[SensualPoet]

The Achilles' Heel of the Kindle is the lack of easy access to library books as these require Overdrive which relies on Adobe Digital Editions for the DRM and delivers an ePub which the Kindle cannot read. There are relatively easy ways around that, but it doesn't handle it out of the box.

But the Kindle is first class in almost every aspect: built-in dictionary; Kindle-wide search; text to speech; continually firmware improvements (not just bug fixes but new features); best-in-class customer service; a terrific online experience for buying; and direct-to-Kindle purchases. Plus it works outside of the US in 3G; and throws in Wikipedia and other rudimentary web surfing.

I would no hesitate to select the Kindle 2 for anyone unless you are looking for the absolute minimum features at a lower price.

Added: EDGE is a slower version of 3G. The tiny amount of data moved in the purchase of a book won't impact the use of 3G/2G to deliver to Kindle. Kindle's 3G worked just fine on a bus trip through the Sierra Madre mountains in Mexico a few weeks ago; you may find you have adequate coverage where you are today.