Kindle is Sold Out – For Now

According to Engadget, the Amazon Kindle managed to sell out in only 5.5 hours. Now that’s fast, particularly for a device category that has never taken off. I have a Sony Reader which I like quite well, but I’d still love to try out a Kindle. Let me tell you, the Sony Reader has probably never sold out of anywhere because ebook readers have just never gotten the gadget love that they deserve. According to the Amazon website currently, if I buy a Kindle today, it will skip December 3.

Now, we have no way of knowing exactly how many Kindle’s have shipped, but regardless of number, Amazon apparently underestimated the demand. I’m excited by that, because it means that maybe, finally, ebooks will become as popular as I want them to be. I absolutely love being able to take a whole library with me on vacation. When I’m on an airplane, I typically can plan on about 200 pages per hour, so I have to take along 3-5 books on a typical trip to keep me engaged. Or I can take my Sony Reader, which is smaller and easier to pack. Or maybe in the future I’ll take my Kindle, who knows? If Amazon is able to figure out the DRM format wars and get something that actually works, I’ll jump ship from Sony and try it out. I love the idea of being able to buy a book instantly through the Whispernet.

Rob has done a great job of covering the Kindle so far, so check out his videos for more details on this cool (sold-out) device.
Amazon Kindle Part 1:Unboxing, Part 2, Part 3