connect to the Web and this could lead to more impulse purchases.

Amazon is banking a lot on the e-reader. The retailer held up the release for more than a year in an attempt to deliver a superior product than predecessors, a source told CNET News.com. Previous attempts to convince the public to switch to digital books have largely failed.

To help spur demand, Amazon is pricing Kindle editions of New York Times best sellers as well as new releases for $9.99. Price is important because in the past, e-books have often cost the same as the paper kind and that stifled demand.

Newsweek offered few details about the Whispernet system, but did say that its based on the EVDO. A source told CNET that Sprint will provide the EVDO access.

EVDO will enable Kindle owners to hook up to the Web via a cellular network. That means way more coverage than having to look for a Wi-Fi hotspot.

[SpiritWater]

Another one will bite the dust...

There's nothing like reading a paper bound book. An e-book of any kind cannot compare unless it completely mimics the paper format. This latest attempt to save the trees may fail as well as the rest. Sure, I read article after article on the web but strain comes faster reading electronic formats than from paper print. <br /><br />Good luck to you Amazon! My hope is that you succeed.<br /><br />Break the Wedge!<br />www.breakthewedge.com

[CyberBob859]

I hope the pictures of the device weren't accurate...

...because the device is fugly (IMO.)<br /><br />The advantage that Amazon has is their web presence, being a <br />place where people already go to buy books. But, Sony's device <br />looks better.<br /><br />The wireless features may have some appeal, but I hope that the <br />pictures shown of the device were just prototypes and else will <br />be introduced.

[sutratoo]

kindle will probably be kindling

audio books are the wave of the future. When we have an ebook <br />device that can deliver audio you will have an ebook device that <br />will become the ipod of ebooks

[Thrudheim]

wave of the future?

Audio books have their role, no doubt, but listening to a book is <br />very inefficient compared to reading one. Besides, portable audio <br />is readily available now.

[heatherpainter]

Kindle Proprietary? E-Book options?

If you are considering Amazon's new "Kindle", you have to take a look at BooksOnBoard.com <br /><br />BooksOnBoard is an online bookstore with great prices, a huge selection of books (154,000 titles - almost twice as many as Amazon, and 8 times as many as Sony)...and the personal service and attention of a small, community bookstore (7 days a week).<br /><br />BooksOnBoard.com has four different, major, non-proprietary formats, plus audiobooks. Their prices are at, or below, "Kindles". And...you don't have to buy hardware to access those low prices. No membership fees or hidden games. <br /><br />Not to mention, it looks like the "Kindle" is NOT mobipocket, but a new proprietary format from Amazon. So, they are playing the Sony game, trying to cut everyone else out, and limit the consumer's options. BooksOnBoard is a great eBook work around. <br /><br />Did I mention that they don't lock you into monthly service fees?

[MSFanBoy]

Butt UGLY!

Sheesh have you seen this thing? Yuck!<br /><a class="jive-link-external" href="http://fakesteveballmer*blogspot.com" target="_newWindow">http://****************.blogspot.com</a><br />I wonder what Ballmer thinks of it?

[neoportal]

User generated PDF?

ebook readers will not be successful until there is a way for users to create their own content by easily converting printed books into PDFs.<br /><br />Just as MP3 was the foundation for the ipods industry and 97% of what fill iPods are from music ripped by users, all the online ebook stores will be pointless.<br /><br />For those who want to convert printed books to ebooks, please check out www.atiz.com

[ebaybunny]

I HEART GREG SANDOVAL

GREG SANDOVAL IS HOT STUFF. <br /><br />PAM...