Alert! MyDigitalLife user MikeZilla is the first, as far as we can tell, to have taken a good look at the ebooks that will be available to Amazon Kindle users in South Africa - and he’s not impressed with the merchandise.
According to the writer, very little of the kind of content that people who buy ebook readers will want to buy can be found in the online store. “It’s tantamount to Apple releasing the iPod in Africa and only stocking classical music as iTunes” selections, he writes.
Mind you, MikeZilla is approaching the content from the sellers’ end: he wants to add Kindle books to his own online retail outfit. The situation from the consumer’s perspective might be different, though such asymmetry would be rather frustrating.
(Update: see the comments below for more Kindle users’ experiences.)
Here’s MikeZilla’s take:
Kindle eBooks reader minus the eBooks
All in all I cannot urge anyone strongly enough to avoid the Kindle. In conjunction with the archaic Apple style rights management this is essentially a useless toy, unless you like reading ten cent romance novels @ US$50 a download on your R2k+ device. This is by far the most disappointing development in the kindle saga yet. If you want an idea of how bad it is, if you want to read Twilight on your Kindle in South Africa you’re out of luck. Pretty much no book worth reading published in the last 30 years is available in Africa.
Meanwhile, Amazon has released a software version of the Kindle for Windows machines, to complement the Kindle device and the iPhone application. One imagines, however, that if the Kindle device comes with a firewall preventing international users from accessing most of Amazon’s Kindle-ready content, then so will the software. Still, it’s free and might be worth a look.
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November 11th, 2009 @15:19 #
I unpacked my Kindle yesterday and, so far, am quite impressed. Under 'literary fiction', there are 10 825 titles. And Stephenie Meyer (the Twilight author?) is there, as far as I can tell (should I want to, I could purchase it on my Kindle).
You need to look at the Kindle Storefront via Kindle itself to see what is there, and not through the Amazon website (I think). It's all still rather confusing but lots of fun.
November 11th, 2009 @15:30 #
That's great news, Lisa. Once you've gotten to know the device & store a bit better, perhaps you could give us an overview of what's available?
I'd do so myself, buy my device is locked into the US geographical area, so I can't see what's for sale to South Africans.
November 11th, 2009 @16:14 #
Ben, I've just realised that my Kindle is registered to a US address (somebody else set it up for me), although payment of books happens with an SA credit card. I don't know what that makes me...? I do know that I have access to a large selection of books, unlike Mike Zilla (above). I'm also viewed an an international client as I pay the additional 2 dollars for download via wireless Whispanet(is that the name?).
It's all v. perplexing. I'll happily write an overview but must first get some clarity on how the whole thing fits together. And exactly what I've become in the process - South African? American? Half and half?
November 11th, 2009 @16:35 #
Very perplexing indeed. I think the fact that you pay the $2 surcharge places you firmly in the "international" category, however - especially if you're paying with an SA card (which has an SA billing address - it's the card's address that matters, not the user's).
One of the best deals on the Kindle right now is probably The New Yorker magazine subscription:
http://bit.ly/ISH4k
After signing in with Amazon, can you (a) see the product at that link and (b) buy it? If so for what price?
November 12th, 2009 @08:17 #
Yes, I can see that link - and the cost is 2.99 / month. However, I can only download onto the Kindle (not onto the computer) at that price, which will then incur additional costs for wireless transfer (so that's how they get you). I can buy the current issue for 3.99 and transfer to my computer, so it's merely a matter of charging more for international customers (most annoying).