Anyone tried an e-reader?

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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Coito ergo sum » Tue May 24, 2011 7:44 pm

Gawdzilla wrote:Still buying 1/3 of a computer.
...for a non-computer purpose, and at 1/3 the cost.
Gawdzilla wrote:
If you want to do anything else, you then have to carry 1.333333 computers, and pay 1.3333333 times the cost. Not seeing the advantage here. But carry on, fan boys, carry on.
Seeing the advantage would require acknowledging that the following are advantages:

1. The screen/e-ink - which to many folks is an advantage because it is easier and/or more pleasant to read from. It's much more "book-like" than a back-lit computer screen.

2. The single-purpose nature of the device, which is primarily for one thing - storing and reading books.

3. Some people already have computers which they don't wish to lug around, because what they want to do when traveling is carry something small instead of the book they would otherwise be carrying (but no longer have to). Some folks, like myself, rarely carry a laptop around because a laptop is essentially another bag to carry - a Nook is like a book, and I can just put it in the carryon I'm already carrying.

I have a good laptop and would not wish to have a netbook because it lacks a lot of computing power. If I'm going to have two devices, I'd rather have my laptop to use when I need it, and an ereader. If I have a laptop, I don't really want a netbook - I would rather just carry my laptop. The netbook doesn't really give me what I want in a computer, and would only be an additional device anyway.

Oh, and it's much easier to read a Nook in bed or laying on the couch than a laptop or a netbook. You hold the Nook in one hand, and press a button to turn the page. I can't see how the netbook can work well that way.

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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Tue May 24, 2011 8:57 pm

Single-purpose. You say that like it's a good thing. :funny:

Oh, and the tremendous weight of a net book certain isn't a point in my favor, fer shure. :roll:
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Callan » Tue May 24, 2011 9:42 pm

I likes the convenience (and the freeness!) of Kindle for PC, but I can't see myself buying a mobile device any time soon - too wedded to the Cult of the Book, I'm afraid.

I love the idea of being able to have all books from all eras available online, but at the same time, I would hate to see the total demise of all paper-bound books.
Maybe I'd like to see modern fiction published online, but the "classics" of literature always available on paper? Much like downloads and vinyls in the music world, I guess.

Yes, yes - I am a Luddite, and I am not ashamed.
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Tue May 24, 2011 9:45 pm

Callan wrote:I likes the convenience (and the freeness!) of Kindle for PC, but I can't see myself buying a mobile device any time soon - too wedded to the Cult of the Book, I'm afraid.

I love the idea of being able to have all books from all eras available online, but at the same time, I would hate to see the total demise of all paper-bound books.
Maybe I'd like to see modern fiction published online, but the "classics" of literature always available on paper? Much like downloads and vinyls in the music world, I guess.

Yes, yes - I am a Luddite, and I am not ashamed.
:lol:
I've spent literally thousands of hours converting paper books to soft copy. But I still like paper books for myself.
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Coito ergo sum » Tue May 24, 2011 9:48 pm

Gawdzilla wrote:Single-purpose. You say that like it's a good thing. :funny:

Oh, and the tremendous weight of a net book certain isn't a point in my favor, fer shure. :roll:
It is, actually. Most folks who own an ereader only want it for the purpose of reading books. That's why they like the screen to be in black-and-white mimicking a book.

I didn't say the netbook had tremendous weight. It is simply bulkier than an ereader, and as I mentioned you can't lay on the couch or in bed and read a netbook like you do an ereader, and it's much better to read an ereader on the beach than it is to read a netbook on the beach. And, if one is traveling on a plane, one can toss the ereader in one's carryon easily.

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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Tue May 24, 2011 9:56 pm

Coito ergo sum wrote:
Gawdzilla wrote:Single-purpose. You say that like it's a good thing. :funny:

Oh, and the tremendous weight of a net book certain isn't a point in my favor, fer shure. :roll:
It is, actually. Most folks who own an ereader only want it for the purpose of reading books. That's why they like the screen to be in black-and-white mimicking a book.

I didn't say the netbook had tremendous weight. It is simply bulkier than an ereader, and as I mentioned you can't lay on the couch or in bed and read a netbook like you do an ereader, and it's much better to read an ereader on the beach than it is to read a netbook on the beach. And, if one is traveling on a plane, one can toss the ereader in one's carryon easily.
Single-purpose is not a selling point, it's a handicap.

So far you have "beach" and "bright sunshine" (ergo, rather redundant) in the advantage column. The netbook we have here weights twice what a Nook does, and still comes in under five pounds. BFD.
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Ayaan » Tue May 24, 2011 10:01 pm

Almost all of my recent fiction purchases have been e-books. I have a Nook e-reader and love it - I can carry around a library in about the space of one paperback book. However, most of my nonfiction is still in the form of paper books.
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Tue May 24, 2011 10:03 pm

Ayaan wrote:Almost all of my recent fiction purchases have been e-books. I have a Nook e-reader and love it - I can carry around a library in about the space of one paperback book. However, most of my nonfiction is still in the form of pyramids of paper books.
:fix:
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Ayaan » Tue May 24, 2011 10:08 pm

Gawdzilla wrote:
Ayaan wrote:Almost all of my recent fiction purchases have been e-books. I have a Nook e-reader and love it - I can carry around a library in about the space of one paperback book. However, most of my nonfiction is still in the form of pyramids of paper books.
:fix:
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by klr » Tue May 24, 2011 10:08 pm

TBH, I think if you want to compare an e-reader with any sort of "multi-function" device, then it should be an Internet tablet, not a netbook.
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Coito ergo sum » Tue May 24, 2011 10:18 pm

Gawdzilla wrote:
Coito ergo sum wrote:
Gawdzilla wrote:Single-purpose. You say that like it's a good thing. :funny:

Oh, and the tremendous weight of a net book certain isn't a point in my favor, fer shure. :roll:
It is, actually. Most folks who own an ereader only want it for the purpose of reading books. That's why they like the screen to be in black-and-white mimicking a book.

I didn't say the netbook had tremendous weight. It is simply bulkier than an ereader, and as I mentioned you can't lay on the couch or in bed and read a netbook like you do an ereader, and it's much better to read an ereader on the beach than it is to read a netbook on the beach. And, if one is traveling on a plane, one can toss the ereader in one's carryon easily.
Single-purpose is not a selling point, it's a handicap.
It would be a handicap if the advantage of the e-ink, non-back-lit screen were present in a multifunction device. I.e., if an ipad or a tablet can also have an e-ink screen, then you would be correct. However, multifunction devices lack the one function that a Nook actually provides: a paper-like screen. You may have a device with as many functions as a swiss army knife has tools, but it doesn't do what a Nook does.
Gawdzilla wrote:
So far you have "beach" and "bright sunshine" (ergo, rather redundant) in the advantage column. The netbook we have here weights twice what a Nook does, and still comes in under five pounds. BFD.
Weight: a Nook weighs about 12 ounces. Most netbooks weigh almost 3 times that.
Weight is not the only, or even the primary, issue. Bulk - volume - is also an issue. A Nook is the same size as a book, which is what people are buying the Nook to replace. That's why it's easier to transport - you just put it in a carryon, whereas a netbook has to be its own carryon.
Yes, beach and bright lighted spaces are advantages.
However, you have ignored the advantages of reading while laying on the couch and while laying in bed - you can read a Nook EXACTLY like you would read a book. That's what the Nook is for - replacing a book. A netbook is something you have to place on a flat surface or put in your lap and sit up. Lots of people recline or lay down when they read books.
Cost: the current Nook costs $99 and a Kindle about $114. The new Nook costs $139. The Nook is the price of 4 hardback new releases, or 10 or so paperpacks. Most ebooks cost about 1/3 of what the paper price is. If someone is an avid reader, the thing pays for itself in a matter of months. Plus, you can back up your library just like a music library.

A netbook, on the other hand typically has no CD holder, and has limited memory and storage capacity. It falls short of the functionality of even a crappy laptop, and doesn't do what a Nook or a Kindle e-ink device does. They aren't comparable devices. When a tablet gets e-ink capability, then you'd have a point, because then that tablet would be able to do what the Nook does, plus other things.

Your argument is basically this:

You: "You bought that coffee maker? Bah! That's lame, all it does is make coffee! Look here! I have this food processor that can slice, dice, grind, mince, pulverize and even make julian fries!"

Me: "But, ummm... your food processor doesn't make coffee..."

You: "Yeah, but your stupid coffee maker ONLY makes coffee. Mine can slice, dice, grind, mince, pulverize and make fries!"

Me: "But, umm... I don't want my coffee maker to do those things."

You: "Your device is stupid."

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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Tue May 24, 2011 10:24 pm

Sorry, rationalizations don't impress me.
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Coito ergo sum » Tue May 24, 2011 10:30 pm

Gawdzilla wrote:Sorry, rationalizations don't impress me.
Because you are irrational.

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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by Gawdzilla Sama » Tue May 24, 2011 10:30 pm

Okay, then.
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Re: Anyone tried an e-reader?

Post by klr » Tue May 24, 2011 10:32 pm

I'm much more inclined to agree with CES on this one - shock, horror! :hehe:

But I won't be buying an e-reader anytime soon, not leased because I don't think there's a suitable licensing/usage model yet.
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