When a new technology arrives, usually the manufacturer who develops the first representation of that new science has a huge leg up on the competition. That was the case with Amazon and the Kindle eReader , which had no real competition when it showed up over 3 years ago. But rather than just coast on their “first to market” success, Amazon has tweaked and improved the Kindle each year since, and the Kindle 2 was a more efficient eReader device than the original. So too is the Kindle 3 the best Kindle yet.
One of the fastest growing consumer-electronics product segments in recent history, ebook readers are sure to sell like hotcakes this holiday season. Amazon, the pioneer of the ebook reader, had a clear head start with its Kindle, which is now on its third iteration, but Barnes & Noble has established itself as a leader in this ever-expanding space with its Nook line.
This is not to say that Amazon and Barnes & Noble are the only players on the ebook block.
The unit itself is tiny. If you have a standard DVD case to hand pick it up and you are holding something that's almost the same width and height (check out the top image in this post), but double the thickness of the Kindle. In the hand it is very light, and you appreciate the additional case length where the keyboard is located so it can be easily held without your thumbs infringing on the screen.
As for the reading and interface experience, Amazon has a great system in place. On boot up you see the main menu screen with your last seven books listed, as well as access to archived items, dictionaries, the user guide, and of course a link to the Kindle Store. As your list of books grows you can not only archive them, but form collections to allow easy grouping of related works. How they are related is entirely up to the reader.
What is a Kindle Book
