Along with the launch of the device was the introduction of Kindle Direct Publishing, the self-publishing platform for authors. The Kindle 2 was an improvement to the first-generation Kindle. It still had no lights and had a keyboard and some buttons, but it had an updated design and longer battery life. Next came the Kindle DX, which looked odd. The device appeared huge and had a rounded keyboard at the bottom. Kindle 3 or the Kindle Keyboard, however, was not much different from the older versions aforementioned. It had rounded corners and still had a keyboard, but it was significantly faster. The basic Kindle had many iterations after that, which continued until Kindle 11 in 2021. This version is so much better, with 16 GB storage and 300 ppi display, and it looks far unrecognizable from its first inception. On the other hand, Kindle Voyage came out in 2014, which had a feature called PagePress that allows turning pages simply by pressing buttons. Four years later, however, it was discontinued. In 2016, another Kindle variant was put on the market: Kindle Oasis. The device is marketed as a luxury item, and the last major iteration was released way back in 2019. However, little to no updates have been given to the device. After all these countless product launches, Kindle is now reduced to three levels: basic Kindle, Kindle Paperwhite, and Kindle Oasis. If you’re planning to buy your first one and unsure of which to choose, here’s a useful guide. To this day, the pricing scheme set by Apple and the publishers remains. Though there have been a lot of other ereader brands that popped up in the past, some flopped really hard, such as Nook and Sony. And while some brands are catching up, like Kobo, they have achieved nowhere near what Kindle has. Without Kindle, ebooks may never have taken off at all. The brand’s success is immense that it also churned spin-off products, such as Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle Unlimited, Kindle Singles, Kindle Short Reads, Kindle Vella, etc., which are profitable on their own. Kindle Direct Publishing, in particular, is a hit among self-published authors, as they earn a living using the platform. One thing’s for sure, though: The Kindle is definitely here to stay.
