After threatening to pull out of the People’s Republic following hacks on its systems, internet search giant Google is likely to make good on its warning and is preparing to shutdown its operations in China according to an insider at the company who spoke to the Wall Street Journal last week.

Google Search is one of the last major international internet services accessible in China after the government in that country banned Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and several other sites in 2009, making them inaccessible to local internet users. (more…)

Within months of launching the Kindle and Kindle Global Wireless service in over 100 countries outside of the USA, Amazon this morning announced the launch of the larger-screen Kindle DX internationally. Amazon says that Kindle DX with Global Wireless is available for pre-order starting today for $489 (about R3500) at www.amazon.com/kindledx and ships 19 January.

With 2.5 times the surface area of Kindle’s 6-inch display Kindle DX’s larger 9.7-inch electronic paper display has more area for graphic-rich content like newspapers and magazines. The larger and more competent  E Ink screen and more memory (3.3GB) are the only real differences between the DX and regular Kindle, however.

Amazon says the international launch of the Kindle has been a huge success with a number of orders already delivered in 130 countries, including South Africa, since the launch in October 2009. The Kindle faces growing competition in the ebook reader space with many new releases approaching the market, including Barnes & Noble’s Nook, existing devices from Sony and a looming tablet device from Apple.

The Kindle Store now has more than 400 000 books, including 96 of 112 New York Times Bestsellers, which are typically $9.99 (around R75). More than 50 000 books have been added to the Kindle Store in just the last three months.

The international version of Amazon’s Kindle ebook reader started shipping today, bringing the product to over 100 countries outside of the USA. I’ve tried to cover all of the questions people may have about the device:

Cost and ordering
The international Kindle sells for $279 (around R2100) and shipping to South Africa is billed at an additional $20 (about R130). Delivery to SA, says Amazon, should take 2 to 7 days. However, be aware that you are likely to be billed for VAT and customs duties when the device lands in your country. The total price of the Kindle is therefore likely to be around the R2600 mark once everything has been factored in – Amazon says it should not cost more than that.

The only way to get a new international Kindle is to buy it from Amazon and have it shipped to you.

Wireless delivery of books, newspapers and other content is included in the price of publications (about $9.99 or R75 for newly released books) and will work in any country that supports it, so you can buy books while traveling and not have to worry about data costs. This is exclusive to international Kindle users – the American, CDMA-version Kindle’s wireless connection only allows for free delivery in the US. An additional $1.99 is charged elsewhere.

Here is an interactive map of countries that have support for Kindle Wireless.

Localisation
The international Kindle ships with a US plug adapter, so you will need a converter to use this in South Africa. However, the Kindle also ships with a USB cable that is used to both transfer data to and from the device and charge it. The Kindle uses a standard USB ‘micro-b’ adapter, so you can also use any standard-compliant third-party plug or adapter. (more…)

Some months ago the media in South Africa widely reported on Amazon.com changing its shipping policies to no longer ship to South Africa. A couple of posts on this blog explored that. Turns out the media was wrong for the most part.
(more…)

Last week I posted about Amazon’s decision to no longer post parcels to South Africa. I drew no conclusions and made no suggestions or insinuations. Just asked questions and promised to follow up, with sprinklings of speculation, largely outlining my doubt that the SAPO is solely to blame for the decision by Amazon. If the comments attached to my previous post are anything to go by then it seems there is now a perception out there that my intention was to father a conspiracy theory. This is not true. I have fathered two human children and my fair share of nonsense – but no conspiracy theories involving WantItAll. So here’s the deal…
(more…)