Amazon Kindle Touch Lighted Cover
When you purchase your Kindle Touch (as with most devices like your IPads and mobile phones these days), you can choose from an array of options for cases or covers to protect your precious device. I decided not to get a screen protector since I would get a cover to protect the Kindle unit.
My criteria was to get a cover that affords sufficient protection from knocks (and other mishaps) and must look decent enough to me.
Browsing through the cover options available for the Kindle Touch, I came across the following cover:
It fulfilled the criteria plus it has a built-in light for reading in dim light! BUT at a price...at US$59.99 (~S$78), it is nearly 2/3 the cost of the Kindle Touch itself.
I spent time mulling over whether I should get it or a cheaper cover plus an additional clip-on reading light. I weight the pros and cons and decided to bite the bullet and get the Kindle Touch Lighted cover by Amazon.
What swayed the decision:
1. I definitely wanted to get an LED reading light to use with the Kindle Touch. The built-in LED light Amazon Lighted Touch Cover is a more elegant and compact option and it runs on the Kindle Touch's battery i.e. no need to buy more batteries in future for an external clip-on LED light. In addition to that, if I had gotten a separate clip-on reading light, there would be a greater chance that I would lose it too.
2. The build quality (at least from the website) looks much better than those offered by most 3rd parties
3. The cover looks more compact and elegant (see the simple lines) than other options I've seen and comes in Wine Red!.
In my earlier post, I did mention that I actually got it together with the Kindle Touch eReader itself so as to consolidate shipping using VPOST (3rd party shipper) to save costs. The Kindle Touch Lighted Cover came together with the 3-pin (UK) Kindle power plug in a separate package from the Kindle Touch itself.
The cost of shipping these 2 items was S$7.20 (This cost was due to consolidated shipping with the Kindle Touch eReader. You have to add S$13.40 base charge if this is the only package)
What was in the package:
As can be seen in the picture below, on the left is the cover itself (closed and viewed from the front) and on the right is a simple card which illustrates how to use the in-built reading light. The cover seems to be made of leather with rounded curves at the corners.
The left side of the cover feels like padded foam with the Kindle word inscribed. The right side of the cover is made from some sort of rubberised plastic case (some sort of exo-skeleton? haha) which is moulded with the grooves and curves to grip your Kindle Touch tightly. I suspect the 2 round points near the bottom is how the cover draws the power from the Kindle Touch's in-built battery to power the LED reading light.
The pic below shows the back view of the case (when closed). As you can see, the moulded cover has been covered with the same type of leather material as the front part of the cover.
Adding a cover will definitely add more bulk and weight to the Kindle Touch but I find it quite acceptable as it is still lighter than some paperback books.
However the cover is not built like a tank so don't expect that you can drop it from tall heights without the Kindle Touch suffering damage. It will protect it from minor mishaps and bumps but then the same can be said for most IPad2 and mobile phone covers.
The inbuilt LED reading light:
As you can see in the picture below, all you have to do to turn on the light is to flip out the arm in a clock wise direction.
The truest test I feel is to use it in total darkness to see if the light really works well. As you can see from the photo, readability all the way to the bottom of the page is very good. Though you might want to angle the cover to a more upright position to avoid shining the LED light straight into your eyes as it can be quite glaring.
Verdict: The design is well thought out, the cover is quite well built and the in-built LED reading light works well, even in pitch black darkness. I really like the fact that the in-built LED light runs on the Kindle Touch's battery instead of needing to replace batteries on a regular basis.
However, if you do get one, do be careful with the leather parts of the cover. Avoid placing it near sharp objects when you place it in your bag. I have some scratches and indentations on the leather cover probably from contact with my house-keys or other objects in my bag. Overall, I give it a rating of 4 out of 5 stars! I didn't give it a perfect score as I believe Amazon should price it lower than US$59.99 and the leather parts of the cover scratch a bit easily.
Price: US$59.99
Where to Get it: Amazon
Amazon Kindle UK (Type G) Power Adapter
The Kindle Touch does not include a power adapter (cos it charges by USB) so I decided to buy one. Of course, I could have just used any USB compatible power adapter that I currently have from my other devices. However, I decided to play it safe and order the official Amazon Kindle adapter as I wasn't sure of the current rating and didn't feel like taking a chance of accidentally damaging my Kindle. There are different variations to cater to the compatible electrical socket in your country. I chose the UK (Type G) as shown below:
It arrived in the same package as the Lighted Kindle Cover.
Below shows an angled view where you can see the USB slot:
Nothing fancy, it looks quite like most other USB power adapters.
To charge your Kindle, just connect the micro USB end of the USB cable (included with your Kindle) to the Kindle and the normal USB end to this power adapter and plug this adapter to an electrical socket to charge.
One more picture below to show the close up of the power rating. It is rated at 100 to 240Volts AC meaning it can be used worldwide on your overseas travels. The output voltage is 5 Volts and the current is rated at 0.85Amps.
With regards to chargers, the Amazon Kindle User Guide does state the following:
"Your Kindle should only be charged using the USB cable included with the device, or another USB cable approved for use with your Kindle, with a compatible USB charger or USB port that meets the following requirements: USB-IF Battery Charging Spec, Rev 1.2."
From some forums, they say that it is generally safe to use compatible chargers with the same Output Voltage (5 Volts) and nearly the same output current (0.85 Amps to 1 Amp). However this is for information only and not a recommendation, you do this at your own risk!
Overall, not much to review except that the adapter works well and charges the Kindle faster (4 hours or less) than using the USB port on your computer.
Price: US$14.99 ( US$9.99 (Save US$5 if you get it together with the Kindle)
Where to buy: Amazon
To charge your Kindle, just connect the micro USB end of the USB cable (included with your Kindle) to the Kindle and the normal USB end to this power adapter and plug this adapter to an electrical socket to charge.
One more picture below to show the close up of the power rating. It is rated at 100 to 240Volts AC meaning it can be used worldwide on your overseas travels. The output voltage is 5 Volts and the current is rated at 0.85Amps.
"Your Kindle should only be charged using the USB cable included with the device, or another USB cable approved for use with your Kindle, with a compatible USB charger or USB port that meets the following requirements: USB-IF Battery Charging Spec, Rev 1.2."
From some forums, they say that it is generally safe to use compatible chargers with the same Output Voltage (5 Volts) and nearly the same output current (0.85 Amps to 1 Amp). However this is for information only and not a recommendation, you do this at your own risk!
Overall, not much to review except that the adapter works well and charges the Kindle faster (4 hours or less) than using the USB port on your computer.
Price: US$14.99 ( US$9.99 (Save US$5 if you get it together with the Kindle)
Where to buy: Amazon
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