February 25, 2009 11:20 AM PST
Kindle 2 gets naked
(Credit:
ifixit)
If you're looking for hot, sexy, revealing pics, then you know Crave is the place to be. Today we've got a treat for all you naughty boys and girls. OK, I really can't do the faux erotic thing (yes, that's what I was going for). I just feel too slimy.
Anyway, the total geeks (that is a huge compliment) over at ifixit have gutted the Amazon Kindle 2 to see what makes it tick.
Here are a few highlights from their findings:
- According to the article, the Kindle 2 has a 532MHz 90nm ARM11-based Freescale MCIMX31L CPU, compared with the 412MHz ARM1176JZ-S of the iPhone 3G.
- When they completely disconnected the screen from the battery, the content on the screen remained crystal clear even though there was no power to it.
- Pound for pound, it's more expensive than the MacBook Pro 17-inch Unibody, since the Kindle 2 weighs only 10.2 ounces.
- Disassembling the Kindle 2 was supposedly simple as they removed "only" 26 screws and disconnected four connectors.
Ahh, the good old days of tinkering with electronics. I'm glad the guys at ifixit were the ones to do this though. As much as I love taking things apart, putting 26 screws back in is for the birds.
Eric Franklin refused to write a bio, saying, "Why are you bothering me about this bio business again? If I wanted people to know more about me, I'd send them to the Inside CNET Labs Podcast" (shameless plug). E-mail Eric. 
I am very interested in Kindle 2, but am still waiting for these books to be DRM free. It's just so much easier and "thought-free" when I don't have to worry about DRM and how I use something. The higher the resolution, the better it is too. We are nowhere near true 300-dpi but that's a technical limitation at this point.
Speaking of DRM-free, Amazon does have an awesome MP3 store that is DRM-free with a large selection and often good prices. It would be nice if they had the same thing with books.
On the note about Amazon, I recently came across an interesting table that details the discounts on Amazon at
http://www.uberi.com
Maybe someone will find it useful too.
Anyway, Amazon appears to be quite serious this time. We will probably see faster advancements in this area in the near future as competition heats up.