From the day the Amazon Kindle first came out, I wanted one! Finally, this year, at $189, they became affordable and I got one.

Amazon Kindle is an eBook reader. Digital files are stored on the device and presented for your reading enjoyment on what's called an e-ink display- a display that actaully looks like paper- on demand.

The Kindle arrived at my house neatly packaged. Amazon is a fairly unique company in that they take great pride and pay great attention to their packaging. You can tell. The Kindle arrived in a simple cardboard box not much bigger than the device itself. The box had a quote printed on it, making simple cardboard look elegant. Everything needed to get started was included- the Kindle, a USB cord, and a charger. There was also some documentation included, though the full user guide is on the Kindle itself. I also ordered a leather case for my Kindle.

The Kindle is surprisingly feature rich, while being incredibly easy to use. My first surprise was that my Kindle arrived already registered to me and linked to my Amazon account. I had pre-ordered some books, and those were on there.

Amazon sells books on their website in Kindle format. Many books are free, mainly from new authors trying to get their name out, or classics out of copyright. Most other books are sold for under $10. The Kindle price is almost always cheaper than the print price. Books can be bought on the Kindle itself, or on the Amazon website. The Kindle features a cellular 3g chip that allows it to connect to the internet to view the store and download books. Books are delivered to the Kindle device with no charge beyond the cost of the book. This makes the Kindle a wonderful device as you do not need a computer to use the Kindle.

When you first turn on the Kindle, you are presented with a list of files on the device. There's a little joy stick type button that allows you to navigate the screen and select an item. Books can also be arranged into folders, a feature that was added with a software update, given free to current users.

Books are displayed on an e-ink screen. True to Amazon's word, the screen is a dead ringer for real paper. It's easy to forget that you're reading on a digital device.

Pages are turned using buttons on either side of the display. They are easy to use, however, one down side to e-ink is a brief pause when turning pages. I have not found this bothersome, especially after using the Kindle for some time.

Text size can easily be changed from tiny to very large. This is a huge advantage for readers with site issues. Before I had LASIK, my vision was terrible, and I could easily use my Kindle without glasses on. When my parents "test-drove" my Kindle, both of them felt that not having to look specifically for large print books or stronger and stronger reading glasses was a huge advantage of the Kindle.

Having books in digital format provides many other very cool advantages over paper. Forget about book marking- the Kindle remembers were you left off in each book. Books can be searched to find that specific quote you were looking for. The Kindle includes a dictionary, that allows you to look up meanings of words as you read without leaving the book. The Kindle can "read" the book to you. On books where it's enabled, a robotic voice can be turned on that reads the words aloud. It's robotic sounding, but it's not terribly bad. Your favorite passage can be highlighted, and notes added. New features added recently allow passages that other readers have highlighted frequently to be flagged in your book. This can easily be turned on or off. Another feature added recently allows you to share what you're reading with your friends on Twitter or Facebook using 3g.

The Kindle also has a surprisingly large number of non-book features included. Periodicals and blogs can be subscribed to for a small fee, with new issues or articles automatically sent to your kindle. Word documents, pdfs, and pictures can all be stored on the Kindle. You can e-mail the files to a specified e-mail address, then Amazon will send them to the Kindle for a small fee, or you can plug the Kindle into a computer and simply drag and drop the files onto it. The Kindle can play mp3s that are put on it from your computer, though no mp3 browser means that beside skipping, you have very little power over what mp3 you listen to.

Recently, some word games became available to download to the Kindle and play. They're offered for free from Amazon.

Using the 3g chip, a simple web browser is now included on the Kindle, allowing you to browse the web for free from anywhere a cell phone will work. It's tediously slow, but things like reading a news article, checking e-mail, or checking Facebook are entirely possible from it.

The e-ink display means that the Kindle battery can last for several days, especially if 3g wireless is turned off. The Kindle charges using USB on a computer or from a wall outlet.

The Kindle has two small holes on the side of it, that allow it to hook and lock into some cases.

The Kindle does have some downsides compared to other ways to read eBooks. The screen is not touch sensitive, like the iPad or the secondary screen on the Nook, or some Sony readers. The screen cannot be read in the dark. The screen cannot display colors. The Kindle also does not allow sharing of books, that I know of, unlike some eBook readers.

Overall, I think the Kindle is an excellent choice for reading eBooks, and doing many other things.

On a recent road trip, my dad borrowed my Kindle to read for a bit. My dad is not into technology at all. I've tried to get him to adopt to many technological things over the years, including an iPod Nano, DVDs, and online banking. These have all failed. My dad picked up and used my Kindle without any instruction. I asked him how he liked it and he said, "I thought I would really hate it, but I have to admit, this thing is pretty awesome." To me, that sums it up.