Kindle Apps Blog

Anywhere Stopwatch is a simple Kindle tool to help track your time for whatever reason. Whether you want to time your exercise, or something in the oven, you can use Anywhere Stopwatch to monitor it.

The graphics are easy to see, and you can choose from two different themes. The Kindle’s 5-way toggle button is used to navigate through the application. You can choose to show the time, or laps. You can start or stop the clock pretty easily by just selecting the option. Everything you need is on one screen.

The clock keeps going as you read, so you don’t get interrupted or have any kind of audio reminders. I wish it had some sort of indicator to mark progress without having to actually go into the application. I think many users would appreciate a beep or some other audio signal.

I think Stopwatch and Timer has better graphics and more features. Considering the purposes of these applications, you can’t really go wrong with either one.

Anywhere Stopwatch also includes a timer and dial that shows elapsed time. You can save your times to review later. I don’t think most people would want to run with their Kindles just to use the stopwatch, but it is quite handy on exercise equipment and for timing your kids or friends.

Nickel Buddy also has a collection of exercise apps: Anywhere Legs, Anywhere Abs, and My Yoga Studio. They’re all great apps and have great reviews. If the audio issue can be resolved, than these would be even better

One tip to make note of is: refer to the Help option in the menu. Anywhere Stopwatch is pretty easy to navigate overall, but there are some helpful keyboard shortcuts and explanations of what is what that are there if you need them.

Ed Pegg

“Anywhere Stopwatch is the better product, mainly due to superior graphics. Take a look at the screenshots. These are believable timers and stopwatches.

Kindle has a built in clock — just press the Menu button and look at the top. However, it would have been very nice if an actual large clock could have been included in this program. Also, the timer lacks a sound function, which is likely more a fault of Kindle programming restrictions. ”

Just Me

“This semester at college I am taking a speech class and have to time my speeches as I practice. This app works PERFECTLY for that. I needed a timer that I can start and stop without looking at it. It is simple to use and keeps me on time.”

Have you always wanted to learn Spanish, but just don’t have the time and money to take a course on it? 24-7 Spanish Basic Phrases and Vocabulary are worthwhile, inexpensive alternatives. There are also German, French, and Italian editions as well.  All of these applications come with a basic phrases and vocabulary version.

24-7 Spanish includes a study list, multiple choice, flashcards, write in’s, and a puzzle to familiarize you with introductory level Spanish words.  I found it helpful to review the Study List before anything else. So once you learn these phrases,, you can hold your own with greetings, get to know you’s, and more.

One of the most important things to learn in another language is how to order from a menu.  You’ll find food and drink terms in the vocabulary edition of the 24-7 Spanish series. Knowing what you’re ordering is a good thing!

I like the interactive nature of this tool. It makes you use the words and phrases as opposed to just memorizing them. With the puzzle, you actually fill in the words in a hangman style set up. Maybe future editions of the Kindle will include audio, so this tool can be used to learn how to pronounce the phrases as well.

As far as the graphics go, they’re pretty intuitive. You can navigate through the menus with the toggle button, except for when you actually have to write in the words. For those, you’ll use the Kindle’s keyboard. Press the menu button to go back to the categories page whenever you need to.

Vocabulary and Basic Phrases are set up the same way, and include flash cards, multiple choice, puzzles, and write in’s. The major differences are the categories, and that the vocabulary one is just words as opposed to phrases. I think they’re both useful to have because they apply to different situations.

Sheila

” As a beginning spanish student, I really appreciate all the different techniques used to help me learn the words. Makes the learning fun and gamelike. Well done!”

I thought it might be good to hear from a language teacher’s point of view:

Jeremy Aldrich

“This program was well suited to my Kindle 3, and I appreciated that an effort was made to include some regionally distinct vocabulary (marked as LAm, Mex, or Sp). I’m not sure I’d call it “fun” as the product description does, but this is a well-thought-out program with a decent amount and variety of vocabulary, at a reasonable price. I hope there will be more like it for reviewing higher-level vocabulary and vocabulary in other languages. ”

Sticky Notes is a simple note taking tool for your Kindle.  Comparable apps are Notepad and TakeNote.  they’re all the same price: just under a dollar.

Sticky Notes is pretty easy to use.  you can add new notes by pressing selecting new note from the menu, or alt + n on the keyboard.  I like the zoom feature the best.  The notes are pretty small, but you can zoom them to full size by selecting it from the menu, or alt+ z.

All of the commands are logical.  That makes the interface intuitive.  The text is easy to see.  If you need to make the font bigger, make your notes bold or italic, or use serif or sans serif font, select preferences from the menu.  The larger font size helps me see the text a lot better.

I often see books that I want to read, then I never can remember the author or the title when I need it.  Sticky Notes is a good way to have a reminder.

I know a lot of people who like to make notes in their books or jot down memorable quotes.  This is a good tool to use for that purpose as well.

The only real advantage that Sticky Notes has over Notepad is that it records the time that you write your note.  You can turn this feature on or off.  If you make notes over a long period of time, it’d be kind of neat to go back and see what you wrote awhile ago.

Ed Pegg

“With Sticky Notes, you can type out any notes you like, very easily, and when you’re ready to save, the Back button is all that you need to save. You can zoom in on a note if you want to have a full page to type on.

Nine notes show up at once, and each note can have a block paragraph. There is no need to put in Titles as in Notepad. ”

Interesting point about Microsoft Office in the following review…

L. Schaefer

“99 cents for this, or $80-$140 to purchase MS OneNote or upgrade my Windows package. Hmmmm. I got Sticky Notes to help with outlining a project and so far it has been terrific. It allows me to do just what I wanted–make a quick note on a particular topic and be able to see those notes lined up next to each other. ”

I don’t really have any strong preference for one notetaking app over another.  They all have their strengths and weaknesses.  No matter which one you pick, you can’t really go wrong.

Stopwatch and Timer as a title says it all.  This is a Kindle version of a stopwatch and timer.  They both are great tools to have.  My thoughts on how this app can be used best is for exercise.  For running laps, it would be cumbersome to carry a Kindle around, but if you’re on a treadmill, elliptical, or a bike, it comes in handy.  The stopwatch counts your time and tracks your speed for you.

The timer can be used the same way, but it can also be used to track cooking time, or even scheduled reading time.  When I get too engrossed in a good book, I let time get away from me.

The graphics are easy to see and navigation is pretty intuitive.  The app is actually almost too sophisticated graphic wise for the purposes it serves.

As for duration, you can customize how long you want the app to track, or you can use the preset 1 minute, 2 minute, 5 minute, etc times that are provided.  Access the presets by pressing the “menu” key.

Be warned though, this app does not alert you via audio.  So, you have to check it often.  However, the good news is, that even if you let your Kindle go to sleep, the stopwatch or timer will still track your time for you.

As with many of the Kindle games and applications, there is a handy guide in case you have trouble accessing any part of Stopwatch and Timer.  This is easily accessible from the app’s main page.

One particularly helpful shortcut that I got from the guide, is to use the space bar to pause the timer.  That way you can avoid overusing the 5-way toggle button.

After looking over the reviews, I definitely agree with all statements that imply that this app needs some kind of beep or audio signal.  The question is, can this be done with the Kindle?  The Kindle does have a text to speech option, so I’m sure it is doable, but the biggest question in my mind is, how doable?  The product description was honest about this issue, so I’m thinking it might be that the Kindle doesn’t really lend itself to audio very well, yet.

Some kind of pop up or notification would definitely be helpful as an alternative to audio.

The following reviewer has a good suggestion for another stopwatch app that might be worth considering if you want to shop around.

Ed Pegg

“Though it’s much the same, Anywhere Stopwatch has better looking graphics, and the number fonts look better and more substantial. Anywhere Stopwatch looks more like a stopwatch than a cartoon with a small text clock. ”

If you use Google Calendar, you’ll recognize the interface in the Calendar Kindle app. You can set appointments in day, or month view. You can even set the frequency of the events, and set them to recur each week.

There is a rather in depth help manual included. It is a great reference guide if you need it.

Calendar includes backgrounds and headings. On special days such as holidays or birthdays, they’re marked with an “H” or a balloon. They looked kind of dark to me. They make a nice touch, but considering the greyscale Kindle platform, I’m not sure how much flair they really add to the calendar.

Press Menu to get where you need to go or review the help section. The 5-way toggle button is your primary mode of navigation, but the Help guide provides keyboard shortcuts.

The other calendar app for Kindle worth considering is Calendar Pro. It is simpler than Calendar, and a lot cleaner graphics wise. If you prefer cute little add ons and such, go with Calendar. If you want pure functionality and simplicity, go with Calendar Pro.

Calendar Pro’s Help section is a quick reference guide, and includes all of the keyboard shortcuts that you need.

As for the calendar itself, it is similar in set up to Calendar in that it has day, month, and year view. The biggest edge that Calendar has over Calendar Pro is recurring events. Many reviewers have mentioned this, and hopefully it recurring events will be integrated into the next version of Calendar Pro.  Keep an eye out for updates!

Another good suggestion, is syncing with Outlook or Google Calendar.  I’m really not sure how this would work with the Kindle setup, but it is a good suggestion, especially since so many people use either of those programs.

Calendar Pro’s day view is kind of small. It was hard for me to see the hour slots. However, the month view is awesome. It is big, and has a huge marker to help you navigate it.

Both apps also have an agenda section where you can make notes. You can set Calendar to remind you of your appointments. As crazy as my schedule is, that is a must have feature for me.

Marilyn Bouldin

“I just got the program today and it’s the best one I’ve tried so far and I’ve tried several. My only suggestion is that I wish I could update on my laptop as well, better keyboard and I could do it faster. I know I will get faster at it and I mainly bought it to help consolidate by college books, notes and calendar. It helps with the books, even though the book list is limited. I save my notes on my laptop and download to my kindle to study”

In addition to serving as an e-reader and game platform, the Kindle also can serve as a useful tool for everyday needs such as unit conversions.  The conversion tool is called Converter.

I was impressed with the types of conversions it includes.  It even has Pressure conversions: paschal, bar, etc.  The average person probably never uses these, but I think they’re good to have if you are a scientist and need to work with them.

It always takes me a few minutes to remember how many teaspoons are in a tablespoon, or how many ounces are in a cup.  I like to bake goodies often, so this will be a quick and handy tool for me to use if I need it.

The complete units of measure list can be found from Converter’s Amazon page.  Some of them took me back to my high school chemistry days.

I think the interface needs a little work.  You have to use the Kindle’s 5-way toggle to maneuver around each section, and that can get cumbersome.  When you first open the application, it provides a list of keyboard shortcuts to use as an alternative.  They’re helpful, but I think they should be accessible somehow once you get into the conversions.  Maybe a menu option, or at the bottom of the page perhaps?

The font size is really big, which I am grateful for.  You can adjust the font size through the menu.  Aside from the navigation flow, it works great.

Check out the Converter reviews.  They provide good insight on how the tool works and provide really good suggestions for future improvements.

Michael P. Gallagher

“It’s a pretty simple process – you start with the “From” unit of measurement, such as volume, and type in your base starting point. Then you change what you are trying to convert “to” and your Kindle immediately spits out the answer.

About the only drawback to me is you have to use the “A” or “J” keys to change the conversion type – such as length – and the S, K, D, or L keys to change the “from” or “to” parameters; I had to write those hints down until I had performed about two dozen calculations and didn’t have to refer to it again. That does not take away from the program, but is more an inherent limitation in the Kindle’s keyboard.”

B. Bordi

“I purchased this product today and it seems quite easy to use, however, one of the first things I attempted to do was convert a negative temperature fahrenheit to celsius. I could find no way to enter a negative number. I contacted the creator, 7 Dragons, and was told that negative numbers are not supported. No big deal, a minor limitation for what seems to be a well valued product (99cents).”

There are two calculator apps on the Kindle that are good, and have their respective strengths and weaknesses.

For this post, I will focus on Calculator, by 7 Dragons. It is easy to see. The graphics are good, and large enough for someone who has vision loss. It took me a minute to figure out that there are keyboard shortcuts for the mathematical symbols such as add, subtract, sine, cosine, etc.

This app gives you more than the basic calculator because it includes the trigonometric functions: sine, cosine, tangent, etc. Not sure who uses these besides students and mathematicians, but they’re there for use for whoever needs it.

Comparing this app to Mobigloo’s Easy Calculator App, Calculator has an easier keyboard set up. The keys on the calculator are easier to see and are white with black letters. So they have better contrast than Easy Calculator’s grey, and smaller keys.

The thing I like better about Easy Calculator is that you can see the whole transaction like it is written on a piece of paper. So, when you do 5×5, it shows that, and puts a line underneath it to show the answer. This is good because that way, you can make sure you put in the right numbers.

Both apps include a history button. Hitting the enter key on the Kindle is the “equal” key on the calculator for both apps. That is an obvious choice.

Overall, Calculator is definitely not as fast as punching keys on a regular calculator, but compared to a computer version, it is much more portable. It is good to not have to carry so many little gadgets in my purse because I can just access it on my Kindle whenever I need it.

Brenda Fernandez

“It provides all kinds of operations of a normal calculator an even some of the more advances “scientific ones” like trigonometric functions, exponents, roots, 1/X, etc. It’s very user friendly and the redesigned keyboard layout for typing numbers works pretty well and lets the user input numbers much faster and more easily than with the standard Alt+Letter or Sym key.
It has memory functions very well implemented and supports seeing history of the last 10 operations and values stored in memory. I find that really useful. “

Notepad is a great quite note taking tool for the Kindle. I use it for my “to do” list, but it can be a quick way to note interesting tidbits on the go, grocery lists, etc.

Another handy use for Notepad that would fit right into the Kindle’s purposes is creating a book list. I see books all the time that I would love to read, but I have a hard time keeping up with their titles and authors when it comes time to purchase them. I also have a tendency to lose paper.

When you first get started, you’ll find a welcome note that tells you the keyboard shortcuts to tasks such as saving the note, scrolling up and down, deleting the note, and more. I think it is a very helpful quick reference guide.

You will also find a note where you can provide contact information in case your Kindle gets lost. This is a really handy tool, but I’d be scared my Kindle might get into the wrong hands.

Notepad is pretty easy to navigate. I was able to move the 5-way cursor around to get in and out of the note. The Kindle’s keyboard can be awkward, but it works fine for short notes.

Kathleen B

“Before, when I had a brainstorm, I had to open the browser, pray Google Docs was wanting to work, and squint to read what I’d just wrote. Notepad makes things much, much easier. ”

One thing that took me a few minutes to figure out was how to move to the next line in my “to do” list note. But, then I found the “return” button on the bottom right hand side of the keyboard.

I like that the text in the notes are easy to read. The navigation buttons are not too bad either.

You can search your notes, back them up in case they get lost, and go to your most recent notes. To access these options, just press “Menu.”

One big improvement that I’d like to see is the ability to access Notepad while I’m reading a book. The Kindle does have annotation options, but if you’re out and see something you want to remember, but don’t want to have to get out of the book you’re reading, you can quickly make a note of it on Notepad.

Kindle Calendar

Update 2: Finally there is a proper Kindle Calendar app that works like a proper calendar should without having to resort to workarounds like annotations. You can download it here!

Update: While we’re still waiting for fully functional Kindle Calendar application you can download this Kindle Calendar Book which comes close enough in terms of functionality.

Even before KDK was announced people wanted to use Kindle to organize their lives better. So “Kindle Calendars” were some popular eBooks that sold on Amazon Kindle Marketplace. With Kindle lacking any interactive features at that time these were merely eBooks with a page for every day of the week. You could then type notes for every day and these notes would be backed up to Amazon’s online servers.

While this provided security in case your calendar was lost, it would not show you your upcoming appointments in any easy way and it wouldn’t synchronize with any calendar services like Microsoft Exchange based corporate or personal mail servers, MobileMe, Google Calendars etc.

With Kindle SDK out all these features would be easy to implement. Also this app can very well be free since calendar isn’t likely to cause a lot of internet traffic unless your schedule is extremely busy.

I would bet that Calendar App would be among the first ones to appear.

While I would love to read any kind of blog on my Kindle I’m not that sure that this is going to happen.

While the application wouldn’t be that hard to create, it will pretty much render Kindle Blog publishing dead, since why would anyone want to pay for each individual blog when they can just pay for an app (even if it will be a recurring monthly subscription because of the amount of Internet traffic it will generate) and get all of the blogs including ones that are not available in the Kindle Store because their authors don’t want/care/can’t or just plain wouldn’t put them on there.

Although I doubt that blog subscriptions generate a noticeable porting of revenue compared to book sales and newspaper and magazine subscriptions the issue can cause bad publicity fallout for Amazon either way.

If Amazon would chose to block all such applications from it’s app store that will surely anger the user-base and cause bad publicity. Worse yet it will provide competitors with an easy opportunity to score a feature that Kindle wouldn’t match.

On the other hand should Amazon chose to release such an application, it might anger bloggers who submitted their content to Kindle Store and perhaps earned sizable income from doing so. I have no doubt that some blogs can boast more Kindle subscriptions than brick-and-mortar paper periodicals that are also available on Kindle. Should Kindle RSS reader application become a reality everyone except the most lazy individuals will likely cancel their subscription and switch to the app. This will result in revenue loss by bloggers and might cause some retaliatory bad PR. Although the number of begrudged people would be much less than in the first scenario these few people because of having popular blogs would have louder voices.

Despite the fact that personally I have some blogs published in Kindle Store I would prefer Amazon to go the open way. However I don’t know if it would be the case. Technically the app can be considered a “generic reader” that is explicitly prohibited by the Kindle SDK guidelines.

While most of the blogs can be read via Kindle’s built in browser the experience is so inferior to using the Kindle Store subscription (mostly because browser takes forever to start and navigate to the proper page) that I doubt that many people actually use it.