Amazon Kindle DX

Amazon as promised announced the Kindle DX, its extra-large version of its e-book reader. The device centers on a 9.7-inch, 824x1200 E Ink display that both provides a larger view of newspapers and other articles but is pitched as particularly well-suited for periodicals, textbooks and other large documents: a built-in accelerometer lets it tilt on its side to view charts and other information better-suited to a landscape view. Native PDF support is equally new and lets owners view many documents without having to convert them through Amazon's e-mail service.

The DX doubles the internal storage to 4GB, enough for 3,500 books, while keeping the free 3G access for downloading books through the Kindle store and for using the experimental web browser or subscribing to pre-formatted blogs.

Amazon plans to sell the Kindle DX later this summer for $489 and has landed a deal with major textbook makers Cengage Learning, Pearson and Wiley to supply digital textbooks in a Kindle-readable format. Arizona State, Case Western Reserve, Pace University, Princeton, Reed College and the University of Virginia Business School are also trialing the Kindle DX as an option for students. Newspapers are also making inroads with the Boston Globe, New York Times and Washington Post all planning to offer discounted, long-term subscriptions for their Kindle newspaper editions. The Times in particular will itself offer the Kindle DX to readers who can't subscribe to the paper edition.

The Kindle 2 will remain on sale at its normal $359 price.

By Electronista Staff