In the gadget business, there's a tendency to continuously add features, functionality, and options with each new version, but you shouldn't expect a drastic revamp from Amazon with its latest Kindle ($189 direct) ebook reader. Although the new Kindle adds Wi-Fi, more capacity, a leaner form factor, and a sharper screen, the functionality is largely the same. But that isn't necessarily bad thing, in fact given its new low price along with its massive library of ebooks and dead-simple book buying, the Kindle keeps its crown as our Editors' Choice. Simply put, it's the best dedicated ebook reader you can buy.

Design: A Slimmer, Lighter Read

Perhaps the most dramatic change in the Kindle is the size: it's a lot smaller, but maintains its 6-inch e-ink screen. Even so, overall the 7.5-by-4.8-by-0.3-inch (HWD), 8.7-ounce device is 21 percent smaller, with a narrower bezel and tighter keyboard. The smaller size makes it a snap to slide into a coat pocket and easier to manage single-handed. Oh, and you get a color choice this time around: Besides the typical Kindle white, you can opt for a grayish-blackish graphite, like our review unit.

The Kindle has never been known for its great controls, but with this iteration, they get better. In fact, Amazon replicated the symmetrical Page Forward/Page Back buttons found along the sides of the screen on ($199 direct, ). They're a little smaller than the old page controls, but this layout is much more logical. Amazon also traded in the stubby, square, track-point for a more intuitive four-way toggle button. Sensitive Kindle users will also notice the keys on the QWERTY keyboard are raised slightly, making them easier to punch. Moving the Power button to the bottom of the device seems like an unnecessary change, but you get used to it.

The number one complaint with e-ink displays is that they're too gray and lack adequate contrast. This is just is a product of the technology; all ebook readers have gray screens. That said, Amazon has managed to increase the contrast on the Kindle in a way that sets it above the Nook, Sony Readers, or any other dedicated ebook reader we've tested. The company claims it has upped the contrast by 50 percent over the last Kindle. Whatever the actual percentage, the effect is dramatictext and photos looks sharper and clearer. Don't compare it to the bright color touch-screen LCD on the ($499-$829 direct, ), but it is the sharpest e-ink display I've seen.

Some measure of that sharper text is because of improvements in the Kindle's text handling. Version 3.0 of the Kindle software features improved font handling and faster page turns. The company developed two new, proprietary technologies: waveform controls how the final gray level is set for images and text and font-hinting optimizes font display when pixels are limited, as is the case with e-ink displays. And it works well. When I tested page turn speed against the previous Kindle running version 2.5.6, I found them to be similarboth fast, and much faster than the Nook.

Kindle: Now with Wi-Fi!

One of the more notable additions to this Kindle is integrated Wi-Fi in addition to the free, always-on 3G modem. (There's also a $139 Wi-Fi-only Kindle). I spent a little time trying out the Kindle's new Wi-Fi features, and found logging into a network very straightforward. Downloading books is quicker; although 3G download speeds are so fast it almost doesn't make a differencebut it's still nice to have the choice. This is when that QWERTY keyboard comes in handy, it makes typing in network passwords quick work. Until now, Wi-Fi was one of the key advantages of the Barnes & Noble Nook.

The Kindle's new Webkit browser works better than the old one, but is still no joy to use. Pages take forever to navigate and you need to drag the cursor around the page before you can zoom-in and click on links. And of course, the pages are in black and white, not color. Suffice to say, the browsing experience is no match for the iPad, or even your average smartphone.

Buying books is as easy as ever. Just open the store, type in an author or title, click buy, and within a minute the book is sent to your device either via Wi-Fi or 3G. The Kindle store currently sells about 630,000 books, including 109 of the 111 New York Times Best Sellers. You'll also find free book titles, newspapers, magazines, blogs, and audiobooks. Amazon has also added some neat sharing features; personally I love tweeting links to my favorite book passages right from the device. (Current Kindle owners with version 2.56 also have this capability.) Overall, the Kindle experience is familiar, consistent, and comfortable. And for an ebook reader, that's a good thing.

File Support: A Sore Spot

File support has always been the Kindle's Achilles heel, at least for the geek crowd. The problem is that the Kindle uses its own file format for books: AZW. It works fine, offering fast performance and lots of security for publishers, but it's proprietary. No one else can use it. Worse, the Kindle can't handle the widely accepted EPUB format that's supported on , Borders' ($149.99 direct, ), and, well, just about every other ebook reader on the market. This is also the format many public libraries use to lend ebooks. For format purists this is a deal breaker, but the truth is most consumers will be very happy with the huge selection in the Kindle store. Even so, as I have said for years, the Kindle should support EPUB.

The device also natively supports TXT, Audible, MP3, Unprotected MOBI, and PRC. And DOC, JPEG, GIF, PNG, and BMP are supported via conversion. PDF support is much improved this time around. Not only do PDFs just look better, but you can make notes and zoom into pages. In fact, when I loaded a protected PDF accidentally, I was pleasantly surprised to see a password prompt that quickly let me access the file. PDFs still don't compare to natively formatted files in terms of usability, but you can read them.

It's hard to describe just how dull testing Kindle battery life is. Amazon claims the rechargeable battery will last as long as a month with your wireless modem turned off, or for 10 days with it on. That means I'll need a least another week to get results. For now, trust me, the battery will last a long time.

With its retail support, custom content, wider file support, and color display, the Barnes and Noble Nook remains a tough contender. But overall, with a lower price, a slimmer, lighter design, higher-contrast screen, and other improvements, the Kindle remains our Editors' Choice for ebook readers.

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