Review: Amazon Kindle 3 E-Book Reader
You only have to hold the Kindle to realize you’re in new e-book reader territory. The third-generation Kindle comes in two versions: with Wi-Fi for £109, or with 3G and Wi-Fi for £149.
It’s the first Kindle device launched specifically into the UK.Amazon says its name remains simply ‘Kindle’, but for simplicity’s sake we’ll go with ‘Amazon Kindle 3′for this review.
At 247g, the Kindle isn’t the lightest e-reader on the market, but It is lighter than Barnes & Noble’s Nook. And it’s 15 percent lighter than its predecessor. The unit felt balanced in the hand, and the buttons were in convenient, ergonomic places.
New Design
It looks vastly different to its predecessor. too, in graphite as well as white. Those darker borders enhance readability, but the display is dramatically better in its own regard. Like the Kindle DX, this Kindle has a 6in E Ink Pearl display, which boasts faster refresh rates and 50 percent better contrast. As with the DX, blacks look more solid and text is smoother.
The Kindle 3′s physical design is smaller – by 21 percent. according to Amazon. The new model measures a stout 190 x 122 x 9mm, compared to the 203 x 135 x9mm of the Amazon Kindle 2. But the difference felt more dramatic holding it (made easier by the rubberized backing).
To achieve this Amazon has trimmed white space around the bezels, helping the 6in screen to dominate, although there’s still room around the edges for fingers to rest.
The amount of space the keyboard consumes has reduced,with the keys slightly closer together and the number row removed (to get to numbers, you now have to press the symbol button). The navigation buttons have been clustered together and rearranged; more notably, the page-forward/-back buttons have shrunk to just 6mm.By having these buttons on both sides, the Kindle is handy for both left- and right-handed users.
One of the things we disliked about the Kindle 2 was that the page-forward and -back buttons were depressed into the screen.The much slimmer rocker-style buttons on the Kindle 3 meld into the edge of the device. We prefer this approach, as fingers don’t need to hover in a single place to turn the page; instead, we could mix up our hand’s location, and still turn the page with a palm heel, or even the length of our thumb – either is a vastly superior experience.
The Kindle 3′s keyboard buttons are more rounded, and by being closer together, we found the keyboard easier to type on than that of the Kindle 2. The experience was more akin to what we’re used to on a physical mobile phone keyboard.
The home button has moved to the bottom of the Kindle’s keyboard, and the joystick navigation cluster of the Kindle 2 replaced by a D-pad approach with a five-way navigation square, an oval Menu button above, and Back button beneath.
We found this organization easy to adapt to, and certainly better than the comparatively stiff joystick. One thing is very clear: navigation
is noticeably faster. We could quickly scroll through menu items with practically no lag; previously,we’d have become frustrated by the sluggish responsiveness of the Kindle 2. Page turns are 20 percent faster, too; that translates into a more zippy experience.
While the overall e-reading experience remains unchanged, Amazon has added some noteworthy features. For the first time, you can change line spacing (choose small, medium and large) and the typeface (from regular,condensed and sans serif). That’sa feature the Barnes & Noble’s Nook and most LCD screen-based e-readers have had for some time.
Like the Kindle DX and updated Kindle 2, the Kindle 3 supports sharing passages via Facebook and Twitter. It also supports the viewing of popular highlights (aggregated from what passages Kindle users are sharing). Uniquely new for this Kindle: a Web Kit-based web browser. The browser is still classified as experimental, but it provides a better experience than before.
The new Amazon Kindle 3 doubles the internal memory from 2GB to 4GB, which Amazon translates into 3,500 books (up from 1,500). Amazon now claims a battery life of up to a month.
Specs Detail
6-inch (600×800) E Ink Pearl display, 16-level greyscale, keyboard, 4GB internal storage (3GB available), 802.11b/g, HSDPA 3G modem, micro-USB 2.0 port, 33mm audio jack, 190 x 123 x 9mm, 247g
Verdict
The Amazon Kindle 3 made an unusually quick, and positive, impression. The new Kindle’s solid build quality, improved design, integrated store and cross-platform transportability of e-books all add up to a winner to top the e-book pack.
You only have to hold the Kindle to realize you’re in new e-book reader territory. The third-generation Kindle comes in two versions: with Wi-Fi for £109, or with 3G and Wi-Fi for £149.
It’s the first Kindle device launched specifically into the UK.Amazon says its name remains simply ‘Kindle’, but for simplicity’s sake we’ll go with ‘Amazon Kindle 3′for this review.
At 247g, the Kindle isn’t the lightest e-reader on the market, but It is lighter than Barnes & Noble’s Nook. And it’s 15 percent lighter than its predecessor. The unit felt balanced in the hand, and the buttons were in convenient, ergonomic places.
New Design
It looks vastly different to its predecessor. too, in graphite as well as white. Those darker borders enhance readability, but the display is dramatically better in its own regard. Like the Kindle DX, this Kindle has a 6in E Ink Pearl display, which boasts faster refresh rates and 50 percent better contrast. As with the DX, blacks look more solid and text is smoother.
The Kindle 3′s physical design is smaller – by 21 percent. according to Amazon. The new model measures a stout 190 x 122 x 9mm, compared to the 203 x 135 x9mm of the Amazon Kindle 2. But the difference felt more dramatic holding it (made easier by the rubberized backing).
To achieve this Amazon has trimmed white space around the bezels, helping the 6in screen to dominate, although there’s still room around the edges for fingers to rest.
The amount of space the keyboard consumes has reduced,with the keys slightly closer together and the number row removed (to get to numbers, you now have to press the symbol button). The navigation buttons have been clustered together and rearranged; more notably, the page-forward/-back buttons have shrunk to just 6mm.By having these buttons on both sides, the Kindle is handy for both left- and right-handed users.
One of the things we disliked about the Kindle 2 was that the page-forward and -back buttons were depressed into the screen.The much slimmer rocker-style buttons on the Kindle 3 meld into the edge of the device. We prefer this approach, as fingers don’t need to hover in a single place to turn the page; instead, we could mix up our hand’s location, and still turn the page with a palm heel, or even the length of our thumb – either is a vastly superior experience.
The Kindle 3′s keyboard buttons are more rounded, and by being closer together, we found the keyboard easier to type on than that of the Kindle 2. The experience was more akin to what we’re used to on a physical mobile phone keyboard.
The home button has moved to the bottom of the Kindle’s keyboard, and the joystick navigation cluster of the Kindle 2 replaced by a D-pad approach with a five-way navigation square, an oval Menu button above, and Back button beneath.
We found this organization easy to adapt to, and certainly better than the comparatively stiff joystick. One thing is very clear: navigation
is noticeably faster. We could quickly scroll through menu items with practically no lag; previously,we’d have become frustrated by the sluggish responsiveness of the Kindle 2. Page turns are 20 percent faster, too; that translates into a more zippy experience.
While the overall e-reading experience remains unchanged, Amazon has added some noteworthy features. For the first time, you can change line spacing (choose small, medium and large) and the typeface (from regular,condensed and sans serif). That’sa feature the Barnes & Noble’s Nook and most LCD screen-based e-readers have had for some time.
Like the Kindle DX and updated Kindle 2, the Kindle 3 supports sharing passages via Facebook and Twitter. It also supports the viewing of popular highlights (aggregated from what passages Kindle users are sharing). Uniquely new for this Kindle: a Web Kit-based web browser. The browser is still classified as experimental, but it provides a better experience than before.
The new Amazon Kindle 3 doubles the internal memory from 2GB to 4GB, which Amazon translates into 3,500 books (up from 1,500). Amazon now claims a battery life of up to a month.
Specs Detail
6-inch (600×800) E Ink Pearl display, 16-level greyscale, keyboard, 4GB internal storage (3GB available), 802.11b/g, HSDPA 3G modem, micro-USB 2.0 port, 33mm audio jack, 190 x 123 x 9mm, 247g
Verdict
The Amazon Kindle 3 made an unusually quick, and positive, impression. The new Kindle’s solid build quality, improved design, integrated store and cross-platform transportability of e-books all add up to a winner to top the e-book pack.
