Amazon has announced a new, cheaper, reduced-price Amazon Kindle. The new ad-supported Kindle with Special Offers, as it is known, is identical in hardware to the wifi Kindle – in fact it is a wi-fi Kindle, only it displays advertising along the bottom of the home screen, along with “sponsored screensavers” (which users get to help pick using Amazon’s ‘Hot or Not’ style Admash. In exchange for letting Amazon have your eyeballs in this distinctly Google-esque manner, you get your wireless Kindle with ads for $25.00 less – $114.00 instead of $139.00. Worth it?
That really depends on your point of view. We have to admit that some of the offers are pretty sweet, such as buy a $20 Amazon gift card for only $10, or 6 Audible books (which can play on your Kindle) for only $6.00.
Then there are the sponsored screensavers. Says Amazon of their sponsored screensavers program, “Our goal is to display sponsored screensavers that you want to see. That’s why we’ve created a free Kindle app and website (coming soon) called AdMash. Anyone who’s interested can download AdMash and help pick future screensavers. Two prospective screensavers show up side-by-side, and you pick the one you find most attractive. The ones preferred most by customers qualify to become sponsored screensavers. You can also set your personal Kindle Screensaver Preferences to give us hints on the style and types of sponsored screensavers you’d like to see on your Kindle. For example, you can indicate that you’d like to see more or fewer screensavers that include elements such as landscapes and scenery, architecture, travel images, photography, and illustrations. Together, AdMash voting and Kindle Screensaver Preferences help us select the most attractive and engaging sponsored screensavers to display on your Kindle.”
An interesting idea, to be sure. However, while this explains the “screensavers” part, it doesn’t really explain the “sponsored” part.
A little digging on our part uncovered Amazon’s explanation that “Kindle’s sponsored screensavers are specially-designed display advertisements that take advantage of Kindle’s high-contrast, no-glare electronic-ink display.”
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Kindle with Special Offers Sponsored Screen Savers Advertisement for Oil of Olay Cream
Want a Kindle with Special Offers? You can (pre)order one at the link below; they will be available on May 3rd.
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