Disclaimer: This article is provided for information, review, and educational purposes. The author does not necessarily endorse the product discussed. All trademarks belong to their respective owners. Graphic courtesy of Amazon.com, all rights reserved.

On November 17, 2009, Amazon.com announced that their popular electronic reading device became available for shipping to Canada. Two days later, I managed to get one delivered to my door. Today I’d like to share what I think about it.

There are currently two models on the market: Kindle (Global Edition) and Kindle DL. The Kindle DL comes with the bigger 9″ screen, but is not available to residents outside of U.S. Mine is hence the Global Edition, although I’d have preferred the DL for the bigger display.

The device was apparently designed to impress readers with the feel of a real book. The size of the device is just slightly bigger than a trade paperback. Unfortunately, about 20% of the front is taken up by the input interface, leaving a display area slightly smaller than a typical trade paperback.

The display is not the LED panel that I had expected. Rather, it’s a different kind of technology called “electronic ink,” which is meant to have the same attributes as the regular ink, i.e., the display remains without drawing power. Because of this unique attribute not found in other digital devices, the battery lasts much longer - upto two weeks.

The contents stored within the device are entirely searchable. While the device reopens to the last-viewed page, you can also set your own bookmarks, take “clippings,” mark highlights, and record notes. There is also a built-in dictionary for those difficult vocabulary items; simply point the cursor to the word, the definition shows up automatically.

The feature that really sets the Kindle apart from its competitors, however, is its wireless connectivity. You can download an entire book in less than one minute through Whispernet, the built-in wireless network. No computer is required to browse or download contents from the Kindle store. This is a great bonus for frequent travellers as finding hotspots for internet connection can be tricky.

In Canada the price of the contents available for purchases generally includes the delivery via Whispernet. No additional contracts or agreements is required with the wireless carrier for the basic download. However, if you wish to email documents to your Kindle or to browse the net on your Kindle, it will cost you some money.

Kindle, while not a replacement for actual books, is a great leap toward a paperless world. Although I believe that the interface can be further enhanced, I’ll have no regret whatsoever about not lugging my favourite paperbacks around the world and back.