Hasta La Gadget!

DC Comics has announced that it will be offering its comic books on a variety of digital platforms, including Apple’s iBooks, Amazon’s Kindle, and Barnes & Noble’s NOOK ereaders and tablets. Of course, DC Comics has been selling graphic novels in digital form for quite some time, but this is the first time that DC is officially releasing new content on a weekly basis to various big digital platforms.

Starting today, you’ll be able to get your comic fix through the official stores of your respective devices. DC also reported that for the year to date, its digital comic sales are up 197% year-over-year. Hank Kanalz, DC’s senior vice president of digital, says that the addition of more digital content won’t detract attention from physical comic book stores, but will expand the audience instead.

Previously, DC Comics sold its content through apps from Comixology including its own DC Comics app in Google Play and iTunes. However, those were the only two places that users could buy DC-owned comics. Now, users can go through the official bookstores on various devices without having to download additional apps in order to buy comic books.

Today will see 70 titles available in iBooks, the Kindle store, and the NOOK store, including the week’s New 52 superhero books, several Vertigo issues, select “digital-first” titles that publish online before print, as well as some back issues. A combination of same-day new titles and backlist titles will be added in the coming months.

DC digital comic books now available for iOS, Kindle, and NOOK devices is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

With the recent launch of Amazon’s new Kindle Paperwhite ereader, it seems the company is beginning to phase out its older models. Last week, we saw the Kindle DX quietly get the ax, and now it looks like Amazon will be quietly killing off the Kindle Touch as well. The Kindle Paperwhite is replacing the Kindle Touch from the looks of it.

Amazon hasn’t officially announced anything about the discontinuation of the Kindle Touch, but it seems that’s a trend of theirs now, as they didn’t say anything about the Kindle DX either. Currently, the Kindle Touch is “currently unavailable” from Amazon’s website, and it directs users to a “newer model” of the item, which is the Kindle Paperwhite.

This isn’t a huge deal per se, but those who are wanting a Kindle ereader are left with very few options at the moment. The Kindle Paperwhite is still back-ordered by “4 to 6 weeks,” and that may even change in the coming weeks if or when Amazon re-evaluates their inventory. That’s enough to make holiday shoppers a little nervous if they plan on buying a Kindle Paperwhite for a loved one.

The only Kindle ereaders currently available are the regular Kindle starting at $69, and the Kindle Keyboard at $139. Both models are barebones and come with only a fraction of the features of the Kindle Paperwhite, so we’re guessing not a lot of people will want to jump for those models. In any case, the Kindle Touch is dead. Long live the Kindle Paperwhite.

[via Paid Content]

Amazon phasing out Kindle Touch is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Amazon’s Kindle Paperwhite has proven to be a hit amongst avid ebook readers. The improved contrast and the front-lit display are one of the device’s best features, but it doesn’t come without its quirks. Amazon issued a disclaimer today that addresses some of the drawbacks of the Kindle Paperwhite, and aims to inform potential buyers about the product.

One caveat Amazon mentions is the lack of audio or Text-to-Speech on the Paperwhite. The feature can be found on the Kindle Fire series, but in order to make the Paperwhite as small and light as possible, Amazon was forced to leave out the audio features for now. Maybe we’ll see them in the Paperwhite 2?

A lot of users have also been complaining about the uneven lighting from the LED front light, where the display would seem darker towards the bottom than at the top. However, Amazon says this is normal and that the illumination is better than a normal book light anyway. We’d have to agree there, since the Paperwhite’s lighting is certainly better and more convenient than any fancy book light around.

Amazon also brought up the limitation of only 2GB of storage in the Kindle Paperwhite, as opposed to other Kindle models that had 4GB. The company actually didn’t explain why they limited the storage to 2GB, but they noted that it’s enough to hold over 1,000 books. Plus, users also have free cloud storage that they can use.

However, users don’t really need to be worried if they’re thinking about buying a Kindle Paperwhite. They sold out fast, and it seems a majority of customers are seeing the Paperwhite as a huge step up from previous Kindle generations, so if you’re in the market for a new ereader, the Paperwhite may be a good option for you.

[via The eBook Reader]

Amazon posts disclaimer on Kindle Paperwhite limitations is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Last week’s release of the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite offered an opportunity to look back on the rapid growth of e-reading, and look forward to what the digitization of publishing will mean to four major market forces: publishers, bookstores, authors and readers. As during any technological disruption, winners and losers trade fates until the upheaval settles and a new cycle of status quo begins.

Amazon is not the only bookstore represented in the scramble for new-era survival, but its major role has multiple dimensions: seller, publisher, enabler, inventor and primary instigator of disruption. Amazon is banking on being a winner, and was recently handed an advantage by the U.S. government in its uneasy relationship with publishers.

While industrial forces work their way through the dislocation of new paradigms, individuals — both book consumers and book authors — stand to be the biggest winners, and that is a good thing.

Continue reading Editorial: Bring on the digital overthrow of publishing

Filed under: Handhelds, Tablets, Wireless, Amazon

Editorial: Bring on the digital overthrow of publishing originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you happened to get your hands on a Kindle Paperwhite before they eventually sold out, you’re definitely one of the lucky ones. You also might be happy to know that a jailbreak was discovered for the device, so if you’re feeling adventurous and enjoy taking risks, this might be something that you’re interested in.

The Kindle Paperwhite has only been available for a few days now, and there’s already a jailbreak for it. Then again, it seems that hackers were able to break into it pretty easily from the looks of things. It turns out the exploit is similar to the hack that was initiated on the Kindle Touch, so half the battle was already complete.

Installation is quite easy as well. It only requires you to upload a certain file to the root directory of the Kindle Paperwhite and then restart the device. When it boots up again, your Paperwhite should be completely jailbroken. From here, you can do a lot of cool things that you normally wouldn’t be able to do, including displaying different information like the weather, or hooking it up to a Raspberry Pi for some extended fun.

Despite how easy this certain jailbreak works, we obviously want to warn you that jailbreaking anything is only for the faint of heart, so if you’re not sure you have the capabilities or even the guts to do such a thing, it’s probably best to just let it be. If you’re giving yourself the green light, just be aware that there’s always a chance of bricking your device no matter how experienced you are — things just happen in mysterious ways. Good luck!

[via Hack A Day]

Amazon Kindle Paperwhite can now be jailbroken is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.