Peeking Inside Amazon’s Kindle: The Web Browser
by
on November 23, 2007,
Earlier this week we touched a bit upon the topic of Amazon?s debut of its own e-book reader, dubbed Kindle, focusing a good deal on the general stuff concerning the item. You know, how the device would presumably do in an era still mostly averse to electronic books; whether it?s selling point of ?free? wireless 3G access will make it a hit; whether the experience is similar enough to the tried-and-true pulp-based paper equivalent to warrant the attention it?s so far received. The basics, more or less.
What we didn?t really talk much about ? if at all ? was the device?s Web browser, which, you?re likely quite aware, is something we tend to focus on here at Profy. What with the Internet being the focus of this publication and all.
So we?ve decided, however belatedly, to shine some light on the Kindle?s software side; specifically, the Web browsing experience it offers. Why? Well, for one, it?s a relatively slow Friday, what with a great deal of residents of Silicon Valley having reserved this day as one for recuperation from their Thanksgiving feasts. Secondly, it?s just what we do. We shoot the [bleep] about all things Webilicious, big or small. So here goes.
You?re likely aware of the Kindle?s hardware provisions. Its big buttons. Its wireless radio. Its big frickin? buttons. And, oh yes, the E Ink display. That grayscale marvel that works wonders for the preservation of battery life, among other conveniences.
The display is the device?s strong suit, for sure. It displays the text of novels and bios and poetic verse superbly. It?s size makes for quite good formatting. It?s efficient as hell. Anything you throw at the thing structured in the way of your average paperback or hardcover volume comes out as the author intended.
And, not surprisingly, that slab of E Ink can also be quite annoying, especially if you use it to view some of your favorite websites.
Now, I understand the E Ink display installed in the Kindle isn?t primarily intended for Web browsing, and that the onboard browser isn?t quite up to the task when searching out anything other than basic HTML. (Of course, it?s logical to think that, with time, things will get better.) But one can?t help highlight these unsatisfactory aspects of the device, because it?s being marketed as something which can tackle general Web browsing tasks. Which, according to several reviews published so far ? I?ll refer primarily to thoughts given by the New York Times opinionator David Pogue ? it really cannot.
To be fair, it?d be much too much to rebuke Bezos and his project of three years? development for failing to deliver proper AJAX and Flash compatibility right out the gate. While one would ideally very much like to see Web 2.0-compliance in full from the start, such things just don?t happen on a whim. Gradual steps are needed.
Yet it nonetheless must be said that the Kindle, while a genuinely admirable invention, is not a pleasurable Web browser by any means, and one would be advised to give it a good bit further examination before handing over $400 ? if in fact the Web access feature is the part of the sales pitch made by Amazon that?s led one to pull out the plastic from the billfold.
You can certainly expect to have for yourself a very good digital reader of your text files, be they Dickensian epics or short whitepapers or whathaveyou, in the Kindle. Most anything that?s written and displayed in word is enjoyable to read. But don?t expect much more from the device. If you do, you?re in for some disappointment.
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Alan Kodzasov
Shallow
Bob
CopyrightLawSucks 
kinghajj 
Michael Fidler 
Not that I have any plans to drop $399 on the Kindle any time this century, but in no way, shape, or form does Bezos or Amazon tout this as a full-service web browser. It’s an e-Book reader, which will also let you do things like buy more eBooks and read blogs and newsfeeds. Sort of like your phone, only prettier.
Ajax and Web 2.0 do some cool things, but in an app way, not in a content way. I don’t want to see the price point on a device that does what Kindle does AND acts like my laptop as well. I’d also rather see companies put out a product that does ONE THING well instead of 14 things that all sort of work in a half-assed way.
I’m reserving judgment until I see one for myself, but in the meantime, listening to the NYT whine about how it doesn’t do windows doesn’t tell me a single thing about how well it does what it is supposed to do: let me take my pulp fiction out in public without anyone knowing what I’m reading.
I’m with Cyndy, Amazon doesn’t even mention the word “browser’ on the kindle home page - all they promote it for is access to the Kindle store and Wikipedia. It’s the ‘reviewers’ (who haven’t actually got their hands on one) and bloggers who are bemoaning it’s surfing abilities. The user manual (which is available online before purchase refers to the feature as Basic Web (there’s a clue) and says:
[i]Your Kindle comes with an Experimental application called Basic Web which is a Web browser that is optimized to read text-centric Web sites. It supports JavaScript, SSL and cookies but does not support media plug-ins (Flash, Shockwave, etc.) or Java applets.[/i]
This and PDF handling are clearly described as experimental, so in effect you can be a Beta tester if you choose or just leave well alone.
The only place I differ from Cyndy is that I have ordered mine and I’m itching for delivery…
I don’t think browsing would be a very viable with e-ink. Dynamic content just wouldn’t play well. I am glad they even thought of including a browser. At least i will be able to get some basic web. I am actually surprised that most viewers compare it to laptops, pdas, and even iphones. But e-ink just would not be suitable as a laptop screen. It is meant to be a book. Well, an alternative to book, you know what i mean.
And yes i know people get away with reading on there laptops, and iphones and pdas, but not whole books, and definitely not continuously. But if they are comfortable doing that, well… to each his own. I myself like to lounge on the sofa when i am reading a book. And no i don’t have a Kindle yet. It sold out before i could get to ordering it, so i have it on back order. But i do own the original sony libre, the japanese version. And e-ink, is unbelievable!!
Cyndy and Colin,
I have to raise a question, then.
What’s the purpose of including a Web browser with the device at all? If it’s a very minor accessory, why bother? So owners can punch in “google.com” or “yahoo.com” and see something presented onscreen, however poorly it might be rendered? That doesn’t seem like something that excercises wisdom on par with the Kindle concept itself, and what the Kindle is supposed to deliver and convey.
Maybe with some subsequent releases of E-Ink display designs there’ll be a purpose to having your books and your Web browser all in a small, book-sized device, but right now, the open Internet access the device avails to the owner doesn’t really present much in the way of value, and thus I thought the original article/rant/whatever needed be published.
By the way, Colin, I wish you luck with the Kindle. I really do hope it serves you well.
Enjoy the rest of your weekend, all.
Thanks for the respose Paul, I agree with you that such a limited browser could detract from the image that Amazon is trying to convey, but that precisely why I believe they aren’t promoting the capability.
I see four purposes why it *is* included:
a) Purchasing books. Obviously Kindle would be a very different proposition if it were limited to downloading books from a computer. Amazon has only one way to sell books - through amazon.com - and the only way to view amazon.com is with some kind of browser.
b) Future development. e-ink currently doesn’t lend itself to web browsing but future generations (which may have 16 or 32 greyscales, full color, faster refreshing etc.) may well perform this task. In the meantime Amazon can asses the market by including this as a Beta feature.
c) Because they can. I bought and watched exactly one movie on my iPod. It was a horrific experience to watch a 90 minute movie on such a tiny screen, but I understand why Apple did it. They aren’t trying to replicate the theater experience, or even the portable DVD player; they are taking advantage of the fact the technology allowed them to bundle a secondary feature (video) into a device with a different primary use (audio). I can’t believe that the browser software alone adds much to the cost so why not include it?
d) Text-based browsing. Many times I go to the Web for something very simple (such as weather, movie times, flight delays, even blog reading) where graphics, color and flash really aren’t necessary.
A fifth purpose that benefits me, but maybe not Amazon, is direct access to content from text-heavy sites such as the Gutenberg Project where users can download complete public domain books as TXT files direct to their Kindles.
I don’t ever expect to use it for casual surfing - as long as there’s no touchscreen or 2 dimensional UI that’s a long way off - but I suspect I’ll be glad it’s there.
Colin,
Points (b) and (c) I think I can agree with. And point (e; or #5) is something noteworthy, too. Though I don’t know if direct downloads via the Kindle’s Web browser are possible. I know it’s possible to email a PDF or compatible file to the device. But downloading via the Web, outside of Amazon’s storefront, I’m not sure about. Perhaps it’s possible.
I have to disagree somewhat with point (a). I understand that books may be purchased over the Kindle’s 3G connection, but I see no reason to do so via a Web browser. A proprietary, iTunes-esque storefront, with nary a URL field to occupy screen real estate would pretty much get the job done. Yes, consumers are acquainted with shopping Amazon via their Web browsers, but as far as shopping via the Kindle is concerned, I think that’s best done in a way similar to iTunes.
I know it’s annoying to consistently read/hear about Apple and it’s “beautifully integrated” iTunes-iPod duopoly, but it’s a benchmark that’s undeniably worth comparing in this case.
I bought a Kindle recently and have been kicking the tires pretty hard. As an e-book reader it does exactly what I wanted and I haven’t had any issues reading the screen in any location I’m likely to read a print book. The browser was a surprise to me and I’ve used it quite a lot. It’s not meant to be a replacement for a proper laptop (etc) but does an ok job within the parameters of it’s intended experimental purpose. I can use it to check (some) email, check the weather, get the days headlines on some newsfeed sites; most importantly I can download free or paid ebooks, magazines and newspaper. You CAN download from the browser if the ebook format is correct. I think over the long-run the cost will have been worth it for the conveniences it offers.