E-readers: a waste of time, or a good, convenient way to read?
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e-readers have been around for a while now, and are getting more sophisticated, with more competitive prices. You still have to buy a lot of books/magazines to make up for the initial outlay though. I'm starting a post-grad course, so have bought one as it will be a LOT more convenient to carry my text books on, but doubt i would have done so if that hadn't been a factor. Thoughts?
Answers (11)
E-readers are a useful tool easily taken with you light and compact a lot easier than a bag full of books and they come into there own when applied to course studies.
i dont think they are worth it, you can buy a netbook which weighs about the same for cheaper and has more options :) good luck with your post-grad course! whats it in? :)
Thanks, it is in management. I've got a mac laptop, but that isn't particularly convenient for reading (holding it on the tube/eye strain) but I know what you mean, if it had been an either/or situation, I'd have had to go with the more versatile piece of equipment.
oo cool! im doing my undergrad in business management with french :) yeah ive only been to london once and while i loved the tube i cant imagine trying to read on it! :D
I can't read from them. On a journey etc I like reading a book, an actual book! Tried my girlfriends one she bought from waterstones, and I was nearly sick in the car. There's something about it that brings on motion sickness. SO no, not good for me, a complete waste of time-I'd rather have my book!!
I think apple has brought out some lovely products and some great ideas, but ibooks? Really?! Surely someone was just joking about this in the boardroom which was mistakenly took serious.
lol about iBooks, I just think they couldn't bear to not dominate a digital market! I know what you mean about reading actual books, you can't really beat it (and you can lend them, which you can't do with most e-books). But the idea of being able to have my library with me wherever I go is very attractive. But if it makes you ill, then they clearly haven't go the product right for you...
Well exactly!! I love looking att my bookshelf. There's something about it that attracts me to it. You can't have an ereader sat there instead. It ruins the whole point of reading. Don't you think we're relying on technology a little too much??
Referring to your question posted about the ipad. I think that is where the ipad would take over the market of E-readers.
I've seen them and their ugly, no style and the screen is way to small, especially in black and white text.
Just to note: I'm not a heavy reader, but wouldn't it be very uncomfortable for eye concentration to focus so long on something so small?
One of the advantages of the e-reader is that you can modify the size of the text, definitely an advantage over a book, where some of them have absurdly small text.
i agree with you on this, De-Vale. I think the iPad would make it more comfortable reading, at least that was my impression when I was checking it out the other day.
I can see the point of you having one for your study text books, Kyra, that makes sense to me, but i'm afraid nothing feels, smells, comforts or pleases like an actual, real book with pages and covers and...sorry, am a book lover!
Yeah, same here, I read approx two a week, and while I like the idea of saving space, I've been having a think about what leisure books I would be prepared to go digital with... and not having much luck!
Ah, can see you're definitely a real book lover too then, and it's good to know i'm not the only person who gets through 2 books a week!
I don't think I would ever have bought one. They just seem to cost so much for what they are.
As it is, I only ever read when on holiday or exercising. To exercise, I need a big book that I can focus on, and it really wouldn't be worth buying an e-reader just for those occasional holidays.
I've discovered that I can download e-books to read on my new mobile phone, now. Since I already own the equipment, I might use that service one day, but I've found no need yet.
I just can't imagine that I will snuggle up in bed on a cold evening and read from an e-reader. It just has to be a book. I don't know why really - e-readers should be brilliant. I imagine that they would be wonderful when travelling - you could take 20 guide books and more novels than you could ever read which saves a lot of weight on a budget airline limit. Oh - I wouldn't take one to read on the beach either!
I was pondering on this when I was out and about earlier and remembered reading about a piece of recent research that shows that we read screens in a different way from the printed page. Apparently we scan screens in an 'L' shape and don't read all the lines properly. I have no idea why, but that's maybe why I prefer a book. Many of the best written novels use language in such an interesting way that I like to read and re-read parts in order to savour the use of words. I never do that when reading a screen and certainly skim much more than I would a book.
I am an avid reader but this certainly is not for me. I would not enjoy it, not even its light weight on my handbag as opposed of the ton that the book that I am reading now weighs (I tend to carry with me the book that I am reading at the moment for when I have some time in the middle of the day, or otherwise I will be very frustrated if I find myself in a coffee place or something without one).
I have heard from those that use it that it is great for when you are reading in bed. I can see the point of this, but still it would take some of the reading experience away from me.
I can certainly see the point if you needed to carry several books at once. That is the only circumstance in which I would use it myself.
I can certainly see how it could be much more convenient for you Kyra in these circumstances but I don't think I could justify the cost of one just now. I know a colleague at work has just got one and he is really impressed and I like the idea of being able to take one on holiday with me so I don't use up valuable space and weight by taking them. I love reading and do go through a lot of books and I must admit I love having books displayed on shelves. If they come down in price a bit then I would consider buying one just for holidays.
I can see how they are convenient, portable, space saving etc but for me nothing beats a good book. Also a shelf packed with books looks quite nice...
If you're using one for studying then it will be great as you won't have to carry loads of books around. Out of interest do you still buy the books but in electronic format? If so are they the same price?
hiya, yes, you buy the books in electronic format (don't think my uni library has an e-lending system yet) and they usually cost a little bit less than the print book, as they are still a relatively minor product and publishers want to push them. There is a lot of debate over what they should cost (they aren't printed so lots of people think they should be a lot cheaper, but they are more versatile and do have their own productions costs, so I am not convinced by that). Most e-books you can't lend to a friend, and you can't yet sell them on, both of which are big negatives for me. I too, love looking at my heaving bookshelves...
Not being able to lend them to friends or sell them on is rubbish. If you've paid for it you should be able to do what you want with it, you can lend/resell any other physical object. Textbooks are usually only useful while you are studying, I've not looked at mine since finishing.
I was listening to a programme the other day that said that they are selling really rapidly at the moment and are outstriping hardback books I think it was. Apparently they are working on adding in animations and musi or background noises to the stories. For me the whole beauty of a book is to use my own imagination. I don't want someone else putting in their ideas. No, I wouldn't buy one.
I know what you mean, I think there is a place for both, and that technology is providing us with new art forms, so it will be interesting to see where these interactive and multi-dimensional e-books go.
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