Touch eBook Stores for an Australian with a Kobo Touch

[molman]

As a relatively new Kobo Touch (KT) owner I'm curious where other Australians (AU) purchase their eBooks. There seems to be a lot of posts around that include stores that I’m unsure allow purchases for those of us in AU. On the flip side a lot of these lists/posts seem to neglect many other stores that are available to us. Anyway I'd be curious on peoples (from AU) feedback on not just what stores worked well, but just general experience as I know there are a few KT owners downunder.

Please note that I'm aware of vpn/geo/address shenanigans, and of certain file liberation that one can perform, but I'm just interested in stores that offer eBooks that will work as is for AU persons, without such workarounds.


Stores I've Used:

* Kobobooks [CA] - (www.kobobooks.com)
* The Book Depository [UK] (www.thebookdepository.com | www.thebookdepository.co.uk)


Stores that work in AU:

* Borders [AU] (www.borders.com.au)
* Angus & Robinson [AU] (http://www.angusrobertson.com.au/)
* Dymocks [AU] (http://www.dymocks.com.au/)
* eBooks [AU] (http://www.ebooks.com/)
* Booku [AU] (http://www.booku.com/)
* Read Without Paper [AU] (http://www.readwithoutpaper.com.au) <- site was down when I tried to visit (db error) so unsure of this one.
* WebScription eBooks (WebScription.net) - Sci-Fi / DRM-Free
* Smashwords [US] (http://www.smashwords.com/) - Indie / DRM-Free
* Diesel eBook Store [US] (http://www.diesel-ebooks.com/)
* BeWrite [CA] (http://www.bewrite.net/) - Indie Fiction & Poetry, DRM-Free


Stores I'm unsure if they work in AU (?):

* Powell's Books [US] (http://www.powells.com/)
* Books On Board [US] (http://www.booksonboard.com)
* Fictionwise [US] (http://www.fictionwise.com/)
* Google Books [US] (http://books.google.com/)
* Foyles [UK] (http://www.foyles.co.uk/)


Stores not available in AU:

* SONY Reader Store [US] (http://ebookstore.sony.com/)
* Borders [US] (www.borders.com)
* Barnes and Noble [US] (http://www.barnesandnoble.com/)
* Waterstone [UK] (http://www.waterstones.com/)
* WHSmith [UK] (http://www.whsmith.co.uk/)


Stores that don't support KT:

* Amazon Kindle Store [US] (www.amazon.com)
* Apple iBooks [US/AU] (iTunes)
* Readings [AU] (http://ebooks.readings.com.au/)


... the other annoying thing I've noticed is that the eBook search engines (I've tried) list prices and availability for those in US/UK. Are there any ones for an AU audience?

[amward]

Try Diesel ebooks, Smashwords and BeWrite books.

[molman]

Originally Posted by amward

Try Diesel ebooks, Smashwords and BeWrite books.

Thanks for the suggestions, but I was hoping people would be a little more verbose. I'm assuming all those sites work for persons located in AU. What has been your experience with those sites (assuming you have used them all), and what is attractive about them over those already listed?

[viviena]

WebScription.net. Useless if you don't like to read sci-fi, but if you do, they're great. DRM-free, choice of formats, $6 USD on average.

Smashwords I've used for buying indie works and backlisted works from published authors. Also DRM-free, choice of formats. Formatting can be a bit screwy, but not so bad as to affect the reading experience, and certainly not for all EPUBs either. Browsing is horrible, and Smashwords is best used if you already have a particular title in mind.

Borders AU has worked well for me, though I haven't used it recently and I don't know if being under new management has affected anything.

I haven't used Readings, but it's not worth considering, IMHO. The books you purchase from them are stored in the cloud and read through a browser or a mobile/tablet app.

[CazMar]

Apparently Borders Aust. online store has now been taken over by Pearsons (according to the email they sent me) and it seems to show the books I had already bought from Borders in my account. I might try them out, but will be very reluctant to go wild with spending until I feel that they are stable.
All the ereaders are showing as "out of stock", but books seem to be available. Probably too early to pass judgment on how they are performing as the takeover only happened a few days ago.
I have tried Bebooks - very good and NO DRM!!! A limited choice at the moment, but they are growing.

[molman]

@viviena: Cheers. Updated the list above, including moving Reading to non-KT support (wasn't aware it was only cloud reading - ick).

WebScription is the most interesting with a few authors I enjoy. It's curious though as a lot seen to have rather poor covers compared to print versions (and limited range for some authors). I'm guessing some of these authors had the rights to their works outside print in earlier contracts so are able to release their own ebooks (but don't have rights to the official covers used?).

Smashwords didn't have anything of note off the bat, but I probably need to give it a closer look.

Re: Borders AU. Considering it's powered by Kobobooks, and that is likely to continue for now I don't think it will be much different in the near future. Who knows, perhaps Pearson (new owners) will start releasing more Textbooks etc. as eBooks which would be nice for those in education.

[molman]

Originally Posted by CazMar

I have tried Bebooks - very good and NO DRM!!! A limited choice at the moment, but they are growing.

I thought they made eReaders? They have a store too?

Edit: Could only find some free book from BeBooks => http://mybebook.com/download_free_ebook/ ? curious where this commercial store is? Happy for suggestions of free sites for my own interest, but was really after getting a list of the commercial stores in this thread.

[CazMar]

Originally Posted by molman

I thought they made eReaders? They have a store too?

Arggghhh!! Yes, BeWrite , not Bebooks!!! Sorry. a long day and I think I need a brain transplant about now (or a large glass of wine!)

[molman]

Originally Posted by CazMar

Arggghhh!! Yes, BeWrite , not Bebooks!!! Sorry. a long day and I think I need a brain transplant about now (or a large glass of wine!)

Haha. No worries.

Whats the go with BeWrite? Seems like a small publishing group/label, more indie style fiction authors?

[FJames]

The Book Depository [UK] has recently been purchased by Amazon, so it may not be much of an alternative in the future.

[molman]

Originally Posted by FJames

The Book Depository [UK] has recently been purchased by Amazon, so it may not be much of an alternative in the future.

I guess we'll deal with things as they come, but at the moment it worked well for me. The had a book that Kobobooks didn't have at a price local eshops didn't match. Transaction and download was easy and painless.

[amward]

Originally Posted by molman

Thanks for the suggestions, but I was hoping people would be a little more verbose. I'm assuming all those sites work for persons located in AU. What has been your experience with those sites (assuming you have used them all), and what is attractive about them over those already listed?

Smashwords and BeWrite books are all DRM free which is a plus as far as I'm concerned. Diesel has the same sort of books as the Book Depository, fairly mainstream. A lot depends on the type of reading you do. Now that I have joined the Singapore library I don't expect to buy many books at all.

I have had no trouble using any of the sites and have bought from all of them. Smashwords probably has the most unattractive website. I guess a lot comes down to personal preference, you'll just have to do a lot of looking to see what suits you.

[amward]

Originally Posted by molman

Haha. No worries.

Whats the go with BeWrite? Seems like a small publishing group/label, more indie style fiction authors?

Yes, it is , but they also publish poetry and some nonfiction. The books are all well edited and formated which is not always the case with ebooks.

[molman]

@amward: thanks for the feedback. Added BeWrite and Diesel to the list above. Can't say I'm a huge fan of the BeWrite landing page, so style over funciton there, but it's ok once in.

Anyway I think its turning into a nice list for AU eBook owners. Still curious about the various stores that are unconfirmed to work or not in AU (WHSmith, Waterstone... etc..)

[viviena]

Originally Posted by molman

... the other annoying thing I've noticed is that the eBook search engines (I've tried) list prices and availability for those in US/UK. Are there any ones for an AU audience?

I was thinking of Booko.com.au. I used to rely on them heaps for printed books, and they appear to include ebooks in their searches now, though quite frankly searching for ebooks isn't very good yet. Still, according to their FAQ, they're open to adding more ebook stores.

Regarding Smashwords, it's only really a venue I use if there's indie works I've read about in a blog review, thought sounded interesting based on posts in MR's Author Self-Promotion forum, or have been recommended to me. Similarly with backlisted works. It's just too hard to find interesting books there if casually browsing or if typing a random title in.