Kindle Gets Business-Friendly With PDF Reader, Longer Battery Life

Amazon's Kindle e-reader has become a more business-friendly device with its new ability to read native PDF files and a longer battery life.

Amazon on Tuesday said its newest generation Kindle e-reader can now be used to read PDF files in their native format.

Such a move could be a big boost to business users who now can have the ability to download documents in the PDF format while away from the office. This would make it easy for many users to access the most up-to-date sales brochures, marketing materials, technical manuals, and other business documents while away from the office.

This might also help the Kindle compete for business customers with more business-friendly e-readers coming to market such as the QUE proReader from Plastic Logic or the Android-based Alex e-reader from Spring Design.

To access personal or professional documents, Kindle users can have PDFs e-mailed to their Kindle e-mail address or download them via a USB connection.

If desired, PDF documents can also be quickly converted to the Kindle format by typing the word "convert" in the subject of the e-mail when sending the documents to their Kindle e-mail address.

Also new for the Kindle is an update to its firmware to improve power management, which Amazon said results in an increase in battery life by up to 85 percent. Amazon claims this means that the Kindle e-reader can be left on for up to seven days with the wireless turned on, or up to two weeks with the wireless turned off.

The PDF reading capability and improved battery life are both available to purchasers of the latest Kindle models as a firmware update automatically delivered via Whispernet wireless. Some earlier versions of the Kindle can also be automatically updated for native PDF support.

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