Two weeks after announcing the international version, which began to reach its first customers outside the United States on October 20, Amazon now announces that it will abandon the base version limited to the United States, also lowering the price of the international model.
Customers who have already purchased the new Kindle International, and paid $ 279, receive a $ 20 voucher to spend on their online store purchases, preferably on books.
Remember that the international version differs from the United States Kindle in the use of wireless connection. As the Whispernet network is only available in the country, the international version ensures connection to the store from 3G mobile networks. Amazon guarantees that the download of books is free but that «other accesses» can be taxed, without ever making it clear what accesses are and what fees to pay.
The company has also just opened up a new possibility for computer users who already have a Kindle or who have not yet had the opportunity to purchase it, the Kindle for PC. The software, still in beta, can be downloaded for free and allows you to read books formatted for Kindle on the PC.
The software had already been made available for the iPhone and iPod Touch, being one of the most downloaded applications from the App Store.
The application allows you to synchronize with the Kindle, guaranteeing the freedom for the user to read the books on any platform they want, without losing notes and indicating the bookmark of the page they were reading.
There are currently more than 360,000 books adapted to Amazon’s eBook format, an offer that has helped popularize the Kindle among a wide audience, attracted not only by technology but also by the savings achieved in the purchase of books, which can exceed 50 % compared to paper editions.
The Kindle for PC was demonstrated at the presentation of Windows 7 in New York and takes advantage of the Touch technology included in the operating system, although it is also compatible with Windows XP and Vista.
