Archive for April, 2010
Kobo eReader Pre-Orders Shipped – iPad 3G Released Today no comments
The Koboblog happily informs us that the Kobo eReader pre-orders have shipped. From tomorrow the eReader will also be available in Canada at Chapters and Indigo stores. If you are interested in having a look at the eReader’s user guide I have posted a link to it on my Ereader User Guides and Manuals page.
The Apple iPad 3G will go on sale at Apple Stores this afternoon at 5 p.m. and will also be available at Best Buy stores. The Apple Store online is showing a shipping date of “by May 7th”.
Pricing for the iPad 3G will be $629 for the 16GB, $729 for the 32GB and $829 for the 64 GB versions.
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Free Kindle Books – 4/29/10 no comments
There are a couple of new freebies to report:
Loving a Lost Lord by Mary Jo Putney (3 stars/29 reviews) Historical romance.
Star Wars: Lost Tribe of the Sith #4: Savior by John Jackson Miller (4 stars/1 review)
If you like mysteries there is a promo price on The Chicago Way by Paul Hochman (4 stars/46 reviews) which is $1.59 at the Kindle Store and $1.99 at the Barnes and Noble eBook Store or Kobobooks.com.
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Kindle Update 2.5 Coming Soon no comments
Amazon has released details of an upcoming software update for the Kindle and Kindle DX on the Kindle help pages. Software update version 2.5 will include the promised improvements to the way in which you can organize your library in addition to other new features:
- Collections: Organize books and documents into collections.
- PDF Zoom and Pan: Adds the ability to zoom and pan your PDF documents.
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Password Protection: Adds the ability to password protect your Kindle ereader when you are not using it.
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More Fonts and Improved Clarity: Two new larger font sizes and sharper fonts.
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Facebook and Twitter Posts: Will add the ability to share book passages directly from the Kindle to Facebook and Twitter.
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Popular Highlights: See what the Kindle community thinks are the most interesting passages in the books you are reading.
These are all great features and will be welcome. The password protection sounds as though it totally locks the Kindle. At some point I would also like to see the ability to lock individual books or documents. This might be useful for adults who share their Kindles with their children. Maybe someone will make an app for that? It is also interesting to see the Kindle adding more social networking. Once all of the usability and accessibility features we want are successfully implemented this will probably become an increasingly important feature for the ereaders of the future – social networking is the main feature that Copia is building its ereading community around.
The new Kindle update should see general release in late May 2010.
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Ken Auletta on Fresh Air no comments
Fresh Air has an interview with Ken Auletta which is worth listening to. The title is Can the iPad or the Kindle Save Book Publishers? and follows Auletta’s article in the New Yorker entitled Publish or Perish of a few days ago. The Auletta segment on Fresh Air lasts about 20 minutes.
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Britannica’s New 21st-Century Explorer Site to Help Students with Low Reading Levels no comments
21st-Century Explorer is a new site which is designed to help students who are reading below grade level or are at risk of falling behind and those with low reading levels due to learning problems. From Britannica’s press release:
This user-friendly collection contains all of the resources that students need including encyclopedias, an atlas, historic timelines, a dictionary, news, and other essential learning tools. 21st-Century Explorer is ideal for reluctant readers, ELL and ESL students, and adult literacy students.
Britannica provides two difficulty levels of its encyclopedias, both of which have a Read Aloud feature. Students are also engaged through the use of interactive games and videos. Teaching resources for teachers are provided as well.
For more information visit Britannica’s Web site.
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Latest Fas-Fax Report – Newspaper e-Editions on the Rise no comments
The ABC Fas-Fax report of newspaper circulation was out yesterday and Paid Content reports that while daily circulation was down by 8.75 percent compared to last year, the number of digital editions sold by the top newspapers rose significantly. Paid Content also has a table of the top 25 newspaper daily e-editions that compares 2009 and 2010 digital circulation figures.
Editor & Publisher reports that while ad revenue was still falling for many newspapers, it was at least falling at a slower pace. Circulation of p-editions also continues to fall but did not accelerate its slide and indeed the decline is somewhat less severe than last fall’s 10.6 percent year-over-year decline.
Definitely digital subscriptions on devices such as the iPad and ereaders are going up, but how much it will help to prop up sagging newspaper and magazine publishers it is still too early to tell.
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Free Kindle Two-Day Shipping Upgrade for Mother’s Day no comments
Amazon is offering a free two-day shipping upgrade for Kindle or Kindle DX ereaders ordered by May 6 for delivery on or before May 8. This applies to orders shipping within the continental US. To get the free shipping upgrade you will need to put your Kindle purchase in your shopping cart and select Two-Day Shipping.
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Kobo Contest – Chance to Win Kobo eReader no comments
Kobo Books announced today a contest in which they will be giving away
Kobo eReaders. Starting today through 5/6 buy an ebook from Kobo Books and get entered to win one of 10 brand new Kobo eReaders.The first drawing will be April 29 and a second drawing will take place on May 5. Five winners will be chosen in each drawing.
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Using an iPad Before Bedtime May Prevent Snoring 1 comment
The L.A. Times had an interesting article this weekend in which it is reported that using an iPad before bedtime may interfere with your sleep habits ( and therefore possibly lead to less snoring – sorry).
According to the article, sleep experts say that staring into the backlit display of the iPad before bedtime can inhibit the body’s production of melatonin. Other ereaders such as the Kindle which use a non-backlit screen do not cause this problem.
I have myself noticed not sleeping as well after reading in bed on my iPad, but I did not think about it being caused by the backlit screen.
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Kindle Outsold by nook in March no comments
Digitimes is reporting that in March the Barnes & Noble nook ereader accounted for more ereader shipments from manufacturers than Amazon’s Kindle. According to Digitimes the nook accounted for 53% of all ereaders shipped to resellers in the US.
