I’ve enjoyed reading e-books since my first iPAQ h3635 Pocket PC, so I was very interested in today’s announcement of the Amazon Kindle, a dedicated e-book reader designed to make the digital reading experience cleaner, simpler and more user-friendly.  In thumbnail, the Kindle is a tablet-style device with a 6″ E-Ink display, wireless data access for downloading and purchasing content, and a wide array of content support.  With the Kindle you can purchase and download e-books, subscribe to newspapers and blogs, search Wikipedia.org for up-to-date encyclopedic knowledge, listen to MP3 audio files and Audible audiobooks, view photos (in black and white), and read Word and PDF files.

To me, the most notable feature of the Kindle is its use of Amazon Whispernet, an EV-DO data service provided by Sprint Wireless.  But, you don’t have to sign up for a data plan or get get a monthly wireless bill - the connectivity charges are built into the price of books, newspaper subscriptions and blog access (there’s a small fee for wirelessly downloading blog content).    Amazon’s position as the world’s largest bookseller also positions the company to make e-books more relevant; at the time of the announcement this morning, Amazon had 100 of the current New York Times bestsellers digitized and ready for download.  The power of Amazon, combined with the ability to make purchases or download new content anywhere the Sprint network is available, might just make the Kindle the first device to truly bring the e-book to the masses.

The Kindle is available for purchase from Amazon.com. 

One of the questions that came into the Pocket PC Central Help Center this morning got me thinking.  Why have so many Windows Mobile device manufacturers stopped including 3.5mm audio jacks on their Windows Mobile PDA phone and smartphones?  One of the selling points of Windows Mobile devices is their ability to act as digital audio, or MP3, players (and thanks to new high-capacity SDHC cards, quite roomy ones at that), but if you don’t include a standard audio out jack it’s a hassle, not the no-brainer experience it should be. 

The e-mail was from Gene, a gentleman with a new AT&T Tilt.  He wants to connect it to the AUX-in port in his car, but because of the unit’s hybrid charge\sync\audio miniUSB port, he can’t connect the Tilt to the car stereo.  There is a solution, but it requires an 11-pin miniUSB to 3.5mm audio adapter.  Why should this man, who spent hundreds of dollars on an otherwise top-of-the-line handheld, need to buy an adapter to do something as simple as plug in a set of headphones or an audio patch cable? 

HTC (of which I am a huge fan, by the way) is the worst offender in this area, but they’re not alone.  Motorola and Pantech also omit the standard audio jack, and I wish they’d reconsider.  It’s time to bring back the audio jack. 

Do you agree with me?  Disagree with me?  Let me know.

M.N.

HP was kind enough to send me a review unit of the new iPAQ 111, the first PDA-only (Microsoft used to call these Pocket PCs) Windows Mobile device from HP in some time.  The new iPAQ is sleek, light and very speedy, and after a few hours of putting it through its paces, I have no real complaints.  A full review is forthcoming - most likely around Thanksgiving -but based on what I’ve seen thus far, the iPAQ 111 is worth a look if you’ve been itching for a Windows Mobile PDA without telephony add-ons.

Have questions about this new iPAQ?  E-mail me and I’ll be glad to address them.  I’ll also post some of the back-and-forth if it seems to be a popular subject.

M.N.

I’ve been using Microsoft’s Windows Live services for a few months in BETA (and, in fact, I’ve been using Windows Live Writer to post to this blog).  Well, today Windows Live is out of BETA and ready for its close-up.  If you haven’t tried Windows Live - a suite of software designed to manage your online life including Live Mail, Live Messenger, Live Writer, Photo Gallery, etc. - give it a try.  It’s actually quite useful, and it’s free.

Oh, and e-mail addresses with the @live.com domain are now available, too.  Grab one while you can. 

For more information on Windows Live, visit the Windows Live Web Site.  If you’re using Windows Live Messenger, IM me at m.nichols@live.com.