Kindle -should I buy now ?

londonman81

I bought a Kindle around a year ago and am very annoyed by what I feel is negative tactics by Amazon....

A few months after I bought my kindle, they released the Touch version, which was already out months earlier in the US.

Then, they released the version with a back light built in....

It seems that every few months they release a new version with one extra improvement.

Did they really not have the technology and foresight to build an all-in-one touchscreen and light into one version a year ago ?! I find it difficult to believe that it needed two generations of evolution to get a kindle with all these basic features.

As I don't wish to be milked again by the Kindle marketeers, is it now safe to buy a kindle with these latest features or does anyone think they'll bring out another new version with one more basic improvement which should have been done a year ago?

Thanks

dhj

It isn't negative tactics, it's the marketing philosophy ala Apple ie sell a product that locks the user into your company and constantly update/refresh it on the basis that the user will always want to update. The answer to your question is yes, it will be updated constantly, it is up to you to decide whether you believe the update is of value to you. I read somewhere that the Kindle is the most unused present , I'll leave it to you to guess why. If you don't want to keep changing then try another e-reader (mine is 3 years old and still works perfectly, with a backlight and I have never had a problem loading either books or audiobooks)

forgotmyname

Technology for you. Your not complaining the your washing machine manufacturer have brought out a better model then the one you bought, Or your car is now an old model because they brought out a new one are you?

What puts me off buying one is the fact as mentioned above your locked into them, Seemingly forever.
You buy a book its your to keep forever. But when your kindle breaks just after the warranty expires you either buy another one or you no longer have your books to read as and where you want.

You need a new kindle or alternative.

You wont suddenly pick the book up and find the pages are now blank.

prowla

I've got a kindle touch; it works like a book with a built-in library and the ability to resize the font if I haven't got my specs on.

I don't need it to be faster, have a backlight, include a web browser, play audio or anything.

For me it does exactly what it needs to do.

martinthebandit

If one particular model of reader has everything you want, then buy it. I wouldn't really worry about one coming out in a few months time with additional features if they are not something you want.

I am talking as someone who is still very happy with his basic WiFi only kindle.

nearlyrich

You can download the books you have purchased you can read them on a PC or a tablet or even a phone if you download the correct app from Amazon. Having said that I have just replaced my almost 2 year old dead Kindle keyboard with the new Paperwhite and I love it, I mainly read free or really cheap books so if you add up what I was spending on real books plus consider the storage issue the kindle is cheap for me.

neilwoods

It is the way the world works. If they were to wait till they could put all the tech into the machine they, then they would never release anything.

Like a pc, once you have bought it, you can guarantee there will be a better one in 3 or 4 months. Whereas with tablets or ebook readers it seems to be sooner.

jenniemiller177

I have just brought myself a Kindle Paperwhite after some time thinking about whether i should and whether I would use it enough. As far as the technology improving goes, its always going to happen. I am really pleased with my Kindle and have definitely got use out of it so far.

Dave_C_2

Sadly the same dilemma with all things techie. In a few month's time your latest gadget will be out of date no matter what you buy.

Incidentally the same evil Amazon have bought out a free upgrade to the Kindle touch to make it behave more like a paperwhite.

I've upgraded and it works fine!

Dave

oxygen_thief

What a pointless post.
Show me any kind of Tech that hasn't improved with extra features over a short period of time.
Why did Apple bother making the iPhone 1, 2, 3, 4? They should have just gone straight to the iPhone 5.

-TangleFoot-

oxygen_thief wrote: »

Why did Apple bother making the iPhone 1, 2, 3, 4? They should have just gone straight to the iPhone 5.

To answer the rhetorical question: because R&D is iterative.