Amazon Kindle

After many years of false starts and fitful fluctuations in the publishing industry it looks like the time has come for a new approach to the serious distribution of professional quality e-books. There is a small number of quality contenders in the e-book reader market but it appears, at least at present, that the number one choice climbing to the top is the Kindle from Amazon (shown left).

It certainly doesn’t hurt that America’s number one online retailer is seriously in the mix. The Kindle is exclusive to Amazon and features a proprietary publishing format (AZW) and supports several others including TXT, Audible (formats 4, Audible Enhanced (AAX)), MP3, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively; and PDF, HTML, DOC, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP through conversion.

At 10.2 ounces, the base model Kindle is lighter than a typical paperback and as thin as most magazines — barely a third of an inch in profile. A Kindle fits perfectly in your hands and the 6″ diagonal E Ink® electronic paper display, 600 x 800 pixel resolution at 167 ppi, 16-level gray scale makes it easy to read in natural light.

The purchase of a Kindle ($259.00 with free shipping for the base model at time of writing) includes lifetime connection to Amazon’s Kindle book source by 3G wireless which lets you download books right from your Kindle, anytime, anywhere with no monthly fees, service plans, or hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots.

Click the image above to see Kindle on Amazon.