By Arnold Zafra | for the Technology Tell network

Along with the new products it launched yestertoday, Amazon also introduced some new features on its devices related to content consumption. These new features are X-Ray for Movies, Immersion Reading, Kindle Serials and Whispersync for Voice.

Let’s take a look at each one of these new features:

X-Ray for Movies

X-Ray for Movies is a new feature made possible through collaboration with IMDb. According to Amazon, it revolutionizes the movie experience by bringing the power of IMDb directly to movies on the Kindle Fire HD. It allows users to look up any actor in a particular movie scene, and it then gives the user information about that actor’s filmography, biography and more. This is accesible via a simple tap and does not require users to leave the movie they’re watching.

Immersion Reading

Immersion Reading is another feature which combines audio narration with reading. It highlights text progressively as you listen to professionally-narrated audio versions of e-books you’re reading.

Kindle Serials

Kindle Serials is a new way for you to enjoy serialized stories on Kindle. These are stories that are published in episodes. When you purchase a current episode, succeeding episodes in the series will be automatically delivered to your Kindle device. The updates are automatically added to the end of an existing book that you are currently reading.

“With Kindle Serials, we’re bringing episodic books to readers in a unique way that’s seamless and hassle-free, with new episodes being added to the book as they’re published. And readers can discuss the stories on Amazon discussion boards as they’re being written—like virtual water cooler conversations—perhaps even influencing where the next episode may go. As with Kindle Singles, we’re aiming to open up new ways for authors to write and customers to enjoy great writing. We think people are going to love this format.” —Jeff Belle, Vice President, Amazon Publishing

Whispersync for Voice

Finally, there’s Whispersync for Voice ,which will allow Kindle and Kindle Fire owners to switch seamlessly between reading a book and listening to the professionally narrated Audible audiobook version on iOS or Android devices.

4 COMMENTS

  1. Serializing a novel isn’t anything new, but it’s a format embraced by innovators in the new digital publishing fold. Amazon is only just now realizing that this can be a successful strategy. In April, my writing colleague, S.W. Tanpepper, approached Amazon about publishing a serialized novel. He was told it wouldn’t work, but he went ahead and published GAMELAND anyway and it’s turned out to be successful. If you want to identify the innovators, you have to drill down to the indies. They’re the ones experimenting with price points and formats.

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