Amazon Kindle 1
Amazon Kindle
- Made by: Amazon
- Released: November 2007
- Predecessor: none
- Languages Supported: English
- File Types Supported: AZW, PRC, MOBI, MP3, AA, TXT
Overview
The Kindle offers a 6" display E-Ink device with EVDO (cell-phone style) connection to permit purchase and download of books. This means that no computer is needed for the Kindle although a USB connection is provided so that a computer can be used with this device. A keyboard is built into the device which can be used to add notes to documents. DRM is supported only on AZW files. Amazon does not sell the Kindle outside of the USA because the Whispernet EVDO is only available there.
See Amazon Kindle 2 for the new version and Kindle DX for the large screen model.
Specifications
- Display: 6" diagonal E-Ink® electronic paper display, 600 x 800 pixel resolution at 167 ppi, 4-level gray scale Kindle 2: 16-level gray scale
- Size (in inches): Kindle 1: 7.5" x 5.3" x 0.7" Kindle 2: 8" x 5.3" x 0.36"
- Weight: Kindle 1: 10.3 ounces Kindle 2: 10.2 ounces
- Internal memory: 256 MB with 180 MB free Kindle 2: 2G internal; no external slot.
- Expansion Memory: Officially up to 4GB SD, although SDHC tested to 16 GB.
- Wireless: EVDO with no subscription required
- System requirements: None, because it doesn't require a computer
History
Amazon has worked on this design for 3 years through lab126, a small Amazon subsidy "producing highly integrated products to serve Amazon consumers".
See Also
For specifications on the display technology see: E Ink display Note that this device has only 4 level gray scale.
To compare this device with other E-INK devices see: E-book Reader Matrix
To check the status of Amazon services see: http://status.aws.amazon.com/
Kindle Download Guide from Feedbooks.com
Internal hardware
Here are some guesses as to the internal hardware based on examining the Linux source code and other data:
- The base system is based on a Gumstix board.
- The CPU is XScale PXA250 running at 400 MHz when at full speed. ARM compatible.
- The I/O chip to talk to the PN-LCD, keyboard, scrollwheel and battery is from Foxconn.
- Flash chip is OneNAND from Samsung.
- The CDMA modem is AnyData DTG.
- USB controller is Philips ISP1761 (it has On-The-Go!).
- Eink controller is Apollo - the older one used in PRS-500 etc, possibly due to it only supporting 4 gray scales.
- Audio is WM8971
Whispernet
All Amazon Kindle devices include a cell-phone data service that Amazon calls Whispernet. This service uses EVDO facilities from Sprint but the user does not need to sign up for the service. It provides free download of purchased eBooks and free browsing of Wiki encyclopedia. This is a wireless service and may be turned off independently from the device itself. User converted content can also be optionally be downloaded via Whispernet for $.10 per document. (User content conversion is free if you don't use Whispernet.)
Formats that can be converted include:
