The recent unveiling of the third-generation Kindle e-reader by Amazon – by far the market leader in the e-book reader arena - is largely being seen as the online retailer’s endeavor to offer competition to the popular Apple iPad. 

The new Kindle – which has widely been dubbed as ‘Kindle 3’, though not by Amazon itself – has been ingeniously designed to be a cut above the iPad in more than one ways: the device is small, light and inexpensive; something that the iPad can never be!

The smaller size of the Kindle 3 results from a 21 percent reduction in the dimensions from its preceding model. Though the new Kindle measures 7.5 by 4.8 by 0.3 inches, it still features a screen that has the device’s standard six-inch diagonal measurements.

Furthermore, at 8.5 ounces, the almost ridiculously lightweight Kindle 3 is nearly one-third the weight of the iPad; thereby making the device much easier to hold for a much longer time duration.

In terms of cost, the price-tag of the new Kindle is a notable mark down from the original Kindle’s $400 – the new device costs $140 for a Wi-Fi model; and $50 more for a model that can allow users to get online using the cellular network.

The other advantages of the new Kindle include a non-removable storage that can hold around 3,500; the ‘silent’ page-turn Forward and Back buttons; and better handling of PDF documents.