Amazon came through!

Wow, Amazon announced a new front-lit e-ink reader with a Paperwhite screen (that's actually the model name), and two new Kindle Fires! The press conference got some pretty good coverage, but if you want to see the video/commercials and product info, the Books on the Knob blog has some good entries. Also, The Digital Reader blog's live feed has some good details on features and pricing.

When I consider what my husband paid for my very first Kindle 1 in 2008, the prices on these new models are amazing! I wonder if Amazon will eventually come up with an ad-supported Paperwhite.  They don't seem to have one, and I don't know if it's because they want this to be a premium Kindle or because that model didn't pay as well as they thought it would. Correction: There are "Special Offers" versions on the order pages. An earlier report said there were not, but I can see that there is $20 between the 3G model with and without ads.

There are some cool new features in addition to the light! For the first time, a Kindle user can select a specific font by name, not just "serif" and "sans serif." This is great! There's also a "how much time left to finish the chapter" display in the lower left corner. According to the commercial, it actually learns how fast you read.

I'm really happy Amazon hasn't abandoned e-ink, because I do think it provides a superior reading experience. And I am so drooling over this new Kindle!