Yep. It's official. Sony Reader has "ruined" books for me. A final "review."
 

So I finally got my replacement Sony Reader in. My first one had a few problems, namely a big FAT reverse-polarity/stuck pixel right in the centre of the screen, and also, the "reset" pinhole button got broken, somehow. It got pushed INTO the system, making the power button all "floppy" (best way to describe that). Somehow, the spring that the power button employs for it to return to place - got broken.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, I received my replacement yesterday.

And here's where my tale begins.

I got into bed last night, and whipped it out (the Reader, ahem). I hadn't connected it to my computer; I hadn't charged it; I hadn't used the Connect Software (kind of dreading that, hah!). But I thought to myself, I want to read 1984 , since I haven't yet (yes, yes, I'm a bad person I know).

I enjoyed reading it. I got to page 84, in fact, before my eyes became weary from the chores of the day. Wow, I got sleepy reading an e-book. How did that happen?

Somewhere between page 1 and page 84, I forgot I was using an electronic device. Somewhere between page 1 and page 84, I forgot that I was resting my "book" on the bed and didn't need to hold it open like a traditional book (p-book?). I completely took for granted that the text was "flat" and not curving as when you hold a paperback book open and the book curves around from the pressure of your hands.

I found myself instinctively looking for my bookmark before I closed my eyes and entered dreamland at last, but realized that physical bookmarks, for me at least, are a thing of the past.

This morning, I woke up, and picked up my Reader. Yes, I really hadn't imagined reading almost 100 pages on it last night. Yes, it really was that good.

Perhaps the reason I was so underwhelmed with this e-ink device is because it is so underwhelming. How easy is it to get excited by an electronic black and white page? When was the last time you picked up a book and said, "Wow, this looks like a page?" And this is exactly why the Reader is phenomenal.

And that's really it.

I love it. I'm keeping it. Nobody can pry it away from my hands. I'll be enjoying more of 1984 tonight, and perhaps, at some point, I'll get around to putting some of my own books on it, at which point the reading activity can only get more enjoyable, right?

I've been working my way through my book collection now quite quickly since I'm off work on medical leave. I can't see me switching back to paper any time soon. Reading on it is so natural you just don't think about it.

One thing I'd really like to see made is a remote control (wired or RF) for changing the page. I've got so used to propping up the reader and getting comfortable that it's become a chore to move my arm to press the page button. It's lazy I know but still, it'd be a nice idea.

Yup, that's it exactly, you've nicely summed up the beauty and the beast of the thing all at once. :grin:

I enjoyed your review very much, and how true! Maybe the best technologies are those that enhance our lives but 'disappear' into the background of day-to-day experiences.
You know, with so much video bling-bling zipping around nowadays there really is something satisfying in plain ol' boring black print.

Congrats on getting one without a stuck pixel! I was pullin' for ya!

:crowngrin

Your title threw me at first - I though you meant it had ruined the experience for you and you were giving up on it. How nice to see I was mistaken. :)

I'm so glued to my Reader......it's propped up against the sink when I brush my teeth in the morning. Colleagues at work tease me about staring at it as I walk down the hall for coffee in the mornings :)

So many places where I can prop it up and not need a hand keeping a book open!

This is so addictive it probably will be ban! ^_^

Just picked mine up ... 55 minutes ago, lol. The display looks awesome. Installed the Connect software on my PC, wish I didn't have to... getting my Gutenberg reading list ready to load onto it. I loaded one txt book just to see how it looked, it looks fine... looking forward to my next flight for the first time in years... As a fellow with a constantly growing (and already huge) library, I can't begin to tell you how much I like this thing already. Sony - add text search and I'll be in heaven...

Same here! Hey you should write thrillers!

I agree. The reading experience is completely transparent. There are fewer words on a single page than there are in a regular p-book which increases the frequency of paging. This, in turn, gives the reading experience more "momentum".

Well, that's a positive view of it, Laurens, good show! :beam:

And yes, you got me with your title too, WilliamG. :grin:

I really love this thing too.

At the office sometimes I read at my desk. I can just leave it sitting flat and read it perfectly. The amazing thing is that it is so unassuming, nobody even notices it. It blends into a office of pdas and cell phones real well. It looks like it's a tool I'm using to get work done, but it's not. Imagine if I had a big fat scifi novel sitting there. I would get eyed immediately cause that is something u bring to the beach with u, not to the office. I used to bring a novel and keep it hidden in my pants and read it when I went to the bathroom. This thing is really gold.

sfrenald - lol, great post! This stealth use had never occured to me. And the novel hidden in pants is great. Of course I work in a library and so books are not so out of place (never time to read though! )

Luckily I am allowed to read at work (I work in a financial services call center and depending on the time of year we can have fifteen minutes between calls). It's a slow time of year right now and it would be unbearable if I couldn't read. I can have as many as 10 books going at once, switching depending on my mood. How in the world could I do that with physical books? I love my Sony.