Amazon has introduced a free Kindle app for Android-based smartphones and tablets. The application offers US readers access to over 620,000 books in the Kindle Store, including New York Times bestsellers and new releases.
Kindle’s Android app also supports Whispersync technology, which synchronizes content across various devices, such as the Kindle, BlackBerry, iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, Mac, PC and Android smartphones.
So, why choose Kindle for the Android?
Well, as Ed Hardy of Brighthand point outs, the Android OS version allows users to read books in full color, including children’s books, cookbooks, travel books, textbooks and graphic novels.
However, the Android version of the app does not support embedded audio and video, which is currently only available for readers with an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch.
Nevertheless, Jason Perlow of ZDNet reports that Kindle books read “quite well” on Android smartphone devices.
“I prefer to read them in landscape mode and with the second largest text size. This allows for easier page flipping and less eye-scanning of the content,” explained Perlow.
“[But] I’m really looking forward to seeing how Android for Kindle progresses as an application and how future devices will take advantage of it. Among the features promised for future versions of the app include in-book search capability, an in-App native Kindle Store interface, an [integrated] dictionary and image zoom.”
