If you have been following the gadget market, you have probably seen the new Amazon Kindle DX and heard all the hype around it. I still remember the first day I got my Kindle 1.0. It was supposed to just an e-book reader, but it turned out to have a few hidden features (including GPS). The new Kindles are also capable of telling you where you are but Amazon has not gone out of its way to tout Kindle’s GPS capability. In reality, Kindle owners can use a fully-fledged GPS on their device. Amazon has yet to incorporate cool GPS features into Kindle, but the opportunity is there. For instance, what if you could send your location on a map to your friends and colleagues from your Kindle without having to jump through hoops? How about Amazon developing GPS applications for Kindle (similar to those of iPhone) that let you find a bookstore or coffee shop near you when you are on the move?
Amazon does not charge for Whispernet wireless service, so I am sure it wants to keep the load on the wireless network more manageable. At the same time, I am sure some people would pay a monthly fee to take advantage of their Kindle’s GPS capability. Amazon Kindle may be an e-book reader but it’s a connected device which means it can be used to accomplish a lot of things other mobile devices are capable of. Amazon must have included the GPS capability for a reason. It’s maybe time for Amazon to build on its momentum and introduce some game-changing software innovations. Will we see these features on Kindle 3.0? We shall wait and see.
