e-Reader Envy
I am a recent convert to the e-reader, and by recent I mean last week.
Despite having covered the category for the past several months, I never seriously considered buying one until a few weeks ago.
I suppose I was being a bit of a curmudgeon on the topic. I dearly love books. I love holding them, shopping for them and storing them on my bookshelf at home. Once stored, books, to me, are pieces of art that double as a window into my personality.
What changed my mind, as is usually the case, was cost. Amazon and Barnes & Noble’s recent price war that pushed the price of a basic e-reader down to $149 — and the fact that the average cost of an e-book is significantly lower than the paper version — gave me a reason to pause and reconsider objections of mine to the new device.
I eventually took the plunge and settled on B&N’s Nook. Since my first book purchase on July 7, I have totally fallen for this gizmo.
What I am now trying to discover is whether the Kindle, Nook and iPad will truly replace paper.
Should every publication, including TWICE, be available in this format? Will our readers still love us and will advertisers be willing to buy space in a digital edition of TWICE?
Two weeks ago I would have said no, but now I cannot think of a reason why a print publication would not make itself available in this new format.
These e-readers simply make life too easy for the publishing industry to ignore.
While it lacks the artistry of a paper book, the fact that I never have to worry about running out of something to read ever again is amazingly liberating.
Dozens of times I’ve finished a book just before getting on a flight, or my train home, without the time to pick up something new.
Never again.
If I want a book, it’s only a matter of a few minutes to search and I’m done. If I want something even faster, I can buy a copy of The New York Times, Washington Post or about a dozen other papers for 99 cents.
And on top of it all, it is a lot easier to read something on an e-reader than on my BlackBerry.
So what do you, the TWICE reader, think? Would you be interested in receiving TWICE in this fashion?
Bill Matthies commented:
Coincidence. I too joined the eReader crowd just last Friday with a Kindle DX Graphite, and like you, have all the same reservations regarding my love of books, both reading and collecting them (that is until I have to clean and/or move them.)
The book thing works but I also wanted periodical capability. I subscribe to print LA Times, Wall Street Journal, Road & Track, and The Economist. I went with Kindle (both my adult sons have Nooks) because of their more extensive newspaper/magazine list, but quickly found out there are big limitations having to do with abridged content (subscribers of The Economist rate it a 2 out of 5, largely because of this), and due to the lack of ability to share subscriptions. For example, while two people can share the same book on two Kindles, if purchased on the same account, you can't do that with a newspaper (both have to not only buy their own Kindle, but also their own subscription.) And Kindle newspaper/magazine content does a poor job at best with graphics, which rules out Road & Track and even The Economist for that matter (TWICE too no doubt.)
But this will likely get worked out as publishers come to grips with what consumers expect, both for the content as well as their right to use it.
Glenna Hess commented:
My Husband felt the same way - and he is in no way techo savy - a true paper/leather book owner. We bought a nook for father's day. He is figuring it out for himself, that's a new one. He loves it - so now the nook goes on vacation this week. We won't have to worry about running out of reading material or carting around several pounds of books.
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