Review

Kindle Touch review

Amazon reinvents the Kindle with the all-new Kindle Touch. But how far have we really come?

By Paul Miller on November 14, 2011 12:03 am 105Comments

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.

Hardware

Hardware / design

There's minimal perfection and there's bland

Kindle Touch review

View full Gallery

Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.
Kindle Touch review

With so many new Kindles to choose from, it's important to make the right decision for you and your family. Do you go all-in with a Kindle Fire? Skate by with the bargain basement Kindle? Or, like Goldilocks, do you choose something in the middle? The $100 Kindle Touch ($139 without ads) is that middle option. While the touchscreen might feel like a "new and fresh" twist on the typical e-reader, in reality the device is still riffing on Amazon's original Kindle, with few tweaks to shake up that landmark experience. It's still about reading books. So, what's new, and how well does it work? Well, that's what the review is for.

Unlike some products (the Droid line, for instance), the Kindle seems more staid design-wise with every generational refresh. The last generation (now known as the Kindle Keyboard, still available for $99), a minimal, razor-thin work of art, might've been Amazon's peak. There's nothing wrong with the Kindle Touch's looks, they're just plain. Amazon might argue that this is all about making the device "disappear" while you read a book, which certainly still holds true, but there's minimal perfection and there's just bland.

Fun anecdote: my dad is sort of "gray blind," which means, among other things, that he sometimes has trouble seeing gray cars. I've been in a couple near-accidents with him driving because he simply didn't see the car in the intersection. If I threw the Kindle Touch at him, he might not be able to catch it. The device is coated with quality gray ("gunmetal") plastic, with the back's two-toned assembly reminiscent of the Nexus One, and it's easily unnoticed.

The front of the device is a screen and solitary home button. The button is just a series of ridges, ostensibly meant to represent the list of books they pull up. The screen is relatively deeply inset, thanks to the optical touch recognition (the same tech, and the same inset, is present on the Nook Simple Touch), and the surrounding gray bezel is just wide enough to be comfortably braced by a thumb when in the Standard Reading Position. The last Kindle's screen was almost exactly flush with the surrounding plastic, but to the Kindle Touch's credit, there's such a thing as too thin, and I actually find the slightly chunkier Touch more comfortable to hold for long periods of time.

There's such a thing as too thin, and I find the chunkier Touch more comfortable

The only other button on the device is the lock / unlock / power button on the bottom, which is situated right next to the headphone jack and USB plug. While tapping a button to unlock the device seems totally reasonable, the Nook's slide-to-unlock is much more intuitive to me. If I set the Kindle down for a couple minutes and the screen locks, it seems weird to have to go to the bottom of the device to be able to interact with my book again — a combination of the home button and the touchscreen should suffice.

As for the topic of battery life: there is no topic of battery life. It's not something I worry about with e-readers, even with the 3G review unit I have. Amazon predicts a couple months, with live ads being pushed and regular 3G use it might be closer to a week or two, but either way it's not something to worry about.

Overall, Amazon is right, the device does disappear in your hands. I just wish that when I am paying attention, it was a little more striking.

Display

Old fashioned books are still the readability champ

With the hardware out of the way, that just leaves you, Jeff Bezos, and the touchscreen. To be clear, this screen is the same "E Ink Pearl" screen that's been kicking around the e-reader space for a couple of years. What's new (at least as far as Amazon is concerned) is the touch sensing, which is actually embedded in the bezel and works optically, meaning you can use it with gloves on, and there's nothing on top of the E Ink to lessen readability (a problem with early touch e-readers).

Amazon's picked up the same tricks that the Nook Simple Touch uses to speed up page turns. The technique is pretty simple: instead of wiping the screen with each page turn, the E Ink beads only change the necessary pixels to show the new data. There's a small amount of artifacting, which gets cleared out every sixth page turn with an old fashioned wipe, but the page turns are near immediate, and much less jarring. It's a great hack that makes E Ink page turns finally completely tolerable. I don't have any science to back this up, but I'd say the Nook's page turns (which recently benefited from a software update) are just a hair faster. Also, for whatever reason, the Nook's screen feels like it has slightly better contrast as well. I don't know if this has to do with different E Ink crops, software optimizations, or what. Either way, it's not a major difference.

Speaking of contrast: E Ink still lacks it. Despite all the improvements to E Ink over the years, E Ink still looks like dark green on light green, and black ink on a printed white page is still vastly easier to read, especially under indirect light. The irony is that E Ink really looks the best under direct sunlight or at least a nearby lamp, while LCDs are best kept out of the sun. Meanwhile, old fashioned books aren't going anywhere yet as the readability champ, no matter what the light is like. Maybe Amazon's plan is to get you to buy a device for each lighting condition —hey, that's what Whispersync's for, right?

Software

Software / touch

Now that there's a touchscreen, I start to think of the Kindle OS as an OS

The Kindle Touch's most obvious addition is a touchscreen, and it works flawlessly. You can swipe or tap to turn pages, and I had little problem doing either — I usually switch back and forth between the actions, but I'd say tapping is my default. Amazon has split the screen into virtual sections, with the top third or so meant for pulling up the menu, the majority of the right for advancing to the next page, and a small section of the left side for reversing directions. Swiping works from anywhere, and if you hold down and drag you'll select text. I never accidentally selected text when I meant to turn a page, but the opposite happened numerous times.

There's a touchscreen keyboard, which works great (just like the Nook's), but excuse me if I'm a little spoiled by the 21st century: shouldn't this thing have auto-correction? As-is, the keyboard is only useful for jotting a sentence or two of misspelled notes, while on my phone I frequently write a couple hundred words of notes in one sitting.

It's interesting how touchscreen interaction can make you perk up and pay attention to software. When all I have is a D-pad, I just want to scroll down my list of books, choose one, and get to reading. Now that there's a touchscreen, I start to think of the Kindle OS as an OS, with features and menus and interesting possibilities — most of which are lacking compared to a full-fledged version of Android.

Still, Amazon has added a couple new features to match that expectation:

X-Ray

My hands-down favorite thing about the Kindle Touch's software. Basically, when you're in a book you can pull up the menu and select "X-Ray" in the bottom right corner, and the feature takes the proper nouns from your current page and shows you how much they repeat throughout the book, in a totally glance-able graphical form. For instance, in the Steve Jobs biography, John Sculley and Steve Jobs are mentioned in the page I'm on. X-Ray shows a bar for Sculley, with a blip at the beginning, a strong appearance in the middle, and then a couple blips near the end. Meanwhile, Jobs's bar is nearly black. X-Ray also works by chapter, or as a view for the full book (sorted by People or Phrases): basically, an index cranked to 11.

X-Ray is basically an index cranked to 11

Games

Amazon has had some hard-to-find games available for the Kindle for a while, but with a touchscreen it becomes much more compelling. There's Number Slide, where you slide tiles around to get them in order — with the black and white graphics, I felt like I was back on my Macintosh SE — and a much more entertaining game called Every Word, reminiscent of popular flash games where you try to guess all the possible words from a set of letter tiles. This isn't exactly Infinity Blade 2, but I had fun, and there's a development kit coming that should hopefully open up the possibilities.

Browser

Amazon has had a Kindle browser, labeled "experimental," for as long as human history. I think it's time to take it out of the shed and promote it on the home screen — especially with the touchscreen helping out interaction. It's totally competent for reading the mobile versions of sites (like this one), and I'd rather not have to jump through hoops to pull it up.

Still, none of this stuff has been pulled together in a cohesive "OS." Overall, I think Amazon's key software problem begins and ends with the homescreen. In theory, a simple list of books sounds nice and straightforward, but the reality of this device is more complicated — and the homescreen should reflect that. I'd like to at least see an option to turn on a Nook-style homescreen, which could offer a couple website favorites, the recent books I've been reading (with covers!) and maybe even some purchase suggestions from Amazon's vaunted recommendation engine.

Speaking of recommendations, I should mention the other major tweak with the software: Special Offers. If you want to save $39, the Kindle Touch is available with ads. In reality, it's not that obtrusive. The lock screen, instead of showing a famous author or your JPEG of choice, shows an ad. The same ad is represented in a low-profile bar at the bottom of the home screen. What sorts of ads you get depends on a few factors: if you live in a city with AmazonLocal, you might see Groupon-style ads. Sometimes Amazon has deals on books or other products in its store, and sometimes plain-old ads pop up (did you know there was a new Twilight movie coming out? Now you do, thanks to my Kindle's lock screen).

Now, Chris Ziegler reviewed the new Kindle, and he likes the ads enough to opt-in. I'm not so crazy about them, however. There's something really personal to me about reading books, and it really bugs me having an ad hover next to that experience. I don't like the ad-supported versions of Spotify or Pandora for similar reasons. The other problem is that if you just have the device out and about, you never know what ad it's going to show. I felt like flipping the device over on its face the other day due to a local pilates ad — complete with awkward pilates stock photo — that cropped up while I was at a coffee shop. It's almost like I'm not only being advertised to, but that I'm becoming an ad purveyor myself. The good news is that you can always pay Amazon to get rid of the ads, so there's no harm in going for the cheap version and upgrading when you scrape together the cash.

Ecosystem

I know there are several paragraphs above this one, but for me, this is where the decision is made. In fact, this is where my decision was made before I even got this device to review (bias!). I loved the Nook, but I'm invested in Amazon's ecosystem. Hundreds of dollars invested, with both e-books and Audible books (I might be near the $1,000 mark in Audible alone, if you go by MSRP). Sure, I can always listen to my audio books on my phone, and just buy new books on the Nook, but let's not kid ourselves: the Kindle devices make my prior investment even more valuable, and for me there's little alternative in the dedicated reader space. Plus, Amazon's Whispersync puts the competition to shame when it comes to page place and notes sync.

If you're just getting started with e-books, the in-store integration of the Nook is compelling (and the ePub support is a big win for some), but Amazon has plenty to offer there, with a huge library and a commitment to aggressive pricing. The good news is that this is really a mature market now (both Amazon and B&N offer "over one million" titles in their libraries) and between library lending, friend-to-friend lending, public domain books, and the sheer inevitability of e-books-as-the-future, you'll be well served by a number of products on the market — you'll just probably be best served by Amazon.

Amazon's Whispersync puts the competition to shame

Wrap-up

Pretty soon Jeff Bezos will show up at my house and pay me to take a Kindle

Overall, I really like the Kindle Touch. Hardware-wise, I found the Nook Touch more responsive and more comfortable to hold, and software-wise I found the Nook Touch more intuitive and mature (outside of the Kindle's amazing new "X-Ray"). But if I needed a touchscreen E Ink reader right this second, I'd get the Kindle in a heartbeat — home is where the ecosystem is, after all, and there are zero dealbreakers here, just slight preferences. Still, do I really need a touchscreen E Ink reader? That's the bigger question. Between the Nook Tablet and the Kindle Fire, there are two great, cheap tablets available — which do a lot more than just books. Plus, with bigger and better phone displays at every turn, E Ink is started to look seriously dated. It might be worth waiting for another generation of E Ink to up the resolution and improve contrast and response even further, but I might just have to admit to myself that E Ink will probably never read as well as a real book, or interact as well as an LCD — although if you've ever tried to read on an LCD in sunlight, E Ink will be an absolute godsend.

More likely? Jeff Bezos will show up at my house and pay me to take a Kindle, and I'll join the E Ink revolution after all, despite my retinas' best intentions.

Too many words? Check out how the Kindle Touch measures up against the Kindle and the Nook Simple Touch using our product comparison tool!

Compare It

Amazon Kindle Touch

7.8 Verge Score Write Review

Good Stuff

Great price
Touchscreen
Kindle ecosystem

Bad Stuff

Boring design
Last-gen software
Ads

The Breakdown

More times than not, the Verge score is based on the average of the subscores below. However, since this is a non-weighted average, we reserve the right to tweak the overall score if we feel it doesn't reflect our overall assessment and price of the product. Read more about how we test and rate products.

Design 7
Software 7
Display 7
Performance 8
Battery life 8

Comments

ioioi210 says:

I don’t really like the look of it… at all… Good thing I’m only interested in tablets..

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:19 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

xenetic's reply:

Post like ioioi210’s make me wish there was a “de-reccomend” button on this site

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:21 AM EST reply Recommend (38) Flag actions

TheMilkWars's reply:

Actually I agree with him. It’s a really sheltered design with no prominent aspects. It’s a matter of personal taste after all.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:55 AM EST reply Recommend (7) Flag actions

ioioi210's reply:

Thanks. I didn’t mean to come off trollish, but I guess I did.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:11 AM EST via mobile reply Recommend (8) Flag actions

Revrak's reply:

this is an exaggerated interpretation:
“ugh what an ugly functional device, i wouldnt buy it”

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 11:00 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

ioioi210's reply:

Well, I mean, yeah. Do you think Apple would be this successful if their products looked uninspired? The Nook touch looks so much better and you don’t need an extreme amount of features to read a book.

They could have made it look better, easily, but didn’t.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 1:30 AM EST reply Recommend (3) Flag actions

Revrak's reply:

i think it looks ok.
as for apple… there could be many reasons for their success.. most notably the ability of steve jobs to sell and positions iproducts as Veblen goods.

i could also argue that most people prefer function over form and cheaper prices and thats while windows beats osx, and android beats ios (in marketshare)

Posted on Nov 21, 2011 | 8:25 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Revrak's reply:

*correction:
and thats ~~while~~ why. i would add more commas… but i cant

Posted on Nov 21, 2011 | 8:27 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

ioioi210's reply:

I’ll agree most people prefer an inexpensive device that has similar function as a premium device, but I’d disagree that most people prefer function over form.

Also, Apple made a bold, iconic look. I’m not saying that is the only reason for their success, but I am saying it is one of their many reasons. I personally have never owned an Apple product, but I like to give credit where credit is due.

~~I’m not saying~~ I didn’t mean to say that this device looks bad, but it doesn’t look as inspired as the last gen Kindle.

Posted on Nov 28, 2011 | 6:13 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

brentcas's reply:

I agree with ioio, I think the kindle with keyboard looks much better. they should have stuck with that styling.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:43 AM EST reply Recommend (3) Flag actions

iCello's reply:

I too wish there was a de-recommend button, but not because of that post. It’s a pretty bad looking device.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 6:50 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

21tiger's reply:

Bragging that you don’t read books, eh? Alright…

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 12:44 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

ioioi210's reply:

I read on my laptop using Google Books or, you know, normal books.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 1:19 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

xenetic says:

Like many people have said, the ads really aren’t so bad. They don’t show up in the actual books (where you’d presumably spend 98% of your time unless for some reason you just like browsing through your book library

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:20 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

coffeecoffee says:

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:23 AM EST reply Recommend (29) Flag actions

coffeecat says:

No video review? The ultrabook video reviews have been fantastic…

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:24 AM EST reply Recommend (11) Flag actions

ranhalt's reply:

“Hi, this is Paul, and I’m reviewing the Kindle Touch. As you can see, I’m reading a book…” snooze.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:41 AM EST reply Recommend (7) Flag actions

Paul Miller's reply:

It’s on the way! Probably Tuesday. We’ve been incredibly busy with On The Verge, but we’re ramping up to do everything all the time. Just think of it as a launch bug that’s being squashed.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:42 AM EST reply Recommend (12) Flag actions

mex's reply:

no camera was available for a vide review because Josh was using ALL of them to choose the best angle for a close-up on the stage?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:15 AM EST reply Recommend (9) Flag actions

iCello's reply:

Yes, exactly.
(J/K Josh)

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 6:51 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

id4andrei's reply:

Paul you’re exaggerating on the design front of things. This here is a cheap consumable reader. It does just fine with the rectangular look it’s sporting.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 8:42 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

chromey's reply:

Still no vid?

Posted on Dec 06, 2011 | 2:36 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Timbal's reply:

Still no video review?

I am a sad panda. =(

However, good work otherwise. =)

Posted on Dec 08, 2011 | 3:00 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

thethirdking says:

Amazon, I’d love edge-to-edge screen. Just saying.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:30 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

ranhalt's reply:

Terrible idea for a device that you’ll be holding in your hand all the time, especially if it’s touch screen. If the touch display extends to the edge, then you’re bound to accidentally hit things all the time. That’s what bezels are for. They’re not there to cheat you out of your money or hold you back from your dreams, they’re there because they need to be.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:49 AM EST reply Recommend (17) Flag actions

appsman's reply:

I don’t see it as a terrible idea. If the touch sensing is smart enough, it should be able to tell where you’re holding it and make appropriate "margins’. Then if you put it on a desk (with a little kick stand or something) you get the full screen edge to edge.

If they can’t do that for a few generations, one thing I’d STILL like to see are touch sensitive bezels that could be used for scrolling. Just slide your thumb down the side to scroll so you don’t have to stick your finger over what you’re reading.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:41 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

thethirdking's reply:

It would just have to include gestures instead of one-touch for turning pages. It’s completely possible, and would look amazing.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 5:01 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

iCello's reply:

Motorola is integrating a software feature on their new Xoom 2 that can detect when you’re trying to hold the device with your finger on the screen or actually want to interact. Not sure how well it works, but it’s a start.
Also, the bezel on the top and bottom is annoying… who holds an ereader in landscape mode?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 6:53 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

cargath's reply:

It could easily treat some parts of the edge-to-edge screen as bezel. And because the Kindle allows you to specify text-width you could even hold it on the edge without your fingers obscuring a part of the text. Of course, such a device should be a little bigger than the screen of the current Kindle.

The bezel is needed, because it includes infrared sensors. An edge-to-edge display simply could not be a touchscreen.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 5:44 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Strabo's reply:

Not a good idea. You want to be able to hold the device on the edge without having your fingers hide parts of the screen, and for this you need a wide bezel. With smartphones you usually hold them from behind. With tablet you usually hold them on the side. Personally I can hold the Kindle (up from version 3) from behind like a smartphone, but that’s because I have quite big hands. Women and kids wouldn’t be happy without a bezel.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:33 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

ant1331's reply:

Won’t disagree about edge-to-edge being a bad idea, however the top of the Kindle touch seems to have some awk/wasted space that was previously trimmed.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:36 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

chrisf's reply:

Isn’t the touch-sensing done by an infared layer hidden in the bezel at a level just above the screen though?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:00 AM EST reply Recommend (4) Flag actions

rgarrett88 says:

No mention of the lack of side buttons for page turning? This is my biggest concern about the kindle touch and I’m no closer to knowing if I want it.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:30 AM EST reply Recommend (4) Flag actions

Paul Miller's reply:

There aren’t any. I thought I mentioned that!

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:41 AM EST reply Recommend (4) Flag actions

eisa01's reply:

Yes, but I’m sure a lot of us with old Kindles would like to now if the reading experience is better or worse when using the touch screen compared to the buttons.

I imagine it’s more comfortable to read when you only have to push on the edge where you’re holding, instead of moving your thumb and tapping on the screen.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 5:43 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

allibone's reply:

I completely agree, the side bar is where your thumb rests and to turn a page all you have to do is press where your thumb is already resting, whereas now with the Kindle Touch you have to move your thumb onto the screen every time you want to turn the page.
The lack of side buttons is a dealbreaker for me also, which means that I’ll probalby get the new Kindle without keyboard or touch.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:50 PM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

ranhalt's reply:

There are references to this throughout the review, plus the pictures…. plus the fact that it’s call the Kindle TOUCH. you’re meant to touch the screen. you want buttons? get the OG Kindle.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:44 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

BoneyNicole's reply:

Well in his defense, the latest e-Ink Nook has the option of button page turns. This is actually a deal-breaker for me on a reader as well. I read a lot on my Transformer, but if I’m reading a serious novel, I still pick up my original Nook. I’d like to upgrade to the new one, and I was happy to see it had buttons. For OS navigation, the touch is nice, but I don’t want to have to move my hand just to turn the page when I’m reading otherwise. Plus, it just makes the screen all streaky.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:02 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

appsman's reply:

Then just get the $79 Kindle that has buttons.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:42 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

rgarrett88's reply:

My bad, I guess I meant are they missed? It seems like it would be hard to read with just one hand. The nook touch managed to keep them and it has me leaning towards it for hardware design(in my limited research). I don’t think I would go that route though because of the ecosystem. Conundrum

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:08 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

SF_Dinsy says:

The “Fun anecdote” paragraph may be the greatest thing that’s been written this year.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:36 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

Oswald the Octopus says:

…even with the 3G review unit have.

#corrections

Great review! Thanks Paul! Loved the anecdote.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:36 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

crichton007 says:

B&M – Bowel and Movement? B&N might be crap but this?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:37 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

Paul Miller's reply:

Fixed, thanks.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:41 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

Nemus says:

I don’t get the ‘E-Ink will never read as well as a real book’ statement, and to say that ‘old fashioned books aren’t going anywhere yet as the readability champ, no matter what the light is like’ is kind of misreading the advantages of having a device with an E-Ink display.
Maybe you are a person with a 20/20 vision and that’s why you don’t appreciate one huge E-Ink offering: You can adjust the font size. There, new readability champ.

You know what will never read as well as E-Ink? The Nook Tablet and the Kindle Fire (LCD displays).
Reviewer’s misconceptions of E-Ink got the display score too low, imo.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:42 AM EST reply Recommend (10) Flag actions

mirumu's reply:

I couldn’t agree more. I’d also add that with physical books a stiff spine can make a page awkward to read along the inside edge, and the paper quality on cheaper books is sometimes rather poor making for roughly printed text. Not to mention the weight of physical books is all over the place making some larger titles rather uncomfortable in the hand.

For these and the reasons you listed I feel E-Ink has been the readability champ for some time. If they did improve the contrast further it would be near indisputable.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 12:48 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

ChristianO says:

E-ink is fine, but I find that reading on an LCD is good as long as a turn down the brightness. Just tore through 3 books (Steve Jobs, 1Q84, and Scar Tissue) on my iPad 2 and I find no compelling reason to duplicate functionality with a standalone ereader.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:43 AM EST via mobile reply Recommend Flag actions

ranhalt says:

“If I threw the Kindle Touch at him, he might not be able to catch it.”
“If I threw the Kindle Touch at him really hard, he definitely wouldn’t be able to catch it, but he’d punch me in the mouth.”

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:46 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

beets says:

I have to VEHEMENTLY disagree with your conclusion about the death of e-ink. I own an iPad, but reading with it is an absolute pain in the… eye. I’m not kidding that it makes reading absolutely a pain and a chore. Also, the iPad is heavy compared to the featherweight that is the Kindle. If the guys at Amazon are going to take you seriously, then I had better stock up on two more Kindles just to tide me over a few more years.

Just read 200 pages over the weekend, and it was an absolute pleasure!

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:50 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

iCello's reply:

But reading on a lighter, 7 inch tablet, if you turn the brightness down, is pretty decent.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 6:56 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Rdrdr's reply:

That’s because the iPad display sucks. Reading on AMOLED or on a Retina display is much much better, and I think that’s what we’re going to be seeing from tablets next year.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 8:38 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

cjschris says:

I don’t agree with what you’ve said about e-ink.
It’s always felt dated, but worked well for reading.
I also don’t like touchscreens on e-readers because, as well as greasing up the screen, they demand a faster technology and e-ink isn’t fast.

Also, why is Amazon not having book covers on the homescreen? I understand titles on the old and new Kindle, but a touchscreen, if they insist on having one, should have big, visual things, such as covers. Not small links to books.

Good review

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:59 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

MiggityMikeB says:

Do we know if this new software with “X-ray” will be coming to the non-touch Kindle 2011?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:00 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

Bassam's reply:

I’m also curious about this. Could X-ray come to the Kindle 3 (a.k.a. the Kindle Keyboard)?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:20 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Rdrdr's reply:

It won’t come to the Kindle 4, Amazon specifically lists it under the features of the Touch and not the 4.

It might come to the keyboard though since I think the internals are more or less the same.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 8:37 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

PowderedToastMan says:

Great review. One advantage I find with a standalone e-ink reader over my iPad, is that I tend to read books a whole lot faster. The iPad does so many other functions that I tend to read for a couple of pages, go to browser, couple more pages, go to RSS reader, repeat. When I’m on my nook I just simply read, no browser or notifications to distract me.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:15 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

garrett says:

Wow, nice job, Paul. I really enjoyed your review. I really appreciate your thoughts about the ads in a public place. I don’t think many would bring that aspect in a review. Bravo!

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:05 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Spaces says:

Did you really deduct points for a “Boring Design”?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:07 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

robertofool's reply:

Why not?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:36 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

aknowlesjr's reply:

I thought this was a weird criticism too although i can see why you would cover it in the review.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 4:46 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

thisismynextname's reply:

I actually quite like it, it’s simple and clean. Not sure what people are expecting really..

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 9:24 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

MetroStylePerson says:

Error in the story: You can’t change the screensaver pictures on your expensive, no-ads kindle unless you jailbreak it. So no, you cannot put JPEGs of your choice there.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:18 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

ant1331 says:

Enjoyed the comprehensive take, but can’t come to terms with a few aspects.

I don’t feel like Amazon needed to reinvent its tried-and-true UI. Add X-Ray and the ability to look up definitions by touching on words, and there’s something pretty good there. In terms of design, the black was certainly better, but e-readers aren’t the most exciting products to look at in the first place.

The discussion on E Ink progress is good to have, but a review still isn’t the right place. In addition, ads seem to be a personal preference (as Ziegler put in under Good Stuff). If you can “remove” these [by paying more], then it may be best to remove this point in both “stuffs.”

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:30 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

gabe e says:

Paul – the 3G kindle version let you browse on the Internet? Ie not via wifi

That seems like a huge perk

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:48 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Topher Allan says:

Is it fair to put ‘ads’ in the ‘Bad’ section, when there’s an ad-free version available?

Personally I like the design of the $79 Kindle better… that’s because it has a slightly less imposing bezel than the touch. But I like the colour scheme much better than the Kindle Keyboard.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:59 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

adcustom's reply:

Just about to say the same thing. “Great price” and “Ads” should both be omitted. The price is pretty standard for e-readers these days…not great, not bad. And the ads are optional.

Great review though, Paul.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 10:06 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Simon A says:

Probably the most hilariously written review of an e-reader I’ve read… ever. And it was actually informative. Kudos to Paul for making an e-reader review interesting.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:49 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

AndrewYZ says:

i kinda get the design,but right, it’s really boring

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 6:53 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

iCello says:

I really liked the review, Paul.
The device, not so much.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 6:58 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

TheANARCHY says:

Christmas is a coming… A whole lot of these are destined as presents.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 7:57 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

John Tabone says:

Now this, my friends, is a review. Just letting everyone at The Verge know that the reviews are top notch in my opinion.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 9:39 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

jakejonez says:

Favorite quote: “Maybe Amazon’s plan is to get you to buy a device for each lighting condition —hey, that’s what Whispersync’s for, right?”

But in all seriousness, I love reading, and have wanted an E Ink Kindle since they were quite a bit pricier. Since then, I have gotten a tablet and a new laptop, as well as a couple of new phones, yet I have never made the Kindle jump. There is something appealing to me about E Ink. I love spending time in the sun, and the killer battery life doesn’t hurt. It’s too bad the software isn’t as good as the Nook, because Amazon won me over long ago—I think they’ll continue to offer more content at better rates. After reading this review, I think I will save my money and just read on my phone when necessary, in anticipation of a new E Ink display, perhaps next gen.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 10:21 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Johnny Socko's reply:

Since you’re already an Amazon customer, I think you would be really happy with an e-ink Kindle, especially since you can buy the last-gen version (with the same Pearl display as the Touch) for only $79. Dead-tree books may be the legibility champ, but not by as wide a margin as Paul opined; bottom line, e-ink makes for a very comfortable reading experience, FAR moreso than LCD. And I say this as an owner of an original Kindle, a Nook Color and a 10" tablet.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:17 PM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

boswd says:

I thought the review was fine until he started making it a more “Personal” review in terms of his Amazon investment. I think that part should have been left out.

The question on most peoples mind if you aren’t invested into an ecosystem which one would you choose or counter with, if you are already invested into the Nooks ecosystem would the kindle touch be enough for you to switch.

I don’t mean to sound rude, but people reading this review in hope of deciding on which device to buy this holiday season, do not particulary care where you bought your books.

they want to know which is the better device.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 11:23 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

thomasboyt's reply:

I think in a lot of ways how much you like a device is going to be dependent on how invested you are in its ecosystem, and I’d rather the reviewer discuss that than pretend to be completely impartial. I prefer my reviews open and honest in their bias.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:04 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

very_serioz's reply:

I agree. I don’t live in the USA so I don’t care about Amazon ecosystem ( it is working only for US citizens). I just need a better e-reader hardware-wise and with more comfortable UI.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 9:56 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

epot says:

One of the things I really don’t like about reading on the iPad (aside from stressing the eyes in low-light conditions) is how annoying it is when I turn a page by accidentally tapping the screen when I don’t really mean to, especially for someone like me who wants to be more comfortable reading by holding my device any way I want (and not bothering about which parts to touch and which are off limits). It would be really, really nice if Paul Miller could give a mention or feedback about touch vs traditional page turning, or at the least how sensitive Kindle Touch is to accidental screen taps and page-turning. Like the other guys here, I’m the kind of guy who would want a separate E Ink reader so I could immerse in the experience of reading and I am considering to get a Kindle, but I’m not sure if the Touch would be too much of a hassle in the page-turning department.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 11:36 AM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

keverson42 says:

I’ve already ordered my Kindle Fire, so this is moot for me, but someone else might be on the fence.
I was very interested in getting an E-ink reader before, but some time with a friend’s Kindle changed my mind. Everyone says E-ink is great, but to me, it looks like a very “90’s” device. It’s not at all what I want. The contrast is not high enough to make it “black and White”. It’s grey and almost black. The deal breaker, though, was the page turning thing where the entire screen goes black as it refreshes. If I’m in mid-sentence, I’m suddenly completely out of the experience. The review says this has been fixed, except every 6 pages (???). That’s not fixed enough.
I’ve never personally had eyestrain from reading on a modern computer screen. A CRT monitor, of course, but not an LCD. Also, is it just me, or does the interface lack any form of polish whatsoever? No book covers, a clunky navigation style, and the responsiveness of a Palm circa 1995. I much prefer reading even on my phone to reading on an e-ink Kindle. I expect the Fire to strengthen this stance with its improved screen real-estate. Battery life is a great thing of course, but that’s pretty much all this seems to have going for it.
On the subject of actual books: I actually MUCH prefer e-books. Not only is it infinitely more portable for someone who reads several books at a time, but I don’t have to worry about bending the spine or loosing my page, or the book weighing several pounds. It’s also much easier to lay down and read with a device than a hardcover book.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:39 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Rdrdr's reply:

You don’t notice the page turns after a while. I have a Kindle 2 which has worse contrast, worse page turns, slower performance, etc… it’s still overall better than an iPad 2.

I’ve ordered both the Fire and the Touch, but I think I’ll be returning the Fire unless I can sell my iPad for a good price.

Oh, and I hate actual books.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 8:33 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

very_serioz's reply:

Wrong. E-ink is much easier on your eyes than an LCD especially if you read for a long time.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 10:02 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

keverson42's reply:

I disagree.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 11:50 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Rodalpho says:

I have and love a kindle3 (keyboard) and purchased the kindle touch the day it was announced. I have two major beefs with the kindle3:

1) The keyboard wastes space. Obviously this is fixed by the touch.
2) The OS is just terrible for looking through large number of books. It takes 4-5 actions to add a book to a collection, which is basically a folder, there’s no way to drill down by author or series, you can’t tell which books you’ve partially read from the homescreen, and you can’t read long titles without going to the book’s properties page. It’s a usability disaster. Is any of that addressed in the touch, or is it just the same UI as the kindle3 except you tap instead of using a directional keypad?

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:43 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

EricStephenson4 says:

I keep going back and forth on getting a dedicated ereader. I have a smartphone and a Honeycomb Tablet with the Kindle app. Part of me thinks the eink might be nice to try but then I’m just not sure I would use it very often. They’re getting so cheap I may just buy one on impulse.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 12:49 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

thomasboyt says:

For those of you who have been criticizing E-Ink, I recommend you borrow a friend’s recent Kindle or Nook and read a story on it. You realize fast that what seems like deal-breakers when you first see it – the refresh speed/screen flash, the slow interfaces – don’t matter at all once you start reading. I went from a non-believer to reading the entire Song of Ice and Fire series (which is something like a million billion pages) on a Kindle 3.

My main issue with the new devices is how fragile they are. Marco Arment noted that the $80 Kindle was cheap both in price and in build quality in every way possible, and that disappoints me. I actually broke my Kindle 3 while leaning on my messenger bag while it was inside, and I was hoping at least the Kindle Touch would be more sturdy, but it seems like it’s just as unprotected. I know I should get a case for it, but I would have liked a little more than just cheap plastic – I’ve done all sorts of accidental abuse to my iPhone 4 and the thing’s barely even scratched, and I’d like that quality in more devices.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 1:01 PM EST reply Recommend (2) Flag actions

donerico's reply:

I know what you are saying about built quality, but the iPhone costs 5 or 6 times what the kindle costs, I don’t think we can really expect the same quality.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 10:49 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

atomicsolar says:

Great review.

Damn it, I don’t want an eReader, but when I see pics like these, they make more sense than using Kindle on my phone. The display looks enough like a printed page for my tastes, and that shot of the Verge on the browser just sells it to me, considering what the full version of the site will look like.
I need a 25 inch bezel-less Kindle, stat.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 2:05 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

storm8ring3r says:

xZIBIT was just spotted reading Jerry Sandusky’s autobiography, ‘Touched’, on a kindle touch

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:42 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Gareth Pitman says:

I love the idea of a dedicated e-ink reader and the Kindle looks like the way to go. The ability to take a number of books with me in one small package is very appealing. However I can’t get away from the fact that I love ACTUAL books. Yes, real life, paper and hardcover books. They just look great on my shelves. I have an emotional attachment with them that I just can’t get from a digital download.
The ideal for me would be to get a digital copy of physical books I buy as part of the price. Now you may say that this sounds unreasonable. Why should I get 2 versions for the price of one? But look at other sections of the entertainment industry. If you buy a CD it is one simple step to rip it to an MP3 file and load on to an ipod or mobile phone. There are many newspapers now that offer te digital versions of their publications when you subscribe to the paper edition.
So please publishers, if you can get it together to offer a digital copy together with the physical then I will happily buy a Kindle. Until then I’m sticking to books. Actual books.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:50 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

justjason says:

I’m not sure what I look for in a review, but a part of me feels this one was a little all over the place. I liked the personal story regarding your dad being “gray blind,” however, it made it sound like because the Kindle was gray, you couldn’t throw it at your dad. Why would you throw a Kindle at your dad? You continue to review the Kindle’s design then you talk about battery life which had nothing to do with what you were previously talking about, it just kinda sits there awkwardly. One could argue the battery is part of the design, but I’m not sure the design has anything to do with the battery life. It might have made more sense to me if it was in the Display or Software sections.

There was literally a moment in the “Display” section when I thought I was reading a Nook review. This could be because you mentioned the Nook 3 times and the Kindle 0. More to the point, you mentioned Amazon only 3 times as well. I wasn’t sure if you were comparing the Nook to the Kindle, or the Kindle to the Nook.

Finally you talk at length about the ads. I suppose because you have an ad supported review unit, it makes sense. However, I feel it’s not something that required as much “ink” as you gave it. You almost talked more about the ads than anything else. For something you can opt-out of, it seems like you gave it a lot of weight.

I think one of the things you didn’t mention is, Kindle Touch is for reading, not for playing games, not for surfing the web and not for watching movies. If someone is looking for something more than a great reading experience, they will be disappointed. If you don’t want to carry around that 700-page book you’ve been reading, if you’re tired of dozing off in bed and having that 700-page book bonk you on the face, if you’ve finished that 700-page book on a plane and have nothing else to read, the Kindle is an ideal solution to those problems. It’s small, lightweight, has a great display for easy reading and an exceptional library of books to buy or download for free.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 3:59 PM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

justjason's reply:

I should have mentioned this, but I did really like the review. I didn’t realize you could pay Amazon to get rid of the ads, that’s really good to know.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 4:02 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

TheWittyPenguin says:

My problem with the review is that I felt like Paul fundamentally missed the point of the Kindle Touch. Why did he keep comparing it to the Nook Color? Thin Kindle Touch isn’t supposed to compete with the Nook Color, that’s the Kindle Fire’s job. In some ways, it seemed that the inclusion of a touch interface made it feel like it should do more that just read books, but that’s not why I buy an e-ink kindle. I buy one because it carries a lot of books on an easy-to-read screen that fits nicely in a bag. What I really wanted to know was if the inclusion of a touch interface improved upon the reading experience of the previous kindles (or other e-readers, for that matter), and this review didn’t really answer that question.

Posted on Nov 14, 2011 | 9:06 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

epot's reply:

agree on this! same point as my comment!

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 4:03 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

very_serioz's reply:

As I understand it Paul compared Kindle Touch not to the Nook Color but to the Nook Simple Touch. But he did compared an e-reader with a tablet, preferring a tablet which is missing of a point why an e-ink technology exists.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 10:16 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

TheWittyPenguin's reply:

Hmm, I misread it a little, but having reread it again, I still feel like he expected it to do more than it’s supposed to. It’s an e-reader, meant to read books. The software is meant to be a simple way to access the content, and I think it does that admirably.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 12:12 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

sneezeslikeafoghorn says:

I would have liked to have seen a bit more depth in the software section of the review regarding how it works as a book reader. For example how easy is it to find a specific book when you have a large book collection? Are there any features for organising your kindle books? If you own non-drm’d e-books can you load them onto the Kindle?

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 8:44 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

cargath says:

Perhaps the review should have been done by someone who gets eReaders? No offense, but i don’t think the author knows what he is talking about. An eReader is NOT a tablet. The Kindle Touch is NOT the middle option, because the Kindle Fire is not in the same product category. The Touch is the high-end device of Amazons eReading line, the Fire is a tablet.

I can understand where you are coming from, not everyone can appreciate an eInk display. For a lot of people an LCD is perfectly sufficient for reading, which also means for these people a tablet does the same as an eReader and more. But most of the statements about the Kindles eInk display are just plain wrong. I’ve got a Kindle 4 myself, and in my experience the display reads just like printed paper. It doesn’t get any better than that, it should get the highest score by definition. What’s wrong with the contrast? I can’t believe the author ever read a real book. Books don’t look like magazines, most books and newspapers are printed on recycled paper, which is actually darker than the Kindles light-grey background. Just get a book from a library – the bleached out paper is even darker. The Kindles contrast is higher than on most printed books i ever read.

I don’t get when people talk about how they like real books more. For me eReaders are, from a “usability” point of view, a lot easier to read. I can set a font size and face and line spacing myself. I can read one-handed, hell, between page turns i can even read hands free, not matter how long the book. You’d have to seriously damage a real book to achieve this. My Kindle opened a whole world of more comfortable reading positions to me. Seriously, what’s so great about dead trees? You can’t even do a full text search with a physical book. The only thing eReaders are still missing is fast skimming through a book, but this will change. eInk just needs to get more responsive.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 10:33 AM EST reply Recommend (1) Flag actions

cargath's reply:

On a sidenote: I find it really disturbing that your dad is allowed to drive in your country, when he’s physically unable to see grey cars. It’s dangerous not only for him, but also for other traffic participants.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 10:35 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

very_serioz's reply:

The Kindle Touch review on Engadget is better

LOL.. I jump from Engadget to here. The Verge wins in the looks and design of a magazine but not always in quality of content.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 12:38 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

cargath's reply:

Isn’t it ironic: I’m blocked from commenting on Engadget for some reason, and no one there even cares to tell me why. But Engadget promoted The Verge as an alternative themselves.

Posted on Nov 15, 2011 | 2:23 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

beets's reply:

Amen! I am getting SO SICK and tired of every other tech site slamming the Eink readers for being “not as good as the Kindle Fire, or the Nook Color,” Engadget especially I’m looking at you.

WAKE UP. APPLES AND ORANGES!

Two completely different devices, for two completely different purposes. Its just not a valid comparison! I hope places like Amazon and B&N don’t read you guys because if they did and they ended up killing this product, it’d be such a crying shame.

Also, has anyone else noticed that Engadget’s quality has really gone down the dustbin recently? I’m about to remove them from my twitter feed and bookmarks very soon.

Posted on Nov 22, 2011 | 2:45 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Kingmaker says:

How bad are the fingerprints?

Posted on Nov 17, 2011 | 6:04 PM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

bumek says:

Hi, will you be also reviewing the Sony reader (http://www.theverge.com/products/reader-wifi-prs-t1/2579)?
I bought it recently, and I’m quite satisfied so far.

Posted on Nov 18, 2011 | 5:20 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

1RedOne says:

I love the review, and really enjoy the overall style of the site. The Verge has taken what was a nice site “This is my Next” and kept the high standard of quality while increasing even further the visual appeal of content presentation.

For my question, how does the Kindle Touch handle tasks like reading and Rendering PDFs? One of the current weak points of the Kindle Keyboard, as they call it now, is its slow display of, and lack of formatting options for PDF. Does the Kindle Touch have any differences in that regard.

Also, can you still choose your own images for the lock screen, and how is side-loading .mobi book files handled?

Other than these questions, great review.

Posted on Nov 18, 2011 | 10:42 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

rushton2 says:

I wonder when it will be released in Europe…

Posted on Nov 23, 2011 | 8:41 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Cirunz's reply:

Me too

Also a direct question: I’ve seen lot of talking about the Kindle Touch display getting really dirt and greasy over time. What your impression about that Paul?

Posted on Nov 30, 2011 | 9:18 AM EST reply Recommend Flag actions

Comments For This Post Are Closed

↑ Top of comments
↑ Top of page
↑ The Verge