DO NOT POST SURVEY F Kindle Readers Plead, 'Dear Amazon: Please Add These Features To The Next Generation Kindle--Library Borrowing, Annual Subscription Bookshelf, A Color Screen, And More'

DO NOT POST SURVEY F Kindle Readers Plead, 'Dear Amazon: Please Add These Features To The Next Generation Kindle--Library Borrowing, Annual Subscription Bookshelf, A Color Screen, And More'

More than anything else, Kindle device owners—and no doubt Kindle app users on other devices—would “love” or “be very interested in” being able to borrow, download and read free ebooks from their libraries. So say 2,275 people responding to the Winter 2011 Kindle Nation Citizen Survey conducted in January.

A close second on their wish list is an annual Amazon “bookshelf” subscription that would allow readers to download an unlimited number of Kindle ebooks for a flat fee.

Survey questions asked if respondents would be “interested,” “very interested” or “would love this feature” to gauge their fervor for each item in the survey list. Here's what they said:

Library ebook borrowing is wanted by 96% of respondents, with 55% who “would love” this feature and 24% “very interested.” Another reserved 17% leave it at “interested.” Kindle Nation Daily is preparing for the day library borrowing comes to the Kindle—if it every does. We're sniffing around libraries and talking with harried librarians scrambling to find the budgets to pay the publishers' and authors' fees. If library borrowing on the Kindle becomes a reality, KND will be ready to let you know.

An annual “bookshelf subscription” which would allow unlimited book downloading for a flat annual fee is of interest to 93% of respondents. Over 43% would “love it,” another 27% are “very interested,” and 23% are interested while 7% aren't interested. Those numbers make sense, since Kindle owners tend to be voracious readers looking for a bargain in ebooks.

Third on the wish list is “a non-reflective color touch screen that can be read in direct sunlight.” Over 89% are interested, including 40% who would “love this,” another 24% “very interested,” and 26% are “interested.” About 11% are not interested.

Users want to range beyond the Kindle Store with their Kindles. Some 87% are interested in reading books in ePub and other formats. “I would love this,” say 38% of respondents, and 24% list themselves as “very interested.” Another 24% are interested, while 13% are not.

An opt-in feature that would offer discounted subscriptions to Kindle editions of newspapers and magazines with limited amounts of embedded advertising is desired by 74%. Some 13% would “love it,” another 22% are very interested and 39% are interested. Just over a quarter of all, 26%, aren't interested.

This one sounds like an iPad but made by Amazon and branded as a Kindle: “A multipurpose Kindle-branded tablet that plays media, runs Apps and surfs web” is desired by 69% of all respondents. Really wanting it are 20% who would “love it.” Another 20% find themselves “very interested,” and 29% are interested. About 31% are not interested.

An opt-in feature that would provide free subscriptions to Kindle editions of blogs with limited amounts of embedded text advertising is desired greatly 69% of all respondents. Some 13% would “love” it, another 22% are very interested, and 35% are merely interested. About 31% aren't interested.

Beyond books, 73% of respondents want to be able to buy anything in and part of Amazon via their Kindle, as can be down with iPad apps now. Some 13% would “love” all-Amazon shopping right on their Kindles, 20% are very interested in doing so, and 41% are interested. Some 27% are not interested.

Watch a movie on a Kindle? Not yet, but why not ask? The ability to buy, download and play non-book content such as music and movies via enhanced Kindle-branded hardware would be “loved” by 8% of all respondents. Some 11% are very interested in such a feature and 39% are interested. A hefty 41% are not interested.

(Editor's Note On The Stats: In this report, sharp-eyed readers good with numbers will note that, in some cases per answer, the totals reported are not 100%. That's due to rounding of fractions of less than 0.5% over more than two responses per question.)