Kindle DX Vs Kindle 2

Update: The Kindle 2 just got a $60 price-cut so you can get a $299 kindle 2. That makes it a clear winner in the kindle dx vs kindle 2 battle (not to mention not having to wait for 3-5 weeks for the kindle dx).

Kindle DX is available for order (3-5 week delay) - the Kindle DX is Amazon’s second, higher priced, Kindle line. It’s $489 and that’s not bad for a 9.7? screen.

The big question is whether you should buy a Kindle 2 or get a Kindle DX and this post compares them on several important criteria.

Screen Size – Kindle DX Vs Kindle 2

The Kindle DX clearly wins as its screen has 2.5 times the surface area of the Kindle 2?s 6? screen. This might also be the rationale behind the DX name.
Kindle DX has 2.5 times size screen

Kindle DX has 2.5 times size screen

Price – Kindle 2 Vs Kindle DX

As it turns out Amazon kept prices low at $489. This is great.

Earlier Thoughts: The larger screen will increase costs a lot. In the best case, the larger screen is double the $60 price of the smaller screen, and with related costs, we get to a $459-$499 price point.

Note: Another 10? eReader, the iRex Illiad, retails for US$859.00. Anything near that would make the DX a non-starter.

The Kindle 2 clearly wins on price with the new $299 price. However, the Kindle DX clearly wins on value for money.

PDF Support – Kindle DX Vs Kindle 2

Kindle DX comes with an in-built PDF converter. This is huge and probably necessary when targeting college students. Kindle DX’s superfecta of -

1. Larger Screen Size.
2. PDF Support.
3. Cheaper Textbooks.
4. Not having to carry heavy books around.
5. Support from 3 of the big publishers and 60% coverage of textbooks.
6. Reasonable Price at $489.

PDFs do not support taking notes, zooming, etc. – look at my kindle dx pdf faq for more details.

Ought to combine to turn Kindle DX into a huge bestseller.

PDF support is a huge win.

For the Kindle 2 you have the option to use a hack called Savory to support PDFs on the Kindle 2. However, the hack is unofficial, and it has to be uninstalled to get Amazon firmware upgrades. Plus it might cause problems. So, only consider it if you’re technical and willing to risk your Kindle 2.



Portability – Kindle 2 Vs Kindle DX

The larger size of the DX makes it difficult to carry and it won’t fit in a lot of handbags. Kindle 2 wins clearly on portability and this, along with its lower price, points to two lines of Kindles existing in parallel.

It is worth nothing that both are just around 0.3? thin and weigh little.

Annotations and Keyboard – Kindle DX Vs Kindle 2

Kindle DX has the same ‘notes’ feature as Kindle 2. PDFs do not support notes.

Another puzzler is the keyboard having just 4 rows (qwerty keyboards need 5). Perhaps an indicator that the input methodology on the Kindle DX is something innovative that allows annotations and a smaller keyboard without needing a touchscreen.

Update: It probably supports numbers via a shift. Kindle 2 wins as I don’t like the shift to get numbers option.

Target Audience

Kindle 2 targets people who read books.

Kindle DX targets people who read textbooks and periodicals. The price is not as high as expected, so I’d say DX is good for books in general too. If you can afford it, get the DX.

Web Browser – Kindle DX Vs Kindle 2

Kindle DX is supposed to have a more fully functional browser. This is a no-contest as the K2?s browser is rather primitive.

Update: The details aren’t clear on this yet so will update when it’s clearer.

Additional Areas Kindle DX beats Kindle 2

At this point it seems that the Kindle DX has a lot of advantages over the Kindle 2 – screen size, the annotations feature, better browser, pdf support.

A few more areas it outshines K2 are -

1. Value for money – A 2.5 times larger screen and PDF support for $130 more is a deal.
2. Keyboard takes up much less of the device’s real estate.
3. It seems to have a wider space bar which would be a relief.

More as updates come out.

Additional Areas Kindle 2 beats Kindle DX

Kindle 2 is the clear winner on price and portability. It also holds up well in the following areas -

1. Kindle DX doesn’t have a full qwerty keyboard and using shift to get to numbers is slow.
2. Kindle DX doesn’t have any page turn keys on the left side and this is an obvious disadvantage for left handed people.

Whispernet is still free which is great. Actually, the change in the pricing scheme for document conversions and transfers over Whispernet might be aimed at the DX – to make sure that the stipulation was in place before any college kids bought a Kindle DX.

Closing Thoughts on Kindle DX Vs Kindle 2

The Kindle DX and the Kindle 2 have their own place in the kindle dx vs kindle 2 argument -

1. Kindle 2 for price and portability and especially if you mostly read books.
2. Kindle DX for pdf support and if you need a larger screen or read mostly in large fonts and the kindle 2 font sizes aren’t good enough.