Had the Kindle for a while now, a few thoughts…

The are massive gaps in the book library, I’m finding about 50% of the books I want to read are not available. For example, I wanted to read ‘Touching the void’, not available. ‘Catcher in the rye’, not available (no really). I’d understand if these were niche, marginal interest books, but they are not.

Books generally more expensive than paperback, and ALWAYS more expensive that Amazon Marketplace. For something with close to zero reproduction cost, I don’t think that is acceptable. Every time I buy a kindle book I get a strong sensation of being fucked over, thinking to myself, why aren’t I just buying a 2nd hand paperback, and selling it once I’m done with it, recouping most of the money….

Battery doesn’t last very long if you use the wireless, in fact, it’s downright poor.

Sample books are great, they are free and delivered almost instantly, a great way to see if you want to buy the whole thing.

Newspapers are OK, but I usually scan a paper to find articles of interest, the linear method of book reading doesn’t apply here, and the Kindle can’t really replace a proper newspaper.

Images in books are OK, but nowhere near that nice glossy paper you get in the middle of some books.

I think my Kindle will hit eBay at some point, it’s a great idea, but the books need to be cheaper (at a bare minimum, the same price as the paperback) and a much broader range.