The Amazon Kindle e-book reader is about to go mainstream (if you don’t think that it already has, that is). The latest version of the highly popular Kindle e-book reader was announced today by Amazon, with the intent of going into mass market territory as evidenced by the price points at which the new Kindle is going to be sold. While the previous Kindle’s price already got several cuts which brought it down to a sweet $150, the new Kindle comes with an even sweeter deal: the Wi-Fi only version is being sold for $139, while the 3G-enabled version is priced at $189. Both models are already available for pre-order from Amazon today, and they will be delivered on August 27 to customers in 140 countries. Read on for details about the specs on these new models.

The new model’s key features are highlighted by Amazon, bullet-style, as follows:

• All-New, High-Contrast E-Ink Screen – 50% better contrast than any other e-reader
• Read in Bright Sunlight – No glare
• New and Improved Fonts – New crisper, darker fonts
• New Sleek Design – 21% smaller body while keeping the same 6″ size reading area
• 15% Lighter – Only 8.7 ounces, weighs less than a paperback
• Battery Life of One Month – A single charge lasts up to one month with wireless off
• Double the Storage – Up to 3,500 Books
• Books in 60 Seconds – Download books anytime, anywhere
• Free 3G Wireless – No monthly payments, no annual contracts
• Built-In Wi-Fi – In addition to the 3G wireless, you can connect to Wi-Fi hotspots
• 20% Faster Page Turns – Seamless reading
• Enhanced PDF Reader – With dictionary lookup, notes, and highlights
• New WebKit-Based Browser – Free 3G web browsing (experimental)

Is it better than the old model? No doubt. Should you get excited? Oh, definitely.

The new Kindle not only introduces new features that can easily be considered improvements over the previous model’s, it has also been introduced at a near unbelievable price point. In time, the Kindle might actually be sold for as low as $100. But even now, it’s a pretty good deal considering what you get, which free 3G wireless service for life and access to Amazon’s vast online bookstore. So if you’ve even the slightest interest in getting a dedicated e-book reader for uh, reading e-books, there has never been a better time than now.

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