I'm planning on buying this soon. I remember reading up that if one were to buy a Japanese E-reader (it would have dictionary support+reading support/look up readings). I can't seem to find the past threads about this(linking them would help me out). I want to buy it within 1-2 weeks(want to start reading a lot soon).

Thanks in advance guys!

P.S. good video and he explains that kindle 3 doesn't support a lot of features that us learners need

http://forum.koohii.com/showthread.php?tid=8749

Here you go!

I'm really hoping that they'll release a software update for the kindle that will improve Japanese support now that they've finally signed up some Japanese publishers. That being said, I've no idea how it compares to other E-readers since I chose it based on the fact that I had a shit-load of Amazon vouchers.

Also, don't forget that someone said you need a Japanese credit card to buy books for a Japanese Sony e-reader.

Edit: The new kindle doesn't support manga as well as some of the older ones because you can no longer zoom in on images for some reason.

Splatted Wrote:I'm really hoping that they'll release a software update for the kindle that will improve Japanese support now that they've finally signed up some Japanese publishers. That being said, I've no idea how it compares to other E-readers since I chose it based on the fact that I had a shit-load of Amazon vouchers.

Also, don't forget that someone said you need a Japanese credit card to buy books for a Japanese Sony e-reader.

Edit: The new kindle doesn't support manga as well as some of the older ones because you can no longer zoom in on images for some reason.

Credit card? ah man. I at least putting pdf files should be alright but what I'm really looking for is the dictionary feature/furigana support.

It's driving me insane that I can't get an e-reader with decent Japanese support.

TheVinster Wrote:It's driving me insane that I can't get an e-reader with decent Japanese support.

Yea I'm still researching before I buy anything. The only way you can get good Jp support is if you buy it form Japan (or import)

Going to buy a kindle touch this week(still researching) but as long as it can display random pdfs(and it does support japanese text, I should be good). I also looked up that some kindles support audio reading books(that would be amazing if that applies to Japanese too). I'll have to double check but looks like I'll either get kindle 4 touch or kindle dx or kindle fire.

If you ever intend to read manga, id recommend the DX. I have a kindle 3 keyboard. Ive tried a kindle touch, and its pretty much similar except touch. Kindle fire would probably be better at zooming in quickly though, and therefore wouldnt make reading manga so annoying. But for reading books and such 6" screen is fine.

ta12121 Wrote:Going to buy a kindle touch this week(still researching) but as long as it can display random pdfs(and it does support japanese text, I should be good). I also looked up that some kindles support audio reading books(that would be amazing if that applies to Japanese too). I'll have to double check but looks like I'll either get kindle 4 touch or kindle dx or kindle fire.

If you're going to be reading a lot of PDFs, the DX might be a better choice than the Touch (I have a 3rd gen Kindle Keyboard, but the Keybaord and the Touch seem to be mainly the same besides the touch feature). My Kindle's great for txt, mobi, etc, but most PDFs are too tiny to read unless I zoom in a lot.

I would NOT recommend buying a Kindle yet for Japanese text.

A few months ago, Amazon announced plans to released the Japanese Kindle in April.
The difficult part is getting publishers onboard. The Japanese publishers are dragging
their feet and REALLY don't want to move into e-books.

Amazon tried last year to start a Japanese kindle store and couldn't reach an
agreement with Japanese publishers. I wouldn't be surprised if this April launch
will be delayed again.

Also, the Japanese industry wants to move to EPUB 3.0, which supports nearly all the features of japanese font typography. Kanji will looking PERFECT in EPUB 3.0 and it maintains the same quality no matter how large you make the font (i.e. there won't be any pixelization).

On the other hand, reading scanned manga on the Kindle is OK, but not great (and gets really pixelated when you zoom in).

Also, Rakuten (one of the largest e-tailers in Japan) purchased Kobo (they make e-readers).
Considering that Japanese people prefer Japanese brands, I wouldn't be surprised if Rakuten will rule the future e-book market in Japan.

Anyway, I'd advise waiting until Amazon at least released the Kindle in Japan.
There's no guarantee that an American Kindle will be able to access the Japanese Kindle store.

Here's an article about Rakuten's plans for Kobo:

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/business/T120116005002.htm

Some highlights:

"The domestic market for electronic book readers is likely to sharply expand as Rakuten Inc. plans to market cheaper e-readers as early as this spring, aiming to increase e-book sales by popularizing a low-priced e-reader."

"The Kobo e-reader allows Japanese text layouts such as vertical writing. Rakuten plans to sell the device for less than 10,000 yen."

"However, Amazon's contract states the U.S. online retailer retains the right to decide the sales price of e-books--which provoked a strong reaction from publishers in Japan."

"[If Amazon holds the right,] we'll barely [gain enough profits] to pay royalties to authors," a publishing company official said.

"Amazon also asked the publishers for copyright controls to accelerate the digitizing process."

"In Japan, authors hold copyrights, while publishers only have the right to publish books."

"Amazon's requests have created a sense of distrust among publishers. "[Amazon] forces us to adopt the American way," a publishing industry source said."

blackbrich Wrote:If you ever intend to read manga, id recommend the DX. I have a kindle 3 keyboard. Ive tried a kindle touch, and its pretty much similar except touch. Kindle fire would probably be better at zooming in quickly though, and therefore wouldnt make reading manga so annoying. But for reading books and such 6" screen is fine.

I was reading up that DX handles pdf 100%. So what you read on your computer will be excactly how it shows up on your e-reader

chamcham Wrote:I would NOT recommend buying a Kindle yet for Japanese text.

A few months ago, Amazon announced plans to released the Japanese Kindle in April.
The difficult part is getting publishers onboard. The Japanese publishers are dragging
their feet and REALLY don't want to move into e-books.

Amazon tried last year to start a Japanese kindle store and couldn't reach an
agreement with Japanese publishers. I wouldn't be surprised if this April launch
will be delayed again.

Also, the Japanese industry wants to move to EPUB 3.0, which supports nearly all the features of japanese font typography. Kanji will looking PERFECT in EPUB 3.0 and it maintains the same quality no matter how large you make the font (i.e. there won't be any pixelization).

On the other hand, reading scanned manga on the Kindle is OK, but not great (and gets really pixelated when you zoom in).

Also, Rakuten (one of the largest e-tailers in Japan) purchased Kobo (they make e-readers).
Considering that Japanese people prefer Japanese brands, I wouldn't be surprised if Rakuten will rule the future e-book market in Japan.

Anyway, I'd advise waiting until Amazon at least released the Kindle in Japan.
There's no guarantee that an American Kindle will be able to access the Japanese Kindle store.

Thanks for the info. I did read up on how amazon wants to release it in Japan in April but it will most likely get delayed (just like you said). I could wait, I don't need to rush to buy an e-reader but it will help me a lot (reading on the bus to work or reading during my break or reading while on the way to school,etc,etc).

So I should wait and see more e-readers come out in Japan? Or should I import an e-reader from Japan (Sony e-reader I hear supports Japanese text,vertical text,furigana-support,dictionary support but that's the Japanese Version). I pretty much only want to use it for Japanese, so it makes sense I wait and see what gets offered.