I’ve never really seen any Kindle video in its entirety – that’s rather stunning since I’ve finished almost every Kindle article I’ve ever read. I think this has something to do with how I watch TV and the shorter attention span associated with TV and Internet video viewing.
What better way to change this habit than to sit through the most popular Kindle Reviews and review the reviewers. Here’s my top 5 list for Amazon Kindle Video Reviews -
- Benjamin Higginbotham of Technology Evangelist has a review of the Kindle Reader that’s my personal favorite – it’s long enough to be comprehensive at 5:28 minutes, and still not long winded. It has 29,246 views. The fact that he contrasts it with other ereaders he owns (Sony and Iliad) is great. I really liked how he talks with a lot of feeling about the device’s pros and cons, as opposed to a factual review.
- James Kendrick from JK on the Run has a 24 minute detailed review of his Kindle eReader. This has 16,000+ views and is rather good. This video has all the kindle views and close-ups you might want.
- Bill’s Creations – An interesting review (the camera is right out of cloverfield) with some really close shots of the screen – perhaps the best video if you want to understand what eInk looks like.
- MarkbotPlus has a review of the Kindle that is also pretty good. He talks a lot about how frictionless making a purchase on the Kindle is. 8,505 views and some strange camera angles. Overwhelmingly postitive review.
- David Carnoy from cnet.com has a short succinct review that’s just 2:03 minutes long. It’s the single most popular kindle video I could find, with 97,201 views. Its rather impersonal and doesn’t really do it for me. I’m leaving it on here as the lazy man’s 2 minute cursory review.
A few quick thoughts -
- Its amazing how the biggest sources of customer pain seem to be the placement of the next and previous buttons, followed closely by problems with the kindle case.
- I was rather disappointed by the relatively low number of reviews. A video review captures so much more information and yet there are very few good video reviews of the Kindle.
- I’ve stayed away from videos that are of the Part 1, Part 2 type, and also away from ‘unboxing of kindle’ videos. These tend to fall into ‘descriptions’ and not reviews.
- I’ve stayed away from 2 minute or less videos (apart from the cnet video since it’s the most popular) since 2 minutes is hardly enough to review any device.
- No one knows how to use a video camera well.
All in all, the kindle video reviews on YouTube are a great resource – they highlight the pros and cons, and rather importantly, show what a Kindle and the eInk screen looks like. I’d strongly recommend that before you buy a kindle, check out the videos above.
Filed under: kindle
