OK, so I am not sitting by the mailbox waiting for my Little Orphan Annie secret decoder ring, but I might as well be while I sit here waiting for the Amazon Kindle 2.  I got an email from Amazon on Sunday evening indicating that my Kindle had shipped.  I tracked my package on Amazon and found that on Sunday, and found it had left the seller’s facility in Campbellsville, KY, and was in transit.  Like I said, that was Sunday.  Here it is Tuesday, and the status has not changed.  Oh and the Postal Service has no record of my tracking number.  Guess I will have to trust that the March 2 delivery date is more or less accurate.  But now that I know Engadget received theirs today, I want it and I want it now…

Ever since I order the Kindle 2, back on February 9, a lot of people have been asking why I want one so badly.  These people generally fall into two groups:  those who love hard copy books, and those who read books on other devices, most likely an iPhone.

I have a variety of responses which I use to answer these questions, including: the screen is much easier on the eyes (and headaches) than a traditional backlit screen, my storage options have been significantly reduced since my daughter was born, and most importantly that I love carrying an extremely light eBook reader instead of heavy 1000 page tomes of knowledge on my daily train ride.

Judie Lipsett, my good friend over at Gear Diary, summed up my thoughts perfectly in a post earlier today over at Gear diary.   She writes:

My deal is that the screen on most mobile phones is too small to read from – and it sucks the device’s battery life when you do. I can read them on my laptops, but once again – battery life is not ideal. I like the way it feels to hold a book-sized item with a regular sized screen, and that’s where these dedicated eBook readers come in.

Then there is the issue of space, which brings up why I like the electronic format so much. My house in San Angelo has a large set of built-in shelves, but the house we are building in Eldorado is smaller and will not. Being able to keep hundreds, eventually thousands of books in electronic format takes care of my bookshelf needs.

Check out her full justification for purchasing the Kindle 2, here (not that she needs one.)

The other criticism I have seen is the lack of a color screen.  Many Kindle critics argue that the Kindle will never truly be able to deliver on its advertised magazine subscriptions without a color screen and pictures.  This is a point with which I really cannot argue.  Nonetheless, Amazon did respond to this criticism, and I thought their response made an awful lot of sense.  Specifically, according to Ian Freed, Amazon Vice President, the color screen idea was not included because:

• it would have significantly decreased battery life
• it would have caused the Kindle 2 to run much hotter, and risk becoming uncomfortable to hold
• it would have had the same glare and eyesore problems commonly experienced by computer screens and other mobile devices.

Personally, while I would have liked a color screen, I am glad that Amazon opted for longer battery life and fewer headaches/eyesore issues.  Most of the books I read do not have many pictures anyway (except Don’t let the pidgeon drive the bus, which is not available on the Kindle anyway).  you can see all of Freed’s comments over at Cnet News.

For even more thoughts on the Kindle, let’s take a look at what Amazon CEP Jeff Bezos had to say in a recent interview with John Stewart (sorry, folks, the video would not embed properly.  Just hit the link to see it).

That is about all I had.  Oh, but like I said, Engadget got their Kindle 2 earlier today and has posted a ton of fantastic pictures, including several which I have, “borrowed” for this post.  Check out their full gallery,here.

I am off to sit on the front step and wait for the mailman to bring my Kindle 2 soon.  Until then, remember, kids, "Be sure to drink your Ovaltine."

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