I got mine a couple of days ago, and this is my first Kindle. I bought one each for my wife and I after sitting beside someone on a plane who was evangelizing about her K1 to me.
Here are my impressions:
1. I told a friend that this is my iPod for books. I absolutely LOVE it. I would swear that the packaging was made up by the same folks that did the original iPod boxes. Very similar.
2. Reading on it is great and easy on the eyes. For those asking about why no backlight, this article by David Pogue gives you a good idea, a review of the Sony e-reader with backlight:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/26/technology/personaltech/26pogue-email.html
3. I was listening to MacBreak Weekly, and Andy Ihnatko made a good observation - "like a giant iPhone for Andre the Giant". Not having had a K1, all I can say is this one is easy to use, and intuitive for reading books. Can't say I care for the keyboard though - I have big fingers. The web surfing and internet features kind of make you feel like you are on dialup instead of broadband. I've never been a fan of "mobile" alternate pages for web access, so the internet is kind of ugly - not like the "almost real without flash" internet on the iPhone. I guess it is useful in a pinch, but would not be my device of choice.
4. The wireless access to the Amazon store is just genius. Just think if your iPod touch came with this kind of access! (gee, who would buy an iphone then?). My only hope is that the access stays free, which it is now, but could change per the ULA. Another nice feature is being able to buy something online at the Amazon store, and knowing it will be on my Kindle very shortly. The drop down on the store even allows you to say which Kindle you want it sent to if you have more than one. Now if I could just get my recommendations from Amazon to reflect my tastes instead of all the Mysteries my wife has already bought!
5. The cover is OK, but I will be shopping for a new one soon. The kind of dumb thing about it is that it does not have even one pocket on the inside. I know it is supposed to be like a book, but I stick things in books I am reading too. A pocket for business cards and one for slightly bigger things would be way useful.
6. Being able to have one library of books shared between up to 6 Kindles is also a good move. This takes care of my 22 year old med school son's griping that now he won't be able to share books with me - that is when I get him his own. My 9 year old wants one now too!
7. The "text to speech" is OK in a pinch too, and will probably be a great help to those with sight disabilities, but it is still a computer voice - not a bad one. While better than Hal, anyone who also loves Audiobooks like I do will not even be tempted to use this as a substitute. I grew up with "Radio Mystery Theater" and love a well-performed or read audio book. This feature is like listening to the science teacher from the "Wonder Years" read.
Of course it is a new gadget, and I am a gadget lover. I will say that my normal routine when I get home is to grab my MacBook and surf, catch up with friends, etc. This is the first time I have picked up my MacBook since I got the Kindle. The other nice thing is that it is very easy to carry with me anywhere. While my MacBook is not huge, I don't carry it with me to the office and use it on my break, or think about having it with me constantly when I go out. I am carrying the kindle with me everywhere, and using it whenever I get a spare moment - just like my iPod, but I don't need to worry about plugging my ears in.
I expect that I will now read MORE just because it is so easy to get new books, have them handy, and not take up more space. My bookcase is full, we have literal containers of books in the basement, so I feel better about that now too.
Any questions, feel free to fire away, but I am as happy I bought this as my first iPod (also a 2g device). Apple gave this up too soon to Amazon, and if Steve Jobs really thought "people just don't read anymore" I think he was either sadly mistaken, or playing the fox and the grapes.
