Today was a big day at Amazon.com. As I posted a couple of days ago, Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com, held a press event today, announcing the new version of Kindle, Kindle DX. It has a 9.7” 1200×824 pixel screen, which is about twice as large as the standard Kindle. There are some improvements over the standard one but few are technical. It now has a built-in PDF reader so the user can carry some personal and professional documents. It can store 3,500 books compared with 1,500 in the standard version.

The two notable aspects of today’s press release are Kindle’s partnerships with educational institutions and the traditional print media. Students of five universities will have an option to have textbooks in Kindle. It’s a novel idea but I’m not sure how practical it can be for students and teachers.

Its another partnership is with the print media. During its trial period, users can get electric delivery of three major newspapers: The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Boston Globe. That’s interesting.

See, I like to try new things, so I subscribed to an audiobook/magazine service for a while at Audible.com. So, naturally I’m starting to like what Kindle offers. Even though the price of Kindle DX is rather steep ($489), Kindle book prices are much lower than paper book prices. For example, a new Kindle book price is $9.99 while the price of hard copy versions ranges between $24 and $26. What’s more, the delivery of a book is instantaneous. They already have a good selection of newspapers and weekly magazines for Kindle at very affordable prices.

If you travel a lot and like to read, Kindle DX is very convenient. If you read about 3 books in a month, you can recoup the cost of your initial investment within a year because of cheaper Kindle book prices.

One of my coworkers just recently bought Kindle 2 and she was not happy today. She thinks Amazon.com should offer her a discount toward a purchase of Kindle DX. But she can sell her (almost new) Kindle 2 at eBay. So, I took a look at what eBay has at the moment.

Here’s eBay’s offerings.

AMAZON KINDLE DX 9.7 inch IN SEALED BOX～fast shipping

AMAZON KINDLE DX 9.7 inch IN SEALED BOX～fast shipping

Kindle DX (warranty, leather case, Mighty Brite LED)

Kindle DX Global version, FREE 3G, FREE Shipping in US

Brand New sealed Amazon Kindle DX GRAPHITE NEW

Amazon Kindle DX, 9.7", FREE 3G, LATEST!!

Amazon Kindle DX