Kindle for iPhone reaches a wider audience

Stephen Withers
Tuesday, 15 December 2009 03:48

IT Industry - Development

Amazon's Kindle for iPhone app is now available in more than 60 countries, reflecting the wider availability of the Kindle hardware.

Amazon expanded the availability of the Kindle e-Book reader to more than 100 countries in October, but distribution of the Kindle for iPhone app lagged behind that development.

But now the company has announced that Kindle for iPhone is available in more than 60 countries, including Australia.

The free app allows iPhone and iPod touch owners to purchase and read the "hundreds of thousands" of books available in the Kindle Store, and to access any e-books they previously purchased as long as they are still available on Amazon's servers.

The Kindle technology supports bookmark synchronisation, so it's no trouble to start reading a book on a Kindle at home, take in a few more pages on a PC at lunchtime, and then read another couple of chapters on an iPhone on the train home.

Other features of Kindle for iPhone include adjustable font sizes, notes and highlights, and support for full colour (especially relevant to children's books and graphic novels).

"We are excited to make the Kindle for iPhone App available to iPhone and iPod touch users in more than 60 countries, allowing them to access the vast selection of the most popular books, all available wirelessly from the Kindle Store," said Ian Freed, vice president, Amazon Kindle.

"The Kindle for iPhone App is the perfect companion for customers who own a Kindle or Kindle DX, and a great way for customers around the world to download and read books even if they don’t yet have a Kindle," he added.

Kindle for PC is still in beta, with Mac and BlackBerry versions "coming soon".