Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Review Summary: *** When I first reviewed my Kindle three weeks back, it was extremely buggy, unstable and kept rebooting. I am happy to note that most of those issues have been addressed but I am still testing the K3 *** Ahh, I am compelled to write this review for two reasons, first and foremost, this is a FABULOUS device for readers. I waited out the K1, and gifted the K2, but for myself, I opted for the 3rd Generation Kindle. The second, I wanted to warn everyone about the pitfalls of being on the bleeding edge since when I first got the device it was not performing well at all. However, that seems to have been fixed for the most part. I do want to point out that I am still getting reboots but they are far reduced. The last reboot occurred recently as I was browsing a .docx document that had been converted to .azw for the Kindle. So the pros: * Great contrast, this is my first e-reader so I am being spoiled by what is obviously a well-refined screen. * Page turning is almost perfect (could be faster but at least it doesn't frustrate like some I have seen). * The Kindle ecosystem is stellar. It took me less than an hour to get 20 books on my K3, three quarters of which were free as they were in the public domain. Did you know everything from Little Women to 20,000 Leagues under the Sea is a free click away? You will go crazy like a kid in a toy store with all the free books to choose from. * I have the WiFi-only variant and it works perfectly for me (even with a hidden SSID and WPA2 encryption) here in the Middle East since I am an American expat. * I really appreciate the 'mail documents to the free Kindle e-mail address' feature. I have read tons of work-related and other PDF/MS Word documentation that I would have otherwise printed out or viewed on a PC. It really is something that adds value to your life. I no longer need my laptop everywhere. I can read stuff on the bus that needs to be reviewed before a meeting. Now, I just tell my friends (you have to authorize their domains or e-mail addresses in your Kindle account) to mail a document to my Kindle if they want me to look at it. * The battery-life is stellar! It lasts forever and ever. A couple of weeks at least for occasional reading. A week if you are a heavy reader and this is with the WiFi on (I always leave mine on). * The web browser may be 'Experimental' but it works surprisingly well. You can actually browse any text-based sites with ease and those formatted for mobility are even better. +1 for that. * 'Collections' is a good feature and a nice way to organize your stuff. * The text-to-speech feature may be a gimmick and sounds mechanical but has great potential. I can see why it has the audio book publishers up in arms, even though, to me, at the moment it poses them no threat whatsoever. The mechanical male or female voice just cannot, as of yet, compete with the nuances and inflections that the human voice possesses. * The mp3 playback is nice-to-have but I don't see myself ever using it, it's too cumbersome to move the files to the Kindle. Even after you move the files, you can't see anything and you just have play and pause control over your recording. No jumping through a 'playlist' or anything. It's like an iPod Shuffle--without the shuffle...or feedback! And now the cons: * Kindle Dev Team: What the EFF were you thinking releasing the firmware that came with the launch? When I browsed the Kindle store after receiving my device--and I was counting--The K3 REBOOTED on me FIVE times. It did the same thing twice as I read 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'. And, of course, the WebKit browser is experimental so I don't mind that it also rebooted my Kindle twice. Update: This issue appears to be resolved. My device is now actually usable for long periods of time whereas before it was not. * After three weeks of usage, I find the back/forward buttons to be a bit too mushy. They need to provide more tactile feedback. * The accessories are a rip-off. $59 for a case with a light? Isn't that like almost half of what I paid for my Kindle? Is that how much it costs to import? Amazon, I want you to make money but come on, this is extortion! It's almost like Amazon is trying the old hand of HP's InkJet Printers and the Ink Cartridge situation: Sell the hardware ultra cheap and make up for it via the supplies. * OK, fine you are scaring us with the dead author pics, but can you put them in the dozens rather than single digits? Or, as another reviewer lamented, let us choose our own. Or how about a world clock for crying out loud with an international dateline thingy majingy. For me, I want to see everyone from Victor Hugo to Pearl S. Buck. Come on guys, it can't be that hard, put the stuff up for free in the Kindle Store and let your customers choose if they want this...or that. * This is a minor con but the overall speed of the device could use a 30% increase and I think then it would be perfect. * I wish there was a way to make the cursor move faster from the top of the screen to the bottom of the screen, it goes down (or up) one line at a time which can be frustrating. * I can't seem to sort the Kindle Search results via price or reviews etc. That may just be me, though. Edit: As the commenter below pointed out, I want to sort results by pricing because it's woefully difficult to find the free books on the Kindle Store. Amazon, can you just make a 'Freebie Store' or whatever so we can browse that too? Why make it so bloody hard?! * Not all words show up with dictionary look-up. A good example is the word 'herring'. OK, I may know what it is, but my kid doesn't. * Standard documents need to be converted before they can be displayed on a Kindle. This, again, is not a huge con given what the device is primarily for, nevertheless this feature can add real value for those of us who regularly review cumbersome work-related documents. If I could save trees by not printing 50 pages, I would love to do so. You can email the documents to yourself at the free Kindle account and perform the same service for the sake of your environment. I appreciate the fact that Amazon immediately addressed the problem of unstable Kindles by releasing a software patch within two weeks. I must also give props to Amazon customer service that called me to inquire about my device based on some of my comments here. Not only that, they put in a follow-up call after the patch was released. When was the last time a vendor called YOU because you had a problem? Two thumbs up! To me, the Kindle is the best e-reader out there, and remains so in its 3rd iteration. The rating has been upgraded to 4 stars :) Happy reading and peace out!