Kindle: oui, ou non?

I have tons of work to do which I haven't gotten around to yet. But for now I just wanna just write about this briefly. Been wanting to write on Kindle a couple months ago, but as always, Procrastination stuck its butt in front of me and tripped me up, hence i never got to it. there's always something else more urgent to get done. There still is, actually, as I sit here and type away. But with the rate it's going, I probably wouldn't ever get to write anything if I keep stalling. So here's my take on Kindle.

Last week (or was it the week before last?) Amazon came up with the international version of Kindle 2 that created a hype around the globe. Have to admit, a while back I really, really wanted one for myself. Simply because, well, I love gadgets for one, and also because I wouldn't have to worry about getting my books dog-eared if I put them in my bag and carry them wherever I go. Nevermind the design of it is sleek, it's thin and it's white--I love all things white; and it's environmental friendly. (Well, so they claimed anyway.) You can have multiple books saved in it--reportedly as many as 1500 books--and can read whichever you want whenever you want, instead of having to choose just one and carry it with you when you leave the house. And with Kindle's wireless service called Whispernet, you can Wiki or Google anything, anytime. It's great if you travel a lot; but even if you don't, it still makes reading so much more accessible no matter where you're at. In this digital age we're living in, it only makes sense to take reading to the next level, right?!

Kindle sounds like a great buy, doesn't it? Except... maybe it's not. I emphasize on "maybe", because this is just my opinion. Back then, when I wanted one for myself, I did a little research on it to see how it fared among the Kindle users. Reviews about it were mixed, but here are a few points that seemed consistent amongst users.1) The visual: The e-paper seemed to be grey-greenish, so for some it might be hard to read. For young invincibles like myself (haha! *rolls eyes*), this might not be a problem, but for others who would be staring at the 6" screen for hours straight, I would imagine they want something of a better quality. 2) E-readers are just not... books. Book lovers would know what I'm talking about. It's just a different experience altogether, and some people just want to enjoy the touch and smell of a book, myself included. And so... for that reason, some might be averse to e-books and all that digital stuff. 3) International fees. You might have heard, if you buy Kindle outside of the US, or if you bring your Kindle out of the US, you might have to pay some additional fees to access your magazine subscriptions that you've already paid for, not to mention a higher price for the same e-book. For some e-books, they might not even be available.

Those are just a few reasons. But if you ask me, I do think there is a future of e-books and digital reading. The market is definitely there, and people will embrace it, just like how they're quite adaptive to the integration of web 2.0 in their daily lives. For now though, technology has yet to catch up with our expectations, like having it more user-friendly, more economic i.e. free wifi and do away with additional fees, longer battery life, transferable e-books either to desktop, laptop, or other e-readers etc. It would be great if we can have encyclopedias, textbooks, journal articles saved in a handy e-book like Kindle. And finally, I don't see why we have to limit our choices to just Kindle. Rumors have it that Barnes & Noble will be coming out with their e-reader in the near future. Sony already has its own e-readers, though strangely enough it's not quite as popular as Kindle... probably due to Amazon's more effective marketing strategies.

Anyway, the verdict? I would say, unless you have extra 359 bucks to spare and don't know what to do with it, don't get it until a better version comes out. It is, of course, ultimately your own choice. But I personally would wait to see if better products will surface, or if the price would go down further more. For a device like this, I think 359 bucks is a little overpriced--at least from an economical consumer's perspective. [So, Mandy, I guess your wish of having a Kindle for your birthday will have to be postponed until something better comes along. :P]


Footnote: 
Here are a few articles if you'd like to read up more on Kindle.
1) Nicholson Baker's extensive review on Kindle and Its Future. A very entertaining and informative read, but be warned, it's 7 pages long. 
2) Engadget's Kindle 2 Review Comparison between Kindle 1 and 2, with images too.
3) Crunchgear's 10 reasons of To-Buy and Not-To-Buy