The way that the Kindle downloads books is superior to any previous e-book device. You don’t even need a computer. The Kindle has a built-in wireless connection to the Sprint EVDO network. Basically that means that it uses the cell phone network to access the Internet and the Amazon Kindle store. Thankfully, there is no fee or monthly charge attached to this access. There is nothing to set up for the wireless. It just works. The connection is seamless and is available almost everywhere.  Since the Kindle already has your credit card information, purchasing a book, magazine, or newspaper is easy. We were able to cruise down the highway at 70 miles an hour and download a book in less than 2 minutes. (Just to ease your mind, someone else was driving.)

As shown in Figure 6, there are two switches on the back of the Kindle. The one on the left turns the Kindle on and off. The one on the right turns the wireless on and off. You must have the wireless on to access the Kindle store or  download a book. Since this uses additional battery power, you may to turn off when it is not in use.

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Figure 6: Switches on the back.

The Kindle’s wireless access also allows you to surf the Web.  Type in any web address using the keypad on the bottom of the Kindle. Shown in Figure 7, the keyboard is small but useable. It will be comfortable for those already typing on a smart cell phone, but may be problematic for those who are choosing the Kindle because of poor eyesight.

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Figure 7: The  Kindle keypad.