Since I got some time to use the Kindle 3, before I highlight new stuff, I’ll give my initial impressions.

Despite it not being greatly reduced in size, the Kindle 3 (K3) seems a LOT smaller.  I’m not sure if its because of the color change or not, but it really fits better in your hand.  Also, those couple of ounces make it noticably lighter.

The graphite color makes the text really pop.  It actually looks like a sheet of paper under the glass.  I haven’t seen the new DX-and it hadn’t been released when I saw the K3, but I loved the new eInk screen.

Even lighter and smaller didn’t make it feel flimsy.  The K3 is solid in-hand and has a slightly tackier surface on the back so you don’t feel like you might drop it.

All in all, there are just enough new tweaks on the K3 to make me click that Order button and get ready to pass off my K2 to the hubby when it arrives.  I highly recommend that you get one if you’ve been on the fence.  If you do, I’d be happy if you’d use this Affiliate link when you order.
3G & Wifi version
Wifi only version

Okay. On to specifics.  If you want more details on everything, you can download the new K3 User guide here.  The official press release is also linked to below.

Screen
As expected, it comes with the latest eInk screen that has a much improved contrast.  If you haven’t seen it on the newer DX, I can assure you that it beats the current Kindle’s contrast hands down.  And since the current 6″ Kindle 2 has a pretty good contrast, that’s saying a lot.

The screen also refreshes much faster.  I had to readjust my page turning to accommodate the faster page turns. And no more loud clicks when you turn the page.

Internals
The battery is twice as robust, lasting up to a month with the wireless turned off.  It will be nice to go on longer trips without taking the charger.

The storage has also been doubled to 4GB so you can carry a ridiculous number of books with you where ever you go.

Externals
The 3G+Wifi model comes in Graphite or White, but the Wifi model is white only.

All the ‘stuff’ has been moved to the bottom of the device. Power, charge, Adapter plug, USB, Volume controls, etc. They’ve also added a microphone that for now is not enabled.  I see some updates coming….

Home and Menu are now button instead of on the side and the Previous/Next buttons are smaller and on both sides of the K3.  Those are welcome, but the new location of the Home button took some getting used to. The 5-way controller has been flattened, now its a button with raised edges for up/down, left/right.

There are new Kindle covers.  They come in Black, Burnt Orange, Chocolate Brown, Hot Pink, Steel Blue, Apple Green and Burgundy Red.  They come in two models, one with and one without a reading light.  The one with a reading light uses the power from the Kindle.  Both covers have an elastic strap to keep closed when not in use.
Cover with Light - $59.99
Cover without Light – $34.99

Connections
There are two models now – 3G/Wifi and Wifi only.  The Wifi only model is $139–insanely cheap; especially when compared to the prices of eReaders last year.  I’m sure there are quite a few people happy to see the price get lowered.  The new price points put this device well within reach.

Now, when downloading an item, you can monitor the progress via the menu.

Once configured, your Kindle will automatically connect to your home or other wifi connection. Also, connection to AT&T is free and does not require a sign-in.

Reading
The PDF Reader has been updated so that you can do dictionary lookups as well as add notes & highlights.

The Kindle 3 has been enhanced with read-to-me menus.  This is a great new accessibility feature which was promised after the lawsuit following the university trials.

There are new fonts – condensed, regular and sans serif.

Line spacing has also been brought back (hello!) and Audible has been added to the Kindle Storefront menu.

Official Press Release

• Three color choices (similar to Kindle for iPhone) – White, Sepia or Black
• In-app brightness controls
• View and edit Highlights and notes

The Press Release also mentions shopping in the Kindle store like  you can do it within the application, but it is still just a link to the website.

Here is the PR from the link above

——————————–

Amazon Adds New Features to Kindle for PC Application

Customers using Kindle for PC can now edit notes and marks, experience full-screen reading mode, change the background color, and control the brightness of the screen

SEATTLE, May 19, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) –Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) today announced new features for “Kindle for PC,” the free application that lets readers around the world enjoy Kindle books on their personal computers. Kindle for PC now enables customers to edit notes and marks, experience full-screen reading mode, change the background color, and control the brightness of the screen. With Kindle for PC, readers can discover and read from over 540,000 books in the Kindle Store — the largest selection of the most popular books that people want to read — including New York Times Bestsellers and New Releases from $9.99. Like all Kindle apps, Kindle for PC includes Amazon’s Whispersync technology, which saves and synchronizes a customer’s notes, highlights, bookmarks and last page read across their Kindle, Kindle DX, iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, PC, Mac, BlackBerry and, soon, Android phones, so customers always have their reading material with them and never lose their place.

“We have been working hard to enhance our Kindle application experiences and are thrilled to be adding new features to Kindle for PC,” said Jay Marine, director, Amazon Kindle. “Kindle for PC lets customers enjoy more than 540,000 books in the Kindle Store even if they don’t yet have a Kindle, and its the perfect companion application for the millions of Kindle and Kindle DX owners.”

Now Kindle for PC has even more features to enhance the Kindle book reading experience on a PC, including:

• Purchase, download and read more than 540,000 books, including 96 of 110 New York Times Bestsellers, plus tens of thousands of the most popular classics for free directly from their PC. Bestsellers such as “Backlash” by Aaron Allston, “Big Girl” by Danielle Steel, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” by Rebecca Skloot and “The Lost Symbol” by Dan Brown, and hundreds of thousands of other popular books are $9.99 or less in the Kindle Store
• Browse by genre or author, and take advantage of all the features that customers enjoy in the Kindle Store, including Amazon.com customer reviews, personalized recommendations and editorial reviews
• Read the beginning of books for free before they decide to buy
• Synchronize last page read between their Kindle, Kindle DX, iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, PC, Mac, BlackBerry and, soon, Android phone
• Access their entire library of previously purchased Kindle books stored on Amazon’s servers for free
• Choose from three different color modes: read in white, sepia, or black color modes and adjust the brightness of the display from within the app
• Choose from more than 10 different font sizes and adjust words per line
• View and edit notes and highlights marked on Kindle and Kindle DX
• Read books using full-screen mode of their PC
• Zoom in and out of text with a pinch of the fingers (Windows 7 users only)

Kindle for PC is available for download at http://www.amazon.com/KindleforPC.

Amazon announced 4/30/2010 that an update for Kindle for PC is available.  It includes:

• Full screen reading
• Background color and brightness controls
• The ability to create and edit notes and highlights in your books

They also have a Future Improvements page that lists upcoming features that they are ‘thinking’ about:

• Search
• Two page reading mode
• Zoom and rotate images
• Collections

The newly added features for Kindle for PC will soon be available for the Mac as well.

Book and document organization -   You’ll be able to add documents and books into collections.  Users have been asking for folders, others have been asking to tag books–I bet this functionality lands right between the two.

PDF Updates – pan and zoom PDF files to read that super small text you’ve been complaining about.

Password Protection – You’ll be able to add password protection to your Kindle.

Fonts - Amazon is adding two fonts sizes.

Facebook/Twitter integration – Looks like we’ll be able to post to either service.  Not something I need, but I know that many users frequentlyn utilize both.

Kindle Community Highlights – This has not been on the top of anyone’s list that I’ve seen, but the ability to see book highlights that other users have found interesting or compelling will bring your Kindle books into an entirely new realm.

Edit: Sadly, these updates will not apply to the Kindle 1 (First Generation)

———————————-

From the Kindle Update page

Kindle Software Update Version 2.5

• Kindle Version 2.5 Overview
• Automatic Wireless Updates
• Information for Kindle (1st Generation) Users

Kindle Version 2.5 Overview

The 2.5 software update for Kindle and Kindle DX is coming soon. We are rolling out the new software update to a limited group of Kindle users and plan a broad release in late May 2010. Check back here for updates on the release schedule.

Here’s a list of the coming enhancements:

• Collections: Organize your books and documents into one or more collections.
• PDF Pan and Zoom: Zoom into PDFs and pan around to easily view small print and detailed tables or graphics.
• Password Protection: Password protect your Kindle when you’re not using it.
• More Fonts & Improved Clarity: Enjoy two new larger font sizes and sharper fonts for an even more comfortable reading experience.
• Facebook & Twitter Posts: Share book passages with friends on Facebook and Twitter directly from your Kindle.
• Popular Highlights: See what the Kindle community thinks are the most interesting passages in the books you’re reading.

Automatic Wireless Updates

We send out software updates wirelessly in batches. When a new software update is available for your Kindle, it will automatically be delivered to your device as described below. There is nothing you need to do.

• Kindle checks for updates: All Kindles are designed to automatically check for and download updates when one is available. If an update is available, your Kindle will download and install the update the next time the wireless connection is activated and your Kindle goes into sleep mode.
• Updates in less than 10 minutes: During the update, you’ll see screens that show the update progress. The update should take less than 10 minutes and is complete when your Kindle displays the Home screen. Do not power off or reset your Kindle until the update is complete. You can check to confirm the software your Kindle is running, by going to the Settings screen on the device. The software version will be displayed on the bottom of the screen.

Wow.  This has been a crazy weekend in the Kindleverse!  Amazon pulling MacMillan titles, forum boards erupting with both anger and dismay, Twitter going crazy with 140 character comments on same-plus a lot of bad information. Authors weighing in on mostly the publishers side and some Kindlers vowing retribution by both bad reviews (here we go again) and boycott tagging.

When this all first happened, I was angry at MacMillan.  About 8 books on my Amazon wish list were gone and I don’t even remember which ones they were.  Now I’m just weary of the whole thing, while at the same time extremely curious on how it all will shake out.

I do have a couple of observations to make, though.  First, I’m a avid reader and had to join Amazon prime to defray shipping costs.  I almost always purchased mass-market paperbacks over hardcover books just to appear like I was trying to stay within some sort of reasonable budget.  There were a few authors that I loved which I felt merited the $20 for a (discounted) hardback, but not many.  I didn’t go to the library and I didn’t use 2nd hand books because, frankly, old paperback stink and I hated the yellowing due to the cheap paper used.  Then I discovered the Kindle which I’ve had a Kindle for about two years now.  If anything, I read faster and now spend way more on books.

Just as pre-Kindle, I spend more than $9.99 for some authors, but my average for a Kindle book is between $5 and $7.  I don’t really care about book format or DRM, because I have the tools to change both, and I don’t share my Kindle account with anyone, so if I find a good book, I just recommend to my Kindle friends so they can purchase their own copy.

That being said, there is NO WAY that I can see myself regularly paying $15 for a newly published ebook; and I doubt that I would even remember the book when the price came down to what I would pay–unless it got recommended by an online review or other listing.  That is a hit-or-miss proposition as most books are reviewed when they are released, not 7 months later.  The best example of this for me is the slow release of the Robert Jordan Wheel of Time series.  I was going to buy it for my Kindle until I saw the release dates.  After I saw that it was releasing approximately one book a month and that I wouldn’t be able to get through it for a year, I decided to wait and haven’t thought about it since.  Some ereaders that I know got them on the darknet to read now, then would buy the ebooks as they were released.  That can start a whole conversation about ebook availability vs. piracy which I won’t go into.

Some are saying that this whole thing was started by the immenent advent of the iPad and it’s iBook store.  Maybe, maybe not, but as a non-LCD ereader, I think the publishers are barking up the wrong tree if they think that avid readers will be embracing reading books on what is virtually a flashlight on any type of regular basis.  I do plan on getting one, but it will be either as a replacement for my iPhone, or as a living room and portable laptop-lite device–not as a reader.  I’ve seen this sentiment repeated more times than I can count, so if MacMillan and other publishers are looking as the iPad to revolutionize books, I fear they will be sadly disappointed.

I don’t know who will win this war, but America loves a good fight.  Hey! Maybe they should put it on Pay Per View?

To make Kindle more useful for the blind, the Kindle team is currently working on an audible menuing system so blind and vision-impaired readers can easily navigate to books unassisted, in addition to listening to books as they can already do today with Read To Me. In addition, a new super size font will be added to Kindle, increasing the number of font sizes from six to seven. This seventh font size will be twice the height and width of the current largest font. These new features are scheduled for release by the summer of 2010.

You can read the entire press release here.