The Kindle 2 is the best present I’ve given my wife. She likes it much better than the red Dustbuster I got her for Valentine’s Day (hey, red’s romantic). She loves it and uses it constantly (the Kindle 2, not the Dustbuster).

Her one frustration is that the Kindle does a poor job of displaying screenshots and programming code (she’s a professor of computer science at a community college). She asked told me to find a solution since I supposedly know so much about gadgets. And while I was at it, she’d also like touch and color.

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The Kindle DX is being released on June 10 and can be pre-ordered. The Kindle 2 was released just a short time ago, February 24, 2009, so the June 10 release date is earlier than thought.

I think of the DX has extending the 2’s screen and thereby squishing down the 2’s keyboard. That’s fine with me. For an e-reader, a larger screen (9.7” vs. 6”) seems more important than a larger keyboard. The screen also auto-rotates from portrait to landscape. This is convenient since sometimes graphical elements or web pages are better viewed in landscape.

The DX also can read PDF files natively. By contrast, the 2 required PDFs to be converted. This native PDF support would enable me to take my documents with me electronically. Indeed, while the DX’s primary target market is readers of newspapers and magazines, a secondary target argument is academia, where students (and teachers like me) can read textbooks. (But see Will the new Kindle DX complicate plagiarism prevention?). Actually, the DX also would be good for me wearing my lawyer’s hat in that document-intensive profession.

The DX isn’t cheap at $489. Then again, the 2 isn’t cheap either at $359.

The DX is a better choice for me than the 2. Still, I haven’t yet decided to buy it. Like the 2, the DX lacks a backlight. While this increases battery life, it makes reading problematic in low light environments. With computer programming books, the 2 did a poor job displaying the code which was in a different font than the text. I want to confirm the DX doesn’t have the same problem. While the DX’s support of PDFs is a plus, I wonder if it will also display other file formats like text, Word, and so forth.

I’m thinking that a MID like the Viliv S5 or S7 might be a better choice for me as an e-reader. A MID would only be slightly more expensive than $489. However, a MID would have a backlight, support different file formats, and have a color rather than grayscale display. More important, a MID would be a full-fledged computer, not just a single-purpose device. But then again, I may change my mind, as my readers know I have done many times before when a new sexy gadget beckons.

2 Kindle 2 told you about our family’s purchase of the just-released Kindle 2. But at least two more soon-to-be-released e-readers are being displayed at CeBIT 2009. Like the Kindle 2, both will have some form of wireless connectivity. But unlike the Kindle 2, both are touchscreens,support commonly used formats (e.g, PDF, DOC) and have external SDHC storage.

Engadget’s BeBook 2 e-reader revealed and in the wild at CeBIT 2009! provides the first picture (the one on the left) of the upcoming (Summer maybe?) second version of the BeBook. Unclear if the wireless connectivity is WiFi, 3G or both. This touchscreen apparently also supports ink input. Also

Engadget’s Video: Hands-on with Onyx International’s Boox e-reader is naturally, an article and video on the Boox. Wireless connectivity is described at “Wi-Fi/CDMA 1XRTT/GPRS/3G (option).” Ink input may be supported: “Touch panel with full screen scribble.”

At first blush, the BeBook 2 seems the more impressive of these two devices. However, to be fair, there really isn’t a lot of information yet on either device as they are just being unveiled. I do like the touchscreen + inking, support of commonly used formats and external SDHC storage. I’ll be keeping an eye on these devices in the months to come.

Valentine’s Day was earlier this month. My wife Devvie subtly hinted that she wanted a Kindle 2. Devvie not so subtly reminded me not to repeat my red Dustbuster gift of a few Valentine’s Days ago. (If you don’t know, the Kindle 2 is pictured on the left and the Dustbuster on the right. Then again, if you don’t know that, this article probably won’t help you). So I ordered it (it being the Kindle 2, not the Dustbuster; I do learn from my mistakes). Actually, I ordered 2. I am a gadget guy, and wanted to see for myself what all the fuss is about.

Both Kindle 2’s arrived last Tuesday. I had a really busy week so I haven’t had time yet to play much with mine. However, Devvie loves hers! While Devvie is a professor of computer science, she’s really not that interested in gadgets, her focus being programming, not hardware. However, Devvie loves to read.

The Kindle 2 does not have a backlit screen. Since Devvie likes to read in bed and I have trouble falling to sleep if she leaves the bedside lamp on, I bought her the Mighty Bright XtraFlex2 Clip-On Light pictured on the left. It’s only $12.95, and it’s quite good. I recommend it.

I’d also recommend a cover to protect your expensive Kindle 2 (which does not come with a case). I bought Devvie the Amazon Kindle 2 Leather Cover. Just to be different, I bought the Patagonia Book Case for Kindle 2 to protect my Kindle 2. I like both covers.

I’ll write more about the Kindle 2 when I’ve had the time to play more with it. However, I’ve already used the Kindle 2 to rehearse an oral argument that I gave in a case before the California Second District Court of Appeal during the week (I said it was a busy week). In that vein, I plan to write about using the Kindle 2 to store and read work papers (letters, legal briefs, etc.), especially those not already in a Kindle readable format. Until then …