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Amazon Kindle 2 - $189 USD Price Slashed! (Originally $260)

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That's right folks, Amazon Kindle 2 is now (almost) as cheap as the more down to earth Kobo eReader. For your info, the price translates to $215 AUD as of today's exchange rate.

This morning, Amazon’s Kindle set you back $US260. Now, presumably in response to Nook’s steep price drop this morning, it’s $US190. That means the best ebook reader out there is now also one of the cheapest.

It’s not that there aren’t budget ebook readers that still come in below Kindle’s new price. But a $US190 Kindle includes some of the best hardware and biggest selection around, plus free 3G connectivity. Most importantly, it’s 10 dollars under the Nook’s new price.

Source from Engadget


News:

As of the 2.52 firmware update, Australian Kindle 2 users now have unrestricted 3g internet access on their devices. (Free internet access to any website)

Price History at C CamelCamelCamel.

Related Stores

Amazon US
Amazon US

closed Comments

  • ACCCKKKK!!!! This has been on my Wish List for sooooo long! Wonder if I can convince the hubby to buy it for me.

  • Unrestrticed 3G? Unlimited internet access? You don't mean what I think you mean, do you?

    • +1

      Just in case anybody gets excited…
      …no :0)

      The Kindle comes with a SIM card built in, which you can't change, and allows you to use the browser to buy books from Amazon anywhere. It is unlimited, but you can't tether it, and it is a black and white screen with five second page refreshes and only a browser, so you can't download anything other than books.

      Prior to the latest update, you could only use the browser here in Australia to buy books and look at Wikipedia (no one is quite sure why about the Wikipedia bit) - since the update, the browser has been unlocked so that you can browse any page. (Amazon must have gotten a better roaming data deal with AT&T)

  • Question is does the sim work in Australia? This isn't the international version.

  • +1

    Expect to see even more price slashing in the next 12 months. US$49.95 would be the magic spot for a basic reader.

  • So can Aussies purchase Amazon Ebooks with an Australian Amazon account or do you have to setup and American account to get around region restrictions ?

  • +1

    There's no region restrictions for ebooks, because there is no shipping or warranties involved — it's a digital download. Australians can buy eBooks, you don't need to have an American credit card/US Paypal or US residential address.

    To get started you need to first download and install the Kindle for PC application.

    After installing it, you can create an account, and then in the application click the "Shop in Kindle Store" button.

    The prices listed are all in USD.

  • How much is shipping to AUS?

  • +2

    Nice deal … but … My first thought when I saw the price was to order one myself until I had a look at the negative reviews on Amazon. See this one voted as the most helpful critical review.

    http://www.amazon.com/review/RV0R3AODMRNJZ/ref=cm_cr_pr_view…

    The issues seem valid. There must be many complaints and maybe Amazon are about to can this model - another reason for the price drop?

    Nevertheless, if the features suit you it's a good deal.

    • tt was an excellent review..
      i will have to think twice then..

      • -1

        Another alternative is the $150 Wifi Nook, but they don't ship to Australia so you have to arrange for your own parcel forwarding service (e.g Price USA or Shipito)

        • Barnes and Nobles ships the Nook to Australia. 18 US bucks for standard and 22 US bucks for Express.

        • Whoa. The Nook looks good. Might actually put in an order tonight.

          • -1

            @Livert: careful.. u cant browse internet wit nook,not like kindle

            • @CyberMurning: On the other hand the Nook runs Android… so it is possible with some l33t hacking to install a browser on the Nook and browse via Wifi.

              • @scrimshaw: Ordered one. Should arrive in 2-3 weeks.

                • +1

                  @Livert: Livert, erwinsie is completely wrong. Yo erwinsie, Nook can browse the internet man. Where are you getting your facts from? It's got a frickin' webkit browser built right in ever since version 1.3. Like scrimshaw said, it's Android. It even has a Music player that looks like stock 1.5 Android. Throw in a microSD card and you can read PDFs and stuff, play your music and what not.

                  I'm sure Nook will release more updates and more stuff will be available since its Android. Plus, rooting now is simpler too since there's a softroot method instead of having to mess around with hardware.

                  • @ragflan: Yeah. Did some reading on softrooting last night. Might not do it at all as browsing in greyscale would suck.

                    What I paid:

                    Sub Total: $149.00
                    Shipping & Processing: $12.98
                    Total Shipment Price: $161.98

                    Worked out to be AUD$189 via Paypal payment.

                    And to think I was considering the Kobo :P

                    • @Livert: Nah nah. You don't need to softroot to get access to the browser. It's included in the 1.3 update. Basically your Nook will have an inbuilt webkit browser already without you doing anything.

                      Softroot is if you wanna add more stuff. Livert, quick question. I was going to buy a second one just 2 days later after I bought my first, and the checkout process kept saying they can't ship the Nook WiFi to Australia. Did you get any such errors?

                      • @ragflan: The first time I checked out, I didn't get any warnings. Second time it keeps giving me the message: In compliance with shipping regulations, some item(s) in your order cannot be sent to Melbourne in Australia.

                        • @ragflan: sorry man, completely mixup nook and kobo :)
                          now i like this ver kindle! hmm but how about reading manga? can i still use mangle to convert all the jpgs then read it in nook?

                      • @ragflan: Nope. No issues for me at all.

                        • @Livert: Livert, you so lucky i heard some people from australia now can not buy and have it delivered here anymore.

                        • @Livert: Ah crap. Just received this email today.

                          Dear Valued Customer,

                          We are writing to you regarding your recent order for the Barnes & Noble
                          NOOK WiFi. Due to our current international shipping agreement, we are
                          unable to ship this device to addresses outside of the US.

                          If you received a shipping confirmation email, we have refunded your
                          original payment method. All other orders were canceled and were not
                          billed.

                          Please accept our sincerest apologies for any inconvenience and
                          disappointment this may have caused.

                          We value your patronage and hope to be given the opportunity to continue
                          to serve you in the future.

                          • +1

                            @Livert: Aww, that sucks. Australia always misses out on the best gadgets.

                          • @Livert: Isn't free trade great ;-)

                            • @daydream: Saw 3 eReaders in JB today. Not one of them had decent specs and didn't have anything special about them but where the Nook costs 140, the JB readers cost about 300. It's really annoying. Mine didn't get shipped either.

                              scrimshaw, looks like the old thread at whirlpool is correct. My apologies. The first one I purchased, order went through. Second one I tried, it kept rejecting. Then I got the refund for the first.

                              And now, Droid X is US only as well. :(

                              • @ragflan: same wit me. went to OW, JB, Dymocks, all to have a look and try of ebook reader and shock about the price tag they put.
                                hmm iiriver ebook reader is good, but too expensive.
                                how about kindle then ?

                                • @CyberMurning: Yeah Kindle's about the best option right now. 189 USD is the most reasonable. Kobo was 199 AUD at Borders but they're always sold out and I feel that Kindle is a better product than Kobo is. But I honestly won't get a Kindle for the same reason I won't get any new Apple products. Everything is locked down.

                                  I'd rather wait and hope for a day when Nook is for international orders or when a similar product comes up for less than 200. I can never justify paying anything above 200 for an eBook Reader that's only 7". So the JB products are ridiculously overpriced. 399 for a 7" eReader has got to be one of the biggest rip-offs in JB.

  • what?? no SD slot? will not buy this unless down to $50

  • hey, just wondering, any1 have any ebook reader, what do you think of reading manga (jpg) on it ? good ? i have hundreds of manga files..

    • Should be fine. You may need to convert your JPGS' into Adobe PDF format to allow for zooming.

  • can some1 posted their experiences with kindle free internet in sydney cbd, please

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