Sorry for the lack of posts over the last few weeks but the news we were all waiting for is finally here - Amazon has announced the new Kindle and the Amazon Tablet too.
News:
1. The current Kindles stay - The current Kindle Wifi is priced at £109 and the Kindle 3G is £149. Both the price they were when they were originally released - these have been renamed the the "Kindle Keyboard" and the "Kindle Keyboard 3G."
2. A new, slimmer Kindle - A new Kindle has been introduced in the UK - simply called "Kindle." It does not play audiobooks but still does books, magazines, newspapers, docs and games. It has 2GB of storage, 1 month of battery life, weighs only 170grams, is even smaller, and is Wifi only. It therefore has half of the storage of the current Kindle, is 18% smaller, 30% lighter and has 10% faster page-turns, it loses its keyboard and costs £89 - £20 cheaper than the current Kindle. Unfairly, the same new Kindle is $79 in the US and £89 in the UK - after tax that is equivalent to £60.57 vs £89, meaning the UK market pays at least 40% extra for the same product!
3. A touchscreen Kindle for the US - The US also gets a new touchscreen Kindle - one with 3G and another with Wifi, both without a keyboard and has a form-factor resembling the new slimmer Kindle. They are priced at $99 for the Touch Wifi version and $149 for Touch 3G version.
4. The Kindle Fire Tablet - Amazon's new tablet is called the Kindle Fire. It is priced at $199, about £153 after tax. It has a 7 inch screen and is seen as a big competitor to the iPad being less than half of its price. It is currently a US only product as it would be effectively useless in the UK at the moment due to Amazon UK not having licensing deals in place for apps and movies at the moment. The tablet's features, as posted on the website are:
*18 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, and books
*Amazon Appstore - thousands of popular apps and games
*Ultra-fast web browsing - Amazon Silk
*Free cloud storage for all your Amazon content
*Vibrant color touchscreen with extra-wide viewing angle
*Fast, powerful dual-core processor
*Amazon Prime members enjoy unlimited, instant streaming of over 10,000 popular movies and TV shows
It is unclear whether the UK market will be getting this tablet in the near future or even at all - as said above first a streaming service of TV shows and movies needs to be established, as well as the App Store.
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Cheap books:
Rated 4 stars average from 82 reviews
Synopsis: "PRAISE FOR The Alchemist's Secret: 'Fans of Dan Brown will love this thrilling adventure'. Closer Magazine 'The [Alchemist's Secret] establishes Scott Mariani as an author to watch.' M.J. Rose, international bestselling author of The Reincarnationist 'Mariani does a great job of balancing the historical stuff with the basic plot to keep the pages turning.' Oxford Mail 'Scott Mariani brings it all to the table in this fast-paced thriller that rockets off the first page and never slows down. The Alchemist's Secret is packed with dark intrigue, danger around every corner, bullets flying, sexual tension, and an endless assault of nasty villains bent on stopping ex-SAS Ben Hope from finding the secret to an ancient manuscript. It's everything a thriller should be and more.' Joe Moore, international bestselling co-author of THE GRAIL CONSPIRACY"
Rated 4 stars average from 33 reviews
Synopsis: "All Liz Houston wants is to keep her head above the financial white waters of her life. Somehow, though, other people, including ex-husband Hugh, repeatedly get in the way.
Hugh just wants a quiet life and to be there for the people he cares about. Caring for Liz does not lead to a quiet life.
Moocher, Liz's Border Collie, wants to be where all the crumbs are, he wants to keep all his paws, but most of all he wants to keep Liz company as she rides the rapids of her life.
Add in odd-shoe-wearing lodger Simon, Git-next-door, a lost brother, an illicit fortune stashed away decades ago, a trio of part-time thugs, kidnappings, a tree-climbing tortoise and a dog-flap with a story of its own, and it becomes apparent that a few white lies (and custard creams) between friends are the least of Liz's problems."
Rated 5 stars average from 18 reviews
Synopsis: "A priceless artefact is stolen en route from the Louvre to the Victoria & Albert Museum and now the mysterious Queenie wants The Hunstman to get it back. For Red the case is a distraction from the more pressing matters of hoodies terrorising the elderly on London estates.
But when Red's boss and mentor is targeted by The Hunstman things get personal. Very personal.
Set in modern-day London, Snow White is a fast-paced, gritty urban thriller that will leave you wondering whether fairy tales really do have happy endings."
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Free books:
Rated 4.5 stars average from 7 reviews
Synopsis: "The British government now runs island prison colonies to take dangerous offenders from its overcrowded mainland jails.
Among all these colonies, Sert, 25 miles off the north Cornish coast, has the worst reputation. There are no warders. Satellite technology is used to keep the convicts under watch. New arrivals are dumped by helicopter and must learn to survive as best they can. To Sert, one afternoon in July, is brought Anthony John Routledge, sentenced for a sex-murder he did not commit. Routledge knows he is here for ever. And he knows he must quickly forget the rules of civilized life. But not all the islanders are savages. Under the charismatic leadership of one man a community has evolved. A community with harsh and unyielding rules, peopled by resourceful men for whom the hopeless dream of escape may not be so hopeless after all ..."
Rated 3.5 stars average from 16 customer reviews
Synopsis: "Jessie Jones is living the life--except for the fact that she earns it by working the streets. She's been under pimp Spence's thumb for fourteen years, and she isn't looking to change it. That is, until undercover cop Gabe walks into her life and offers her something she's never had before: a love, a future, a home. But even if Jessie could walk away from Spence, there are darker forces of evil who want her to stay put, or worse, dead. In this romantic suspense, author Heather Huffman delivers an adventure from the vibrant streets of St. Louis to the caves of the Ozarks as Jessie discovers whether she can love another, whether she can love herself, and whether any of it is enough."
Rated 4 stars average from 6 reviews
Synopsis: "Single mom Sarah Love is determined to make a fresh start in Alabama for herself and Jenny. Born special, Jenny struggles to do the things other four-year-olds take for granted. Sarah hadn't counted on Jenny escaping her vigilance and racing in front of Jake Townsend's motorcycle. And she certainly hadn't counted on falling for the sexy, complex daredevil who nearly wrecked his bike to save her child. Nor had Jake, who had lost his own child, expected to find himself drawn into the lives of a courageous mother and her stubborn, endearing daughter. Could Sarah and Jenny be his second chance? Could he be the hero Sarah and Jenny believe him to be? The sequel to this book is A Prince for Jenny."
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I hope you enjoyed this week's newsletter, there's more news and reviews about the tablet and the new kindle next time as well as some great free and cheap books!
