the Guide has arrived ... and i'm totally geeking out

I am an enormous technology geek, so allow me a moment to geek out for a minute or two.

I recently read this issue of my favorite webcomic, xkcd, and thought maybe the author was taking some liberties with the facts.

He was not.  As an occasional Amazon customer, I got their email newsletter today, which just happened to be promoting the new Kindle 2.  I clicked on the embedded link and discovered that it's even more Amazing than xkcd lets on.

I was really impressed when the iPhone and the iPod touch offered WiFi internet.  The Kindle goes a step further and gives you free, high-speed, 3G internet acess to not just their store, but also over a thousand different blogs, and unlimited acess to Wikipedia!  xkcd really wasn't lying.  This really is the freaking Hitchhiker's Guide.  Also, in that same vein, if you are reading a book, newspaper article or Wikipedia page and see a word that you don't know, the Kindle 2 has The New Oxford American Dictionary, built right into it.  How sick is that?!

One of the biggest reasons that I've never gotten into ebooks is because I can't read a book without writing in it.  Libraries are like big teases to me.  I get 20 pages into a library book and then I'm like, "Well, crap. Now I have to go buy this book so I can write in it."  Underlining and annotating books is an essential part of the reading process for me. With the Kindle2, you can not only annotate, but you can also clip passgages, along with your notes right from the book and Amazon actually backs up all of your notes to their servers.  How insane is that?  Backup is a huge feature with the Kindle in general.  Amazon will allow you, without complaint, to re-download any digital purchase you've made, any number of times.

The battery life is also astronomical.  If you leave the wireless connection switched on, you can still use your Kindle for 4 days without a recharge.  If you switch it off however, you can go for two weeks without recharging!  A large part of this is the ingenious screen design which uses what they call Digital Paper technology.  It's a grayscale screen (one of the only bummers about this device), but due to the nature of the technology behind it, it can be read in direct sunlight without needing a backlight.  It's funny, because the technology actually works like a fancy, electronic Etch-a-Sketch.  It uses pixel-sized pieces of magnetized sand, kind of like toner, which fall away from the screen whenever it's cleared.  As far as I can tell, it really is like reading off of paper.  At the same time, the lack of a backlight necessitates lighting in order to read, but let's be honest, so do actual books.

The wireless connections is powered by Amazon's Whispernet technology, which is supplied through Sprint's 3G data network.  It has a built in EVDO high-speed wireless modem but will revert back to 1xRTT if no EVDO service is available.  As a result of the connection speed, Amazon boasts that all books download wirelessly in under 60 seconds.

As a crowning element, the Kindle operates as a completely independent device.  Unlike most digital devices these days - e.g. mp3 players, digital cameras, etc. - the Kindle never needs to be connected to a computer. Ever.  Right out of the box, you can begin using it.  Oh, and on that same note, it doesn't come with a manual.  If you want one, there's one built into it, but every testimonial I've read so far sings the praises of the Kindle's intuitive design which lends itself to being learned in just a few minutes of fooling around with it.

All around, this device is kind of blowing my mind.  It's definitely fallen into the "gear lust" category, and is now on my Google wishlist, from which any of you reading this can feel free to buy me things.  I recommend going and watching the introductory video below.  Be careful though, your brain might blow up too.

UPDATE: http://www.theonion.com/content/infograph/the_new_kindle