Q&A: Is there a catch with Free 3G? A data-transfer charge was mentioned.

FROM THE COMMENTS AREA, A QUESTION

A question in the Comment area reminded me that many Kindle owners are unaware of an important feature that allows us to send or place 'personal documents' (any file not received from Amazon) onto our Kindles.  The feature is available for personal documents that don't have digital-rights protection on them.

While this can be done with simple transfers from a computer to the Kindle via the USB cable which is part of the power cord and via other methods (see Guides in the reference section in the right-hand colum of the blog), there is also the choice to have the Amazon servers send (and sometimes convert to Kindle format first if needed) the document "over the air" to the Kindle via either 3G cellular wireless (small fee involved) or via WiFi (free) when you are connected to one.

The below question and reply is from a question yesterday to the blog.  Below it, I'll include an excerpt from an earlier blog article that was written to clarify the differences between WiFi-Only and 3G/Wifi Kindle models, to reiterate how Wifi and 3G cellular wireless capabilities differ, since it remains an area of confusion for many.


QUESTION BY CHRIS D.

' Q: I am curious about the 3g feature (I have a 3g in the mail already, but have a concern).  I understand that the 3g service is indeed free on this model, but I occasionally see a reference to someone paying a charge for some data transfer.  I have been unable to locate exactly what might cause this cost to be incurred.  In short, what catches are there to the 3g service?

A:
Chris,
The only 3G charge is if you have a personal document or book that you downloaded to your computer from somewhere else but for which you now *want to use 3G cellular wireless* to either:
- 1. 'email' that to your Kindle directly

      *OR* which you now want to

- 2. 'email' to Amazon servers for CONVERSION to Kindle format first and then 3G wireless delivery to your Kindle.

(Conversions are done usually for WORD docs or for PDFs which you want Amazon to put into Kindle format with the text re-flowed rather than seen as images of pages which are often too small to read comfortably on a 6" screen).

  To have Amazon convert a *PDF* to Kindle-reflowed format, you'd need to put the word "Convert" into the subject field.  Otherwise, no words are ever needed for these emails other than the email address that's already in the header.

  With Microsoft WORD documents, the conversion is automatic, and you don't need to use the word "Convert" in the subject field (as you do with PDFs).

  REMINDER: This is if you want Amazon to send a personal doc (or non-rights-protected book from another source) for you over the 3G cellular network *rather* than via the WiFi you have at home or in the office or nearby at a place that has WiFi (like McDonald's or Starbucks etc).

  YOUR KINDLE ADDRESS:
  As a Kindle 3 owner, you'd be given a Kindle email-address that Amazon has made specifically for your Kindle, and you'd see that Kindle address at your Kindle management page in a box near the top left of that page.

  That Kindle address is of course protected from spammers and anyone you don't give specific permission to place documents on your Kindle -- so we don't tend to give out that Kindle address to others.

  The Kindle address is in the form:
      [you]@kindle.com

You need to specify which of your email addresses are approved for sending documents direct to your Kindle via the Amazon servers.

  You can enter, into the box labelled "Your Kindle Approved E-mail List," any or all of your email addresses that you want given permission to do that.

  If you send a personal document to the [you]@kindle.com address, the document will be sent by Amazon servers to your Kindle over the 3G cellular network and, in the U.S., that is 15c per megabyte of a file. Outside the U.S., that's 99c per megabyte of a file.

  USING KINDLE 3's WIFI INSTEAD:
  With a Kindle3 (these models have a WiFi component), you'd normally want to get the document via WiFi (instead of 3G), which is then free to you for the sending of personal documents to Kindle via Amazon servers.

  For WiFi sends instead of 3G, you email the document to Amazon serviers for your Kindle address by addressing it instead to

      [you]@free.kindle.com

  Then Amazon will then send an email to your correspondence email address (the one you registered with Amazon) that will include a link to your completed file where you can
      EITHER
- 1. download it to a computer (if it's a file that has been converted by Amazon for your Kindle) for transfer to your Kindle's "documents" folder via the USB cord

      OR

- 2. accept it on your Kindle3 when you are connected to a WiFi network somewhere.  If you don't have a WiFi network at home, then #1 above is the way you'd more quickly put it on your Kindle rather than wait until you're near a WiFi network.

  With 3G, we are almost always connected, no matter where we are. But the WiFi way to do this is free.

That's the only 'catch' to the 3G service. '

3G CELLULAR WIRELESS AND WIFI
The word "wireless' here pertains to both 3G and WiFi networks.
  If the e-reader is not attached to a computer but it can access online sites, it's using a "wireless network."  I've seen that many use the term "WiFi" when they mean "3G" mobile-wireless, as it's a confusing area to most who have had no reason to even think about these words before.

3G  WIRELESS
As the image at the left indicates, 3G Wireless involves huge wireless networks that cover very long distances -- our cellphones access these networks.  This is often referred to as 'mobile wireless' -- or wireless on the go.  Coverage involves very large areas and involves cell towers.

WI FI  WIRELESS
This involves very "local" and ultra short-range wireless networks -- usually in effect for a home or an office or office building, set up by the individuals using them, but increasingly, cafes and shops are offering customers use of their own WiFi networks while there.

The picture on the left is of my 7-year old Netgear WiFi network router.   Mine takes a signal from Comcast's high-speed cable internet service and routes that cable-modem signal via a wire to my main computer and then broadcasts the signal "locally" around my home so that it's accessible without-wires by my printer/scanner and my laptop.
 My neighbors have WiFi networks in their apartments as well, and we all use the normal security of some kind of passkey so that others can't "steal" access to our wee networks and slow us down by sharing them without permission.

 If you're getting a WiFi-only reader and expect to download books directly to the e-reader without having to hook it up to a computer, you'll need to have a WiFi network set up.  They're very inexpensive these days -- it costs about $40 for a good router -- but someone will need to set it up and understand how to maintain it.  Friends can help.  It's not difficult (except for those without experience with computers), and software that comes with the small router can make it almost automatic.

BOOK-DOWNLOADS DIRECT TO KINDLE
I think the reason that the Kindle reader 'took off' when other e-readers received much less interest is the capability that Amazon built into the reader so that owners can access the cellphone or mobile networks wherever they are (except in some remote areas) to just download a new book on the spot upon hearing about it.

Amazon has said they wanted customers to be able to use the Kindle without need for a computer.
  With 3G mobile wireless, it doesn't matter where you are -- you can usually download a book you want or do a look-up online.  As Amazon's pages point out, there's no need to look for a "hot spot" -- a place that offers a WiFi network that is sharable by customers, whether for a fee or for free (Starbucks and McDonald's WiFi networks are free).

NOTE
"WHISPERNET" is a term that Amazon first used for Amazon's 3G wireless, and it's been used since then for the 3G wireless service at Amazon.  However, sometimes they use the word for WiFi wireless as well now.


Kindle 3's   (UK: Kindle 3's),   DX Graphite

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Check often: Temporarily-free late-listed non-classics or recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.
UK-Only: recently published non-classics, bestsellers, or highest-rated ones
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.

Updating of Best Kindle Bookmarks for Kindle web browser.

This is just a link to the updated blog entry for the free, downloadable Best Kindle Bookmarks for the Kindle Web Browser;  for some reason, the Google Reader does not place older updated articles at the top, even when they have new dates on them, so this is to make sure RSS readers can find it.

As mentioned there, today's update was to add special links to Facebook and to Google News that work better on all the Kindles.  I also explain what can't be done on the Kindles at those sites.

I also modified some of the notes about all the links to try to make the tips a bit clearer. The filename remains the same, so you can just re-download it if you already have the older copy.

Free Download of Best Website Bookmarks for Kindle Web Browser - UPDATE5

UPDATED December 5.
  Today's update was to add special links to Facebook and to Google News that work better on all the Kindles.  I also explain what can't be done on the Kindles at those sites.

  I also modified some of the notes about the links to try to make the tips a bit clearer.  The filename remains the same, so you can just re-download it if you already have the older copy.

You can see earlier updated info (9/29/10) here on how to get the file to your Kindle via WiFi directly or via 3G and how to transfer it to the Kindle via USB if unable to send it there directly.

  As of December 5, the Kindle orders are limited to three per customer, and estimated shipping time for orders outside the U.S. is several weeks.

I've updated the freely downloadable bookmarks file andrys.com/mobiweb.azw to include links to sites that work better for Kindle 3 models  (UK: K3), as some of the websites have worked well with Kindle 2 and Kindle DX's but not with the Kindle 3, due to the new model's typed-input not always being recognized by some of Google's productivity sites.

This is a separate Kindle file (in 'book' format) for mainly mobile-device-optimized website bookmarks, which you can use as a Kindle file made up OF the bookmarks listed -- the websites are linked already in that file so that you can use them for the Web when your Wireless is On and this 'book' is open.  The Kindle 3 seems to do better in some cases on non-mobile-device-optimized sites, so those are included also.

  Still part of that bookmarks file are the website links that work well for Kindle 2's and DX's, and at the bottom there are general websites that work well for all Kindles.  See the original blog article that explains it and which also has links to how to use the various web-browsing modes of the earlier Kindles, and with tips in general for browsing on the experimental and limited web browser, whether through the free 3G cellphone network capability (usable without a need to locate a 'hotspot') or via the faster WiFi option (if one has access to a local WiFi network) available for Kindle 3's.

  For anyone not clear on 3G vs WiFi-only, you can read the blog article on 3G and WiFi-Only Kindle 3's - What does it all mean? Which should I get?.

  The Kindle 3 shortcuts added should avoid problems w/some sites when accessing with that model.

    Kindles earlier than Kindle 3 use BASIC and ADVANCED/DESKTOP modes.
    Kindle 3 uses WEB Mode, with ARTICLE Mode available for some web articles.


You can download the file to a computer for transfer to the 'documents' folder of the Kindle or download it directly to your Kindle using the Kindle itself to get the file.  To do any of this, you can

  . either use a USB cable to transfer or "sideload" the
      downloaded file from computer to Kindle's "documents" folder.

  . OR type into your Kindle at the Home screen, bit.ly/kmobiweb
      then 5-way right to "go to" and click on that
        and that will download the file direct to the Kindle

  . OR if in the Kindle Edition blog,
      click on the file link and it should download the file direct to Kindle. 

UPDATE: 10/1/10
Possible problem for some (corrected since, at the server, for lack of recognition of file types by the Kindle 3  even though the Kindle 1, 2, and DX models recognized Amazon Kindle format files for normal download).
  The Kindle 3 opened the Amazon file instead of downloading it as a file, and Kindle 3 users saw gibberish appearing on the screen, which was harmless but ugly.  For me, it happened only with the Kindle 3.  The Kindle 1, 2, and DX's were able to see it as a file.

  I'm putting the details into a new post so that the programmers might become aware it's happening, as my feedback received a boilerplate response.  See today's post (Friday, Oct. 1) for why it happened and how it was corrected for access at this server.

The ALWAYS RELIABLE ways are #1 above (move downloaded-to-computer file to Kindle) and the similar but more direct way of computer-to-Kindle transfer, which is:

  . Attach Kindle to your computer that is online with the Net
  . The Kindle will be seen as a separate 'drive' such as "F: {Kindle}"
  . Click on the 'documents' folder of the Kindle drive, to enter it.
  . In your browser, right-click your mouse on the file-link
      (some Macs require holding the mouse button instead).
  . Choose "Save Link as" or "Save Target as" or "Download/Save"
      depending on your computer and browser
  . Choose the Kindle 'documents' folder for the download.

Then the file will be where it belongs on the Kindle.  After that, use your computer's way of "safely ejecting" the USB device - in this case, the Kindle. 

The Kindle will show the Home screen again, and eventually the new 'mobiweb' file.

(That's like slower ground transport vs air travel.)

Also, Amazon is, for some reason, not considering an .azw Amazon file that IS a personal doc which they converted, to be a file that is acceptable for emailing to your Kindle.   For over a year, that caused no problem, but it is one now, so I deleted the instructions for emailing personal docs to the Kindle.

    Otherwise, you normally can send personal documents to [yourself]@free.kindle.com or to [yourself]@kindle.com once you have gone to your ManageYourKindle page and have approved any mail-to-Kindle-from-email-addresses for the section titled "Your Kindle Approved E-mail List."

The bookmarks file includes the following advice along with the links:

MAPS option works with Kindle 3, but is blocky and slow.

  Directions sub-option will show you text AND map (workable if ROTATED to landscape -
   almost impossible in portrait or vertical mode.

  TEXT directions, step-by-step are much easier to get and read.

    USE http://maps.google.com/m/directions

      See Kindleworld guide for that at bit.ly/kdriving.

MAIL – If you choose this from this Google menu, it does the usual over-complex mail-threading and folders display and is painfully slow or cumbersome even with WiFi.
  Shortcut to painful mode: http://bit.ly/gmail

  USE http://bit.ly/g_mail for a faster experience and bear in mind that to finish a Reply, you need to arrow to the end and leave the Reply box. If you know a better way, let me know.
  (PgDn gets you down faster but doesn’t allow exiting the box
   but you can PgDn and end with cursor-down to exit.)

    Credit to Bill in Kindleworld's Comments area for the Gmail and Gtasks URLS

  ALTERNATE: For a compromise, here’s Advanced Gmail in Basic HTML
    USE for that: http://bit.ly/gmailmobile
      It’s slower but not so painful.

TASKS/CALENDAR (Google still)
  There are problems, with the Kindle 3, in being able to type input into login or search-fields sometimes, with Google features, even though the Kindle 2 and DX’s can handle those fine.  The new shortcuts I‘ve made for google sites are to versions that work with the K3.

  USE http://bit.ly/g_tasks (that’s with an underscore)

  Tasks are coordinated with your calendar when in Gmail on the computer.

GOOGLE READER (RSS feeds)
  USE http://bit.ly/g-reader '

The bookmark links start with the ones Amazon put on the Kindles, and modifications or recommendations are included.

  At the end, I've added general bookmarks to websites I've enjoyed using on the Kindle.

  That includes pure-text versions of the full NYTimes - much faster to read through on the Kindle when you just want to see the latest news.

You can also reference these on the PC or Mac at the same time if you want, while using the file on the Kindle.  If you haven't already downloaded either of these free apps for your computer, you can do that at Kindle for PC page or at Kindle for Mac page.

Suggestions for links I might add later would be very welcome.


Kindle 3's   (UK: Kindle 3's),   DX Graphite

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Check often: Temporarily-free late-listed non-classics or recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.

Tip: Moving files to Kindle w/o USB cable - UPDATE2

Tip of the day for those who don't want to use the USB cable to transfer a Kindle-readable file from a computer to the Kindle.

  Joel Anderson uses his computer to send his Kindle book files to his http://docs.google.com storage area and then uses his Kindle web browser to go to http://docs.google.com/m, the mobile version of that Google docs page, to just download the file(s) direct to the Kindle.
 This will not work with a PDF file, but it will work with .prc, .mobi, or .txt files.

UPDATE - (Same day) This DOES NOT WORK with ORIGINAL Kindle 1 ("Kindle Classic") mode.  It does work with the 6" Kindle ("Kindle 2") (released February 2009) and the Kindle DX (U.S. and Global on both Kindles).  Apologies for not checking the Kindle 1 when I wrote this.
  (I'll try one of the focused file-upload/download sites later.  If anyone else does in the meantime and finds an upload/download site that works with the Kindle 1, please let us know.

  As he said on the popular Amazon forum thread on unique use of the Kindle, "Don't know if this is unusual - but I've found it handy to upload .mobi files to my Google docs in order to download them to my Kindle. Handy when I've got files on my computer, but no cable to move them to the Kindle."

See the Google docs support page for information about how to use that page for documents.  You can share documents or just store them or convert them to Google-docs format (where that is possible) to edit them.

UPDATE2 - Same day Correction for storage limits, which are 1 gig for free accounts vs info on sample-illustrations showing 10,240 MB (10 gigs).  It's definitely 1-gigabyte storage for free + 25 cents per each additional gigabyte.

Apparently, you can store up to about 10 gigs 1 gig of documents there at no charge.   If you need more, you can buy additional storage at 25 cents per gigabyte. There's a $5/year plan to upload up to 20 gigs, and there are additional plans for heavier needs.

Here is the "In a nutshell" explanation by Google about file size limits.

'   * Docs: Each doc can have a maximum size of 500K, plus up to 2MB per embedded image to be converted to Google Docs format.
  * Spreadsheets: Each spreadsheet can be up to 256 columns, 200,000 cells, or 100 sheets, whichever is reached first, to be converted to Google Docs format. There's no limit on rows.
  * Presentations: Files in .ppt and .pps formats can have a maximum size of 10MB or 200 slides to be converted to Google Docs format; files uploaded from the Web can be up to 2MB.
  * Stored files: Files that you store but don't convert to Google Docs can be up to 1 GB each. '

Not bad!

See the Size Limits page for more detail (file formats etc).

Here's the "Getting Started" guide and the "Take a Tour page."

Thanks to Joel on the tip for transferring files to your Kindle without needing to use the USB cable connected to a computer.

  There's no charge for a transfer of Kindle-compatible file from a website page.  HOWEVER, PDFs can't be downloaded direct to the Kindle.

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See the ongoing Guide to finding Free or Low-Cost Kindle books and Sources
Also, a page of links that confine searches to mid-range priced e-books.

Sharing Kindle books on one account

The ability to share books under one account with up to 5 other Kindle-related devices is a popular topic on the various Kindle forums, as Amazon allows a Kindle book to be shared by up to 6 Kindle-related devices under one person's account, with the owner of that account responsible for all purchases/downloads of Kindle books for those devices.  When the device is registered to that owner's account, the understanding is that the account owner owns the device.

  This arrangement involves a lot of trust as the others sharing the account can purchase a Kindle book while the account owner pays for it.  I've mentioned in an earlier article that some take care of this with reimbursements via Paypal if the account owner has no interest in the book someone sharing that account ordered.

THE KINDLE CHRONICLES PODCAST THIS WEEK - Sharing a Kindle Account
The main weekly interview for Len Edgerly's popular Friday podcast, The Kindle Chronicles, this week is with Len's wife Darlene and her friend/sister Deb, and the focus is on how they share their Kindle books on Darlene's account.  It's a spirited and detailed conversation.  Also interviewed is Tom, who uses the third device on Darlene's account.

They all explain how this works for them under Amazon's guidelines.  For the record, here is Amazon's language:

' Can I share content with other Kindles?

Books can be shared between Kindles, Kindle for PC, or iPhones that are registered to the same account.  There may be limits on the number of devices (usually 6) that can simultaneously use a single book.  Subscriptions to newspapers or periodicals cannot be shared on multiple devices. '

In the "Learn more" sections they add:

' Downloading to Multiple Devices

Content purchased from the Kindle Store can be downloaded to your Kindle, iPhone, or iPod touch as long as you've registered the device to the Amazon.com account that purchased the Kindle content.  There is no limit on the number of times a title can be downloaded to a registered device, but there may be limits on the number of devices (usually 6) that can simultaneously use a single book.

That means you can download and read your books on any Kindle device you own as long [as] you've registered each device to the Amazon.com account where your Kindle library is stored.

  You can see the items in your Kindle library and send downloads to your registered Kindles from the "Your Recent Orders and Individual Charges" section of the Manage Your Kindle page.  (Here's the Guide to using the management page.) '

One of the other "Learn More" links (written for the Kindle DX but applicable to the 6" Kindles and reworded a bit when the DX was released):

' You can see the items in your Kindle library under Archived Items on your Kindle and send downloads to your registered Kindles from the "Your Orders" section of the Manage Your Kindle page. '

TIP: SHORTCUT TO HOME SCREEN PAGE FOR ARCHIVED ITEMS
It was mentioned in the broadcast that the Archives are at the end of the HOME screen listing of books and that you can scroll through pages to it.

  There are two shortcuts for the HOME page for this:
  1.  Set your Sorting to Titles (rather than Most Recent, say)
and type only the first letter of the 'book' or folder (in this case, Archived Items folder) -- and after inputting the first letter ("A"), click on the 5-way button. That'll take you to the first entry for that letter and you can NextPage until you see it.
    or
  2.   Look at the bottom left of the screen.  Mine says "Page 1 of 18" and type the number for the last page.   In my case, I input 18.  Then click on the 5-way button and you'll get right to your last page of listings where you'll find Archived Items.

  That's the folder for Amazon-purchased books that you have in your library at Amazon but which are not on your Kindle.  Clicking on an item will download that book if wireless is turned on.  This will work only in areas where wireless is accessible by your Kindle of course.

TIP: HOW TO PERMANENTLY DELETE A TITLE
  During the podcast, they explain that Darlene's request to be able to delete forever a purchased book from your Kindle Library at Amazon has been granted recently (right after her request on another podcast - powerful gal!).  This was requested by many on the forums too, and there had been thoughts that Amazon could get some flak if someone requested a deletion and then had a change of heart and wanted it back after Amazon had deleted it but now the customer would have to pay for another copy.  They put language in that we understand we'd have to pay for the book again if we need it after doing the permanent removal of the title.

But now a book you hate or might not want others on your account to see can be permanently deleted on the Manage your Kindle page.

  Additional Kindle owner experiences and more tips on how to use the Sharing-on-one-account feature are discussed at this Amazon Forum Kindle thread.

TURN OFF SYNCHRONIZATION IF  2+ KINDLE DEVICES ARE READING THE SAME BOOK
 One obvious thought is that if 2+ people are reading a book at the same time, you don't want to be using the same Last Page and bookmarks, so you'd need to turn off Whispersync, which is Synchronization between Devices (ON by default).  Here's how:

1. Go to the Manage Your Kindle page.
2. At the bottom of the page, look for "Manage synchronization between devices.  Learn more."  Select "Learn more."
3. Select "Turn Synchronization off." '

This would mean that you couldn't, though, read a book on one of the Kindles, stop, and resume reading at the same page on your other Kindles or iPhone/iPod or PC later.

I probably should have broken this up into a couple of separate articles but it all seemed related to me.  Tomorrow's entry will be shorter.



Kindle Touch 3G   Kindle Touch WiFi   Kindle Basic   (UK: KBasic)   Kindle Fire
Kindle Keybd 3G   (UK: Kindle Keybd 3G)   K3 Special Offers   K3-3G Special Offers   DX

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Check often: Temporarily-free recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.  Liked-books under $1
UK-Only: recently published free books, bestsellers, or £5 Max ones
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button

Mobile versions of webpages for Kindle web browser - Update2

UPDATED FILE 9/28/10 - Kindle 3 users should see the later article instead.

UPDATED 8/10/09 1:30 AM - Original posting was 4/20/09, 9:55 AM

I've made a separate Kindle file for the bookmarks below, which you can use as a Kindle file made up OF the bookmarks listed -- the websites are linked already in that file so that you can use them for the Web when your Wireless is On.

(Uploaded corrected file replacing wrong file, 8/10/09 at 11:05 AM PDT.
  Update info at bottom of file should say 8/10/09 at 12:33 AM.)

If you're not in email while Kindle-browsing, and the words are too small because the Kindle is showing the full screen, try going to Manu/Settings and changing to "Basic Mode" instead of Advanced or Desktop modes.  That'll make the fonts normal sized and it'll all be more black & white with higher contrast.  See How to use the Kindle web browser tips.

  The exception to Basic Mode mentioned above involves sites needing your Log-in which usually requires "Advanced" or "Desktop" (DX) modes.  For that, go to Menu/Settings/Advanced and make sure that 'javascript' is 'enabled.'   Email-sites require Advanced mode w/Javascript on.
  Otherwise, Basic Mode is faster and in better contrast (more b&w) but you may have to "NextPage" through the website's left-column of links first, if they have one. The text being larger is worth it usually.

FILE for download:
 You can click or right-click here to download mobiweb.azw which you can then transfer to the 'documents' folder of your Kindle, via your USB cable -- or you can email the downloaded file to [you]@kindle.com to have it sent to your Kindle.  Let me know if there are any problems.
  Update:  If you're on this blog page using Amazon's Kindle-subscription edition of this blog, you can download the file direct to the Kindle.  (The live web-browsing version on the Kindle, with rectangle cursor, doesn't allow it for some reason.)

After downloading something to the Kindle, you may have a blank screen.  Just press the "Back" button to get back to where you were earlier.

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Original Posting of 4/20/09 The Kindle comes with webpage bookmarks put in place for us by Amazon as part of its "experimental" web browser feature, the use of which is at no cost to us currently (partly because web-browsing on a small vertical screen is less than optimal for the eyes and it's difficult to fit a wide page of several columns in a tiny vertical screen.  However, with the Amazon's ultra-sharp fonts, it's doable and, best, we're able to use this anywhere cell phones can access Sprint, which provides the wireless ("Whispernet") access prepaid by Amazon -- the estimated average Sprint EV-DO wireless costs are factored into the price of the Kindle unit.
  There are no hourly or monthly charges for the user at this point (though Amazon reserves that right), even though cellphone web-data packages are normally a minimum $30/mo. for unlimited access.  So, unlimited cellular data access like this normally costs, at the least, $360 a year.  For now, we do have tjat unlimited use, though most Kindle users would want to use it only for emergencies when outside the home.  It's not speedy.

So, I've used it at restaurants, stores, concert intermissions, whenever I want to look up something.  I used it the other day while waiting for diem sum, to read and post to one of the Amazon forums, and will eventually did put up a couple of photos from that to show what it looked like while posting to the forum via the Kindle.   The keyboard lettering is very pale and you need to do a full key-dip, which means it is slow-going, but it does the job and I'm getting used to the little keyboard.

A friend wrote that she lost most of her Amazon-placed website bookmarks while experimenting the other day, and asked me to give her the Amazon-made bookmarks.  Since she has a Kindle 1 while I have both Kindles, I gave her a list of what was pre-placed by Amazon on both Kindles.  The Kindle 2 handles the web far better than the K1 does, though.  By default it tends to present the full width of a regular Internet page, with words very small but also very sharply presented.  To get the data in normal larger text instead, we can switch from the automated "Advanced" mode to "Basic" mode (via settings-menu while web-browsing), which means, then, paging through left column data first and then arriving at the middle data columns readable in normal-sized fonts. We can also 'disable images' to just get the text much faster if in a hurry for basic info and not images.

Mobile versions of webpages, however, are programmed to fit on mobile phones with their small screens and so they're very good for the Kindle.

Here are the basic bookmarks put on by Amazon, followed by links to excellent and fairly extensive lists of mobile-versions of popular sites.  You won't need to type any of this list if you downloaded mobiweb.azw.

* You NEVER need to type in the "http://" portion for Kindle bookmarks. The Kindle will add that. *

LIST (This is in the file you can download for your Kindle.)
First, AMAZON-placed bookmarks (mostly) from Kindle 1 and 2:
Amazon.com - http://www.amazon.com
Wikipedia - http://wikipedia.org
GMail Mobile – INBOX ONLY, text focus
http://m.gmail.com
Gmail Mobile – FOLDERS ALSO, Slower, many boxes
http://gmail.com
Google - http://www.google.com/pda
Google Mobile products – http://m.google.com/?hl-en
- (Don’t use Mobile Products ‘gmail’ option. See above instead.)
BBC News - http://news.bbc.co.uk/text-only.htm
CNET - http://m.news.com
CNN - http://m.cnn.com
ESPN - http://mobileapp.espn.go.com
MSN MOney - http://mny.mobile.msn.com/en-us
MSNBC - http://www.msnbc.msn.com
AllRecipes - http://mobile.allrecipes.com
E! Online - http://eonline.mobi/topstory.ftl
Fandango - http://mobile.fandango.com
National Weather Service - http://mobile.srh.weather.gov
    The following were possibly put there by me:
Lonely Planet - http://m.lonelyplanet.com
Yahoo! - http://us.m.yahoo.com
Yelp - http://mobile.yelp.com

WEB ON YOUR CELL (I use this a lot.)
http://webonyourcell.com
  (WebOnYourCell is excellent - added 8/8/09, 11:58 PM)

SKWEEZER.COM (Terrific)
http://www.skweezer.com
  This *squeezes* your chosen sites for mobile/Kindle use.

NOTE: If you have the file listing that shows "www.squeezer.com"
  please re-download the file, as it should be "www.skweezer.com"
  and the file has been corrected.  Apologies.

CANTONI MOBILE BOOKMARKS:
http://cantoni.mobi/

TOP MOBILE WEBSITES - Excellent recommendations here
  Press Menu/ *Click on “Use Basic Mode” for this.*
http://tinyurl.com/topmobilesites
( Easier to type than http://webtrends.about.com/od/mobileweb20/tp/Top-Mobile-Websites-.htm )

Amazon asks for feedback on how the experimental basic-web feature works for us.   Send them feedback at kindle-feedback@amazon.com or to
kindledx-feedback@amazon.com

Please feel free to add to the Comments area any useful mobile-formatted pages you like that are not on Amazon's, Cantoni's, or Webtrends' lists.  There's a delay in posting comments, and I'll try out any recommended links first.  Thanks!

Last update for List - 8/10/08 - 12:33 AM
Last update for blog entry - 8/10/08 - 1:30 AM



Kindle Touch 3G   Kindle Touch WiFi   Kindle Basic   (UK: KBasic)   Kindle Fire
Kindle Keybd 3G   (UK: Kindle Keybd 3G)   K3 Special Offers   K3-3G Special Offers   DX

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Check often: Temporarily-free recently published ones
  Guide to finding Free Kindle books and Sources.  Top 100 free bestsellers.  Liked-books under $1
UK-Only: recently published free books, bestsellers, or £5 Max ones
    Also, UK customers should see the UK store's Top 100 free bestsellers.

  *Click* to Return to the HOME PAGE.  Or click on the web browser's BACK button

The Kindle and Sprint EV-DO's 24/7 wireless costs

There are no wireless costs at this point for the customer.  But there are for Amazon.  Information Week's Howard Anderson writes:

"On vacation, my wife was busy reading books on her new Kindle 2.0.  Do you know what they call Sherpas in the developed world? Husbands.  For years, I would go on vacation with a hernia-producing bag of reading material.  I was carrying atoms; now I carry electrons -- much lighter. The publishers make money because they don't have to buy paper and pay printers and the Postal Service.  Amazon makes money because it doesn't have to ship anything.  The consumer (me) gets books for $9.95.  The Kindle is as impressive as the iPhone, maybe more so.  How is this possible?  Because Sprint Nextel has excess capacity, which it sells to Amazon.  If you can't use your extra capacity to sell cellular service, then wholesale it to someone who can.

So Sprint Nextel is going to try to replicate what it's done with Amazon with any number of consumer electronics companies, such as Garmin, which offers a GPS device.  And since Sprint has excess capacity, it can assume that its costs are (almost) zero.  No billing expenses, no customer service.  That was what really cost money..."

It seems Sprint is looking to make similar deals with other companies, including Garmin.  Might that have an impact on wireless network speed?  There are times when I wonder if they intentionally throttle the download speeds for the Kindle access (unless we happen to be at the Amazon Kindle store).

Also, there are now many articles mentioning the enthusiastic use of the Kindle 2 by either the writer or the spouse.  I was surprised to see a somewhat over-the-top love letter to the Kindle by Slate.com's Jacob Weisberg, who is Slate Group's chairman and editor-in-chief and author of The Bush Tragedy.  A few of his remarks:

"I'm doing my best not to become a Kindle bore.  When I catch myself evangelizing to someone who couldn't care less about the marvels of the 2.0 version of Amazon's reading machine -- I can take a whole library on vacation!  Adjust the type size!  Peruse the morning paper without getting out of bed! -- I pause and remember my boyhood friend Scott H., who loved showing off the capabilities of his state of-the-art stereo but had only four records because he wasn't really that into music.

So apologies in advance if I'm irksomely enthusiastic about my cool new literature delivery system. Like the early PCs, the Kindle 2 is a primitive tool...But however the technology and marketplace evolve, Jeff Bezos has built a machine that marks a cultural revolution."

But then he goes too far, in surmising:

"The Kindle 2 signals that after a happy, 550-year union, reading and printing are getting separated.  It tells us that printed books, the most important artifacts of human civilization, are going to join newspapers and magazines on the road to obsolescence..."

WELL, I don't think so.  This is more like the idea that television would spell the death of movie theaters.  Most of us K-readers want both DTBs ("Dead Tree Books") AND K-books and periodicals (plus personal docs) on our Kindles.  I read far more than I did before but also find myself spending more time in Barnes & Noble enjoying hard-copy books of the type that cannot be shown successfully on a small e-ink unit.  However, in time, that will change too, I suppose.

 But a book or magazine with its own unique physical attributes and layout will always be an attraction, and a special treasure, although for actual ease of reading, it's hard to beat being able to change the font size and spacing between lines to suit our particular eyesight preferences and being able to carry around so much with you when out of the home.  Long waiting lines are no longer a problem for me.

If you click on the image that starts this entry, you'll be at a page that explains how wireless technology works, without hammering the reader with jargon.