Friday, February 1,2008 @ 4:40pm
Amazon: Kindle is 'outpacing our expectations'
The Kindle handheld is doing extremely well, claims Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon. Speaking in a quarterly earnings call, Bezos has described the e-book reader as "outpacing our expectations," doing so well in fact that it is causing manufacturing problems. The company is scrambling to increase the number of Kindles produced each week, with the eventual goal of having a Kindle ready for immediate shipment after ordering. Customers must currently enter a waiting line.
The Kindle launched to substantial media hype last November, following a TIME magazine article and widespread attention from TV networks. It is notable firstly for the massive publisher support Amazon brings to bear, but also for its wireless access, which uses a free EVDO connection supplied by Sprint. Other e-book readers tend to be tethered to computers or Wi-Fi connections. [via Seeking Alpha]