New Kindle, Interview with Jeff Bezos
So the rumors were true. A new Kindle was announced today.
I ordered mine within minutes of it being possible to do so. While more evolutionary than revolutionary, it’s got some nice features: smaller size (with same screen size), one month battery, double storage size, improved contrast, etc. You can read all about it on its own site.
More importantly though, I just watched the Jeff Bezos interview on Charlie Rose tonight. From the few times I’ve seen Jeff speak, he’s really impressed me. Three things he said today that, to me, got at the crux of why the Kindle is so good.
First, talking about iPad vs. Kindle and the design of the Kindle, saying people, “want a purpose built device where no trade offs have been made, where every single design decision as you’re walking down the process has been made to optimize for reading.” Very true. This idea not only differentiates the Kindle from the iPad, but also from the Nook. From reviews and testing one in the store, the Nook’s interface is just plain more complicated than the Kindle. The Nook chose gimmicks like the (relatively useless) color touch screen, where the Kindle tried to make its UI disappear.
This moved right into the whole e-ink display and the ease of reading, as well as the specific size and form factor of the Kindle, he talked about the idea of “long-form reading” and “short-form reading”, saying, “Most of the devices that have been developed by we humans over the last couple of decades have tilted the world towards short-form reading. So, Internet connected computers and smart phones and so on are great for short email messages, they’re great for blog posts. They’re not great for 300 page books.”
Finally, the kicker, what it’s really all about: “We’re not trying to create an experience. We want the author to create the experience.” Bingo.
The link to the Bezos interview isn’t up yet, but should be on this page when available: http://www.charlierose.com/guest/view/2618