After Hours

Image Gallery: Amazon's Kindle 2 has several improvements to lead the ebook reader field

By · February 25, 2009, 3:42 PM PST

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  • Amazon Kindle 2 shipping box

    The Amazon Kindle 2 was recently announced and is now shipping to consumers with a sleek new form factor and some other hardware improvements to make it the most compelling ebook reader on the market. The Whispernet wireless service and on-device Amazon store front set the device apart from the rest of the pack, but there are even more subtle improvements that make this $359 device a must have for book fans and gadget geeks.

  • Minimal packaging is used

    The box is only just over an inch thick and Amazon did a good job of creating a pleasant boxed package.

  • Tear down along the side of the box

    You simply tear the perforated tab down the Once upon a time... end of the device.

  • Inside the outer box

    Amazon lined the cardboard box with black paper that has glossy letters.

  • Amazon Kindle label

    The Amazon Kindle logo appears on the right side of the black lined paper, also in glossy black finish.

  • Opening another interior wrapper

    After tearing down along the black paper side the paper folds back to reveal a light cardboard inner box.

  • Kindle 2 resting place

    Under this second box the Kindle 2 lies in a bed of plastic with a screen cover in place.

  • Under the Kindle 2

    A Quick Start Guide, USB cable, and A/C dongle can be found below the Kindle 2 plastic casing.

  • Quick Start Guide

    The Quick Start Guide is helpful if you haven't use a Kindle before and will give you all the essentials you need to get started with ebook reading.

  • New Kindle 2 charging solution

    A USB cable, with a microUSB end, is included along with an A/C adapter dongle.

  • A/C adapter dongle

    The USB cable plugs right into the small Amazon-labeled dongle. I found that I could also charge the Kindle 2 with my Nokia and Palm microUSB chargers.

  • microUSB end

    The microUSB end fits into the Kindle for charging up the device.

  • Kindle 1 and Kindle 2 boxes

    The Kindle 1 came in a rather unique container and the Kindle 2 takes that further with a much greener package.

  • Side view of the two boxes

    As you can see the Kindle 1 box thickness reflects how thick the Kindle 1 is compared to the Kindle 2.

  • Retail boxes

    Here is another view of these two retail packages standing on end.

  • Kindle 1 and 2 side-by-side

    Here you can see the Kindle 2 is slightly taller than the Kindle 1. The Kindle 1 does seem to have a bolder font on it though.

  • Kindle 2 and 1 keyboards

    The Kindle 2 is on top of the Kindle 1 to give you a chance to see the differences in the keyboards.

  • Navigation option comparison

    The Kindle 2 5-way controller is placed over the Kindle 1 scroll wheel design.

  • Right side of the Kindles

    The Kindle 2 is on top of the Kindle 1 and has much more compact buttons that should prevent accidental pressing of buttons.

  • 5-way controller and buttons

    The 5-way controller is surrounded by the Menu and Back buttons.

  • Right side of the QWERTY keyboard

    The Symbol key and font key are found on the right side of the keyboard.

  • Left side of the QWERTY keyboard

    The Shift button and ALT key are on the left side of the keyboard.

  • Close up of the keys

    The QWERTY keyboard keys are rounded and have good tactile feedback. They are well spaced too so it should be fairly easy to use the keyboard.

  • Left side buttons

    The previous and next page buttons on the left allow you to easily read your Kindle 2 with one hand.

  • Top of the Kindle 2

    The 3.5mm headset jack and power switch are found on the top of the Kindle 2. The power switch is spring loaded and is used to lock the device and power it up.

  • Upper right side

    The volume controller is on the upper right side.

  • Back stereo speaker grill

    There are two stereo speakers on the lower back of the Kindle 2.

  • Back of the Kindle 2

    In this photo you can see the brushed metal back and plastic top.

  • Amazon logo

    The Amazon Kindle logo appears at the top of the brushed metal piece centered on the back.

  • Back of Kindle 1 and 2

    Here you can see a comparison of the backs of both of the Kindle models.

  • Kindles and Sony Reader

    The Kindle 1 and 2 are placed next to the Sony Reader 505.

  • Sony Reader on top of Kindle 2

    The Sony Reader is a very compact device and is even more apparent when placed on the new slim Kindle 2.

  • Stacking up ebook readers

    The Kindle 1 on the Sony Reader on the Kindle 2.

  • End on stack of the ebook readers

    Another view of these three ebook readers. You can see how thick the Kindle 1 is in this shot.

  • Bottom of the Kindle 2

    The indicator light and microUSB port are found on the bottom of the Kindle 2.

  • Kindles and Sony on the side

    The Kindle 1, Sony Reader, and Kindle 2 on their sides show how thin the Kindle 2 really is.

  • Kindle 2 in hand

    The Kindle 2 fits well in my hand and is even a bit lighter to be able to be carried longer.

  • Kindle 2 gallery 1

    Gallery thumbnail 1

  • Kindle 2 gallery 2

    Gallery thumnail 2

Amazon Kindle 2 shipping box

The Amazon Kindle 2 was recently announced and is now shipping to consumers with a sleek new form factor and some other hardware improvements to make it the most compelling ebook reader on the market. The Whispernet wireless service and on-device Amazon store front set the device apart from the rest of the pack, but there are even more subtle improvements that make this $359 device a must have for book fans and gadget geeks.

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