So you got (or have a pretty good idea you're going to receive) a Kindle 3 this holiday season. Congratulations.
Now it's time to begin taking advantage of your device, courtesy of our handy little guide below.
Get Free E-Books
Of all the covers I've seen for the Kindle 3, Amazon's $60 lighted leather cover is my favorite. It's slim, lightweight, is available in seven different colors and, most importantly, comes with a built-in light that adds little weight and almost no bulk.
For those of you willing to sacrifice a little functionality for some hand craftsmanship, DODOcase's $50 to $55 Kindle 3 covers (pictured right) are a good choice. They resemble a hardback moleskin on the outside and come with a range of colors on the inside. Unfortunately, they don't come with a light (something I use often), though they are somewhat lighter than Amazon's leather covers.
Read Your Kindle Books Anywhere
It's likely that you won't always have your Kindle device with you, which is why it's important to make sure you can access your reading material on as many devices as possible.
Amazon offers a number of free reading apps for the desktop (Mac and Windows PC), as well as iPhone [iTunes link], iPad [iTunes link], Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone 7 smartphones. As long as you have a 3G or Internet connection on your devices, you'll be able to automatically sync where you last left off in a book, as well as your notes and highlights.
Other Tips
Although I don't personally use my Kindle for much beyond novel reading, there's plenty of other things you can do with the device. You can download dozens of word, puzzle and crossword games, many of which are available for free, listen to MP3 files, browse the web (warning: the browser is extremely elementary), look up words in the dictionary and on Wikipedia, have books read to you, and later this year, lend books to others for 14-day periods.
Have additional recommendations for new Kindle owners? Please share them in the comments below.
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Image courtesy of iStockphoto, 3dgoksu