Amazon Kindle Keyboard 3G + Wi-Fi

Kindle 3.

I love books, and reading, and I must admit that if I bring just one more book into the house, it may burst at the seams. With this in mind, I had been hinting to my partner for a Kindle for Christmas, to no avail, so when I had a small windfall, without hesitation, I immediately purchased it myself.

~~~ Set up~~~

When you switch the kindle on you are greeted with a welcome message and Instructions on how to use the product. First thing to do though is charge it up. This doesn't take long at all, so the running costs are minimal.

To select a particular item, you are able to press up, down, left, and right on the five way controller button and press enter when your choice is highlighted.

To turn the page forwards, or backwards there are easy to find buttons along either edge of the Kindle where you would naturally hold the machine, this makes it easier to turn, but they are not so easy that you turn the page, when you don't want to.

To forward to the next chapter, or indeed a previous one, you also use the buttons on the five way controller. This is easy to do and negates the need for too many buttons that aren't required.

Searching for things or setting up the wifi is simple with the use of a qwerty keyboard.

If you intend to purchase this Kindle as a gift, it may need to be re-registered, as they come registered to the purchasers Amazon account. This can be done quickly and simply. As my kindle was purchased by me, for me this was not a problem, and to find it pre-registered was a massive bonus.

~~~ Display ~~~

Kindle uses a high resolution display called electronic paper, and although the ink is printed electronically the effect is so realistic. What irritates me slightly is that the page flashes for a millisecond as the page turns over, this is due to the re-placement of the ink for the next page.

~~~ Weight ~~~

I love my kindle as it has huge benefits over an ordinary book. The first one being that it is so light, at only 241g's it is so light, and comfortable to hold. I was worried before purchase that being so thin, it would be awkward to hold for any length of time, but as the surround is matt effect it is easy to grip and therefore, sweaty fingers will not let the machine slip from your grasp.

There are so many positives to this, over a paper book, it will look like I own shares in Kindle, and am promoting it for my own benefit. I am not though; I genuinely feel this product is amazing. The screen can be read clearly in the brightest of lights - I sit and read while I have my SAD lamp on, which is 10,000 lux. The sunshine is absent at the moment, with it still being only February.

~~~ Choice of Books ~~~

There is the most fantastic selection of books available for your kindle, whether you want to read, or just listen to an audibook. Many of these selections are now free, due to going out of copyright. Such works as Shakespeare, Rudyard Kipling. Jane Austen are all free. You may also find that some of these books will have the page numbers etc shown, so that when and if, you do manage to pick up a physical copy, any notes or quotes you may make, are on the relevant page.

Not only are masterpieces of literary works on the kindle, but the newest blockbuster available, and usually at a much lower price that a physical copy from a store. The range of kindle books is immense, the only difficulty is choosing what you would like to read next.

~~~ Uploading books from Amazon ~~~

The transfer of books from the moment of ordering off Amazon, is super speedy and super quiet, all due to Amazon's Whispernet technology. This delivers any books you require straight to your kindle via a wifi connection. A 3G version (which is like a mobile phone, and can be used anywhere) is available at extra cost, but this is really only useful if you travel a lot, and will enable you to download a book anywhere, even when you are sat sunning yourself at the beach. Both versions have wifi, and this means you have to been at a wifi hotspot, or unsecured network to download. No-one needs the 3G version in all honesty, because you could always download what you want, before you leave home, hotel or wherever you are.

~~~ Battery life ~~~

The battery life is 10 days approximately if the wifi is left on, and a month if you switch it off. This is very simple to do and well worth getting into a habit of doing - if only so that the Kindle battery doesn't die on you just as you are getting to a good bit.

~~~ Ease of use ~~~

OK, I admit, that while I love all things gadgety, I do not fully use them as intended. This to me will probably never be used for making notes, or searching to find reviews, or what other people suggest I read next. This machine to me at the moment is just a portable book, or bookshop depending on whether I am reading or purchasing a book at the time. This reader is so easy to use though, I have the feeling it won't be long before I do use it to its utmost potential.

Upon reading a while, if you have to put the kindle down for whatever reason, you can bookmark the page. This leaves a mark in the top right hand corner, like you would see if you naturally turned down the corner of the page. This a most handy feature and I use it constantly. Whenever you power up the machine again, there you are, right where you left off.

Another feature I love about this, is when it is turned off, it still looks good. It features pictures of authors, presumably taken from the books they wrote at the time. Not only does this look good, but it provides a yearning to delve a little deeper into their lives - well it does with me.

~~~ Updates ~~~

Amazon is currently in the process of introducing updates, so you can share any notes you make with other kindle users. At the moment, any notes and any quotes that are highlighted are for your benefit only. This will be a great asset for English Literature students, as they will be able to compare notes, and varying opinions about what the author was trying to convey.

I do love my Kindle, more than I can express - no bibliomaniac should be without it.
Summary: A bibliomaniacs dream come true