Universities: Kindle DX Doesn’t Make the Grade
Remember those universities experimenting with replacing textbooks with Kindles? Well, at least two of them aren’t giving the Kindle DX a passing grade. The University of Wisconsin-Madison and Syracuse University are calling for improved features, including accessibility for blind students.
A Beta News article put a whole lot of emphasis on the needs of blind students.
So what would the universities want improved on the Kindle DX before rolling it out to its student body? Pretty much all the functionality of a textbook, plus improved text to speech capabilities. A university official was quoted as saying:
This version of the Kindle e-book reader missed the mark. It is relatively easy to envision an improved e-book reading device that meets the needs of the entire university community. Such a device would include universal design for accessibility, higher-quality graphics, and improved navigation and note-taking.
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About the Author: Xavier Lanier is a mobile technology enthusiast and avid photographer. Based in San Francisco, he uses various mobile devices between 10 and 20 hours per day. Xavier is the publisher of GottaBeMobile.com and Notebooks.com
Mickey Segal | Nov 12, 2009 | Reply
Is the universities’ point that there are text to speech gadgets that work on physical books but don’t work on the Kindle? But I thought the Kindle had its own text to speech capability.
Xavier | Nov 13, 2009 | Reply
No Mickey, I think the universities’ point is that the text to speech and annotation features have to be improved. I’m sure Amazon is using both as a selling point.
Bill | Nov 14, 2009 | Reply
I thought it was rather funny that when I came to this page to read the article, the Google Ad that showed up was for B&N’s nook.