Kindle Review – Kindle Fire Review, Kindle 4 Review

The Alex Reader isn’t vaporware – It’s a real threat to the Kindle and Kindle Vs Alex is going to be fun.

There’s a cool video of the Alex up on Youtube which gives us a chance to review Kindle Vs Alex Reader. This is based on the video and information from Spring Design. Will update to a more detailed Kindle Vs Alex comparison once the Alex Reader is released.

If you’re a Nook owner you might not want to see this Alex Reader video (found via TeleRead) -

Kindle Vs Alex Reader – Alex makes a strong push

In my Dual Screen eReaders post had talked about the Alex’s most interesting features -

6″ eInk Screen. 

3.5″ color LCD screen.

Patented Duet Navigator technology to use both screens seamlessly.  

Android based with full Internet browsing over WiFi and 3G.

Android capability seems to not have been restricted like in the Nook.

Removable SD card to extend storage.

‘Web Grabs’ feature to insert images, videos and notes or custom text. Capture and cache web content from browsing to read later on eInk.

A lot of focus on multimedia publishing – There’s a Link Notes multimedia authoring tool to create images, notes, etc. and add them to original text. 

Android optimized for dual screen.

A dedicated font size button.

The Alex Reader has a few significant strengths -

1. Full fledged web browser on a LCD screen. The screen works really fast too.
2. It doesn’t seem to handicap Android so having Android will probably be a real strength.
3. Web Grabs – browse the Internet on the fast LCD screen and then capture text to read on the eInk screen. There’s a dedicated read button (read/project/print) to do a Web Grab.

The speed of the page turns and the speed at which you can interact with the LCD clearly shows that the Nook messed up.

The Alex Wild Card

The Alex Reader press release says -

is mobile-enabled with smart phone capabilities.

Is the Alex going to let you make phone calls?

Kindle Vs Alex Reader – Where Alex Wins

1. The LCD actually works and is fast and has a browser. A big win.  
2. The Web Grabs feature.  
3. Android is actually set free and that has to mean good things.
4. Things like picture galleries work great on the screen.
5. Supports ePub documents.
6. WiFi in addition to the 3G.
7. SD card support for expanding memory.

Kindle Vs Alex – where they tie

1. The same screen – It’ll be interesting to see if the black color of the Alex helps readability a tiny bit.  
2. Size and Portability – They are very similar. 
3. Kindle, Alex both have speakers (Sony Touch doesn’t).
4. PDF support – although there’s a chance Alex has better reflow support.
5. Speed – both work well and fast enough. Page turns take .5 seconds or a bit more on both.

Kindle Vs Alex – Where the Kindle Wins

1. Focus on reading. Having Android and a full web browser on the 3.5″ screen is a huge distraction.
2. Kindle Store – More ebooks and at better prices.
3. Free Internet and Free Wikipedia - It’s rather unlikely that Alex will have free Internet access.
4. One screen – The dual screen interface is a new paradigm and the video highlights how the bright LCD can be distracting. 
5. Talk To Me feature.
6. Better layout of buttons.
7. Better battery life. 
8. An established company - Spring Design is an unknown company.
9. Alex is not clear on release plans – They say they’ll release Alex for strategic partners by end of this year. Not sure what that means plus Spring Design are in a court case (they are alleging B&N stole their design).

Kindle Vs Alex is going to be fun

That Alex video shows that Alex might be everything the Nook was supposed to be. The Kindle has been evolving rapidly (PDF support and so forth) and it sets things up nicely.

The Kindle, Alex showdown promises to be a real spectacle.

The one hitch is the court case between Spring Design and Barnes & Noble. It looms over the Alex Reader and there’s a chance Kindle 3 is out by the time Alex is released. That, however, would only make Kindle Vs Alex more exciting.

Filed under: eBook Reader Devices Tagged: | kindle vs alex, kindle vs alex reader