Coffee and Kindle - Replacement Received

My new Kindle 3G and Coffee

I finally received my replacement Kindle, the new Kindle 3G, yesterday afternoon after waiting practically forever. It was lost enroute and eventually arrived after eleven days of shipping and lots of phone calls and emails with Amazon/Kindle. So here's a photo taken this morning of the new Kindle and my morning cup of coffee.

If you've read my other posts about my problems with Amazon/Kindle, it's been a long haul to get a new replacement for my three month old defective 2nd Generation Kindle. First they sent me a "refurbished" one as a replacement and it didn't work. Duh! It took lots of complaining and unpleasant words before I got a new one as a replacement. I'm still waiting for my refund, which they claimed to have processed over a week ago, but which still isn't showing up on my credit card account. When that finally gets straightened out, I'll have to deal with the issue of getting a refund on my warranty for the original Kindle. You see, they want me to pay for a new warranty for the replacement Kindle, even though I already paid for a two year warranty and only had my Kindle for less than three months when it went on the fritz.

Since I've had both the 2nd Generation Kindle and now the Kindle 3G, I can give a few comparisons. The new one is smaller, lighter weight and has darker print and better contrast. I like the switches better on the new one. Also, the vents are on the back upper corners of the device instead of the back bottom corners. This should prevent overheating, which I think was part of the problem with my 2nd Generation Kindle. Since I've only had this new one for 24 hours, it remains to be seen how it will hold up to steady use.

Don't get me wrong, I do like the Kindle. It's a great concept for an avid reader who always wants to carry his or her books around at all times. My complaint is primarily with the warranty that allows them to replace a defective Kindle with a refurbished one at their discretion. I think that's a rotten policy and if I'd "read the fine print" before I bought my original Kindle, I wouldn't have bought it for that reason. On the other hand, since I didn't find that said "small print" before I bought my Kindle, after I bought it, it was too late to turn back. I really liked my 2nd Generation Kindle until it went on the fritz after only ten weeks of use. As I've said before, the Kindle is great when it works and not great when it doesn't work.

The other major problem with Amazon/Kindle is the poor customer service. I spent a horrible two weeks fighting with Amazon and Kindle support in order to get my replacement Kindle 3G. I tried to explain to them that their customer service is the worst I've ever encountered. But I don't think they cared one way or the other. I've been a satisfied Amazon customer for over five years, but I'd only bought books, CDs and DVDs. I only once had to return a book, when they sent me the wrong one. So I had no idea that I would have such a big problem in purchasing my Kindle.

Even though I've had a rather unpleasant experience with Amazon and Kindle Support, that doesn't mean everyone else will have the same problem. My adult daughter got her 2nd Generation 9" Kindle last January and has not had any problems. I'd like to think that what I encountered was an exception to the rule.

Do I recommend the new 6" Kindle 3G? So far, I think it's great! Considering the price, I hope it works for a good long time. If it does, then I'll be a very happy Kindle owner. All I can say is, if you want to buy one, please be sure to read the warranty, including the "fine print."