Second Generation Amazon Kindle expected to be introduced next week

According to a posting on The New York Times Bits blog, the second generation Amazon Kindle could be introduced at a news conference hosted by Jeff Bezos on February 9. The Amazon Kindle webpage has also been updated and now explains that new purchases are “Expected to ship in 4 to 6 weeks.” As noted in a previous posting, when the first generation Kindle sold out before Christmas, the expected ship date was 11 to 13 weeks. Some speculate that those who purchased Kindles over the holidays or put their name on the waiting list for the first generation Kindle will actually receive the new model. If the leaked photos that appeared on the Boy Genius Report website are accurate, the new model will have a similar look but will include round buttons and smaller side buttons to correct the design flaws of the first model. The new model is also expected to use the Broadsheet microchip from Epson and E-Ink which is currently used in the Sony Reader 700. The technology provides a more responsive screen with faster screen refreshes.