Kindle has been around for a while now. We have already had 2 generations of Amazon Kindles in the past couple of years, and the device has come a long way in the process. At the same time, when you see what a certain other company has done with its own gadgets, it’s hard not to be jealous. Apple is one of the most innovative companies in the world, but you don’t have to be a genius to realize that. All you have to do is take a look at what it has done with its iPod and iPhone product lines. A while ago, Apple realized that it’s much better to focus on the software side of things to have success in the long run. To its credit, Amazon has also started to focus a bit on software (e.g. Kindle app for iPhone). But we still haven’t seen any indications that Amazon is planning to follow in Apple’s footsteps to develop a SDK of its own.

A Kindle SDK would go a long way towards making Kindle a top gadget for a very long time to come. Unfortunately, the current Kindle code is not anything that would excite programmers. There have been many Kindle hacks and small little 3rd party extensions in the past, but Amazon has not made it easy for programmers to develop their own enhancements for Kindle. It’s understandable that Amazon wants some degree of control over its gadget, but Kindle will never be truly great without a SDK. Who knows what kind of apps people will come up with once they have access to some sort of software development kit.

Let’s hope Amazon does take the chance and trust its community to take its device to the next level. Apple did.

Your take: what enhancement would you develop for Kindle if you had access to an iPhone-like SDK?

Kindle DX is certainly a great addition to the Kindle family. A lot of good things have happened with the DX. For starters, you get native support with PDF which is something a lot of us have been waiting for since day 1. The screen is much bigger, which makes it easier to read textbooks more conveniently. But as much as I like Amazon’s new device, the company seems to have missed a big chance to take Kindle to the next level.

Kindle DX is not a cheap gadget. It costs $489, which is not that affordable. At the same time, a lot of Kindle fans paid $360 to get Kindle 2.0 just a couple of months ago. Kindle DX’s release leaves a lot of these folks in a bind. I don’t know about you but spending $850+ on e-book readers is not something a lot of people can do. Amazon had a great opportunity to do to Kindle what Apple did to iPhone. But it seems we still have to wait a bit more.

Here are things I would have liked Amazon to tackle with this new Kindle:

• SDK: I have been a strong supporter for a SDK for Kindle. Amazon can’t have a dynamic platform without allowing its community to develop tools to enhance Kindle’s functionality. It could be that Amazon is working on a software platform behind the scenes, but sooner rather than later Amazon needs to let us Kindle owners take things in our own hands and develop software to enhance what Kindle has to offer.
• Promotions: Kindle DX seems to be Amazon’s way of reaching out to students. Why not give students an education discount? Others have been doing it successfully.
• Payment plan: I have seen Nintendo Wii, PS3, and digital cameras being sold with a flexible payment plan on Amazon. It’s still beyond me why Amazon is not offering the same flexible payment plans for Kindle.
• Rebate: as a customer it feels great to know that the company that I do business with is looking out for me. Considering that Kindle 2.0 was released in February, Amazon could have offered Kindle 2.0 owners an incentive to get on board with Kindle DX. We haven’t heard anything about that yet.
• Subscription Service: it’s about time Amazon developed a book subscription service for Kindle (e.g. read 30 books for $30 a month). Amazon may be confident about selling a lot of e-books, but that doesn’t mean it should ignore other ways to make content available to Kindle owners.
• Fashion: I know books are not supposed to be sexy. But companies such as Western Digital have proved that when you introduce fashion to the gadget business, you sell more units. Wouldn’t you love to see a blue or red Kindle DX? It’s not a big deal, but something Amazon could have entertained.
• Color Screen: I get a lot of flak for calling on Amazon to introduce a color screen Kindle. That wasn’t possible this time around, but it’s going to be a hit when Amazon does go for it.

There you have it. By no means am I trying to take anything away from Kindle DX. It’s a great gadget and is going to help Amazon go after other segments of the e-book market. At the same time, Amazon needs to keep the ball moving and think more long-term. Just take a look at Apple.

Your take: what features did you want to see on Kindle DX? What’s disappointed you about the device?

Many iPhone and iPod users talk about how the applications available for the iPhone platform has allowed them to get the most out of their device. I have argued here time and time again that Amazon will need similar capabilities to push Kindle to the next level. But the lack of a software development kit for Kindle has not kept creative publishers from developing simple solutions for the Kindle. Planner 2009, Calendar, and Notepad are three simple solutions that allow you to plan or keep track of things right on your Kindle.They are not earth shattering solutions, but can you blame the publisher?

These applications (if you can call them that) are not as sophisticated as iPhone or Android applications. But their existence does tell us that there is a need for third-party applications on Kindle. Amazon may have some of the best minds employed. But that doesn’t mean those guys are going to think of everything. Who would’ve guessed that we could have 20,000+ iPhone applications on the iTunes in such a short period of time? And Apple is getting paid for every single sale, which should encourage Amazon further. The need for third-party Kindle applications is real, and the sooner Amazon jumps on the bandwagon, the better off we all will be.

Your take: should Amazon allow developers to develop applications for Kindle?