Since its release in November 2007, Amazon's Kindle has taken a stronghold in the highly competitive eBook Reader marketplace with its continued evolution. Amazon has addressed many of the complaints of earlier models, such as the weight, slow page turning and awkward navigation buttons to make the Kindle standout as the e-Reader to beat.

The third-generation Kindle - The Kindle DX, is distinctly larger than previous Kindles with its 9.7" diagonal E Ink display, making it suitable for viewing a broader range of reading material such as newspapers and magazines. Although the display is now bigger, the Kindle has an even thinner profile than its earlier iterations, being just over 1/3 of an inch thick.

On paper, the Kindle DX looks impressively feature packed, but can it replace the good old book? Read on to find out.

Features of the Kindle DX
Slim profile - Only 1/3 thickLarge 9.7" high contrast E Ink Pearl DisplayFree 3G Wireless access in over 100 countriesStores up to 3,500 BooksAuto Rotating DisplayPDF Reader built-in5-Way ControllerRead to me, text to speech featureEnhanced reading functions

Hands on

The Kindle DX feels somewhat heavier than the Kindle 2, but due to its very slim profile, it remains comfortable to hold with two hands. It can be held with only one hand, but it's more comfortable to hold with two hands, however.

The new E-Ink pearl display is very impressive. The large screen means you get much more text per page than previous Kindle's, resulting in less page turns. The effects of the acclaimed 50% better contrast are evident. The text on screen looks crisp, dark and clear, making reading a pleasant experience. In comparison to the original Kindle DX, blacks look distinctly more solid.

The dark grey graphite border results in less eye strain than having the white border of the original Kindle DX, as your eyes are better focused on the display.

Navigation

In terms of navigation, it's very similar to the Kindle 2 except all the navigation keys are now on the right and the keyboard is smaller.

The previous/next page buttons are no longer on the left side. Having page controls on only one side is something I don't like as it makes accessing these buttons a little awkward when you are turning pages in the landscape mode.

Using the keyword is a bit awkward as the keys are small and spaced wide apart. Ergonomically the keyboard isn't well designed as you cannot reach the keys with your thumbs when holding the Kindle by the sides. I would have preferred the keyboard to be divided into two sections for better accessibility.

Page turns seem quicker than the original DX, but it's still a bit more sluggish than with an LCD based eBook reader due to the slow refresh rate of the e-Ink screen. In comparison with turning a page of a regular book, the speed is very similar though.

Auto Rotating Display

The auto rotating display feature is great. You can read material such as newspapers, maps and magazines more comfortably by turning the Kindle horizontally. One issue though is that you only need to rotate the screen about 45 degrees for the screen rotation to be triggered, so if you like to lie back and read, you may need to lock the orientation via the menu to prevent any unwanted screen rotation occurring.

Storage

The Kindle DX can hold up to 3,500 books/documents so it's well equipped to store many people's book collection.

There is no memory card reader, so if you use up the 3GB+ space then you cannot expand the memory. This is something I would have liked included, as certain documents can eat up a lot of storage space.

Web Browser

The web browser is a nice feature especially as the wireless access is free. It only provides basic browsing though, so don't expect to be browsing flash or a java based sites as they aren't supported.

Battery Life

The battery life is very satisfactory. After one charge it lasts about three weeks with Wi-Fi off. With Wi-Fi turned on, usage is reduced to about one week.

Final Thoughts

The Kindle DX is slim, lightweight and has a good quality large display making it easy on the eye whilst reading even in sunlight. It does have its design faults though however; most notably, the keyboard is awkward to use and the lack of page turning buttons on both sides.

Overall, if you're looking for a large screen eBook Reader for book reading then the Kindle DX is a fantastic choice, but for other purposes such as viewing PDF documents, surfing the net or taking notes, its limitations hold it back.

For more information on the Kindle DX visit Best eBook Reader

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