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Originally Posted by nowthenmobile
Thank you Bookworm_Girl.
You talk about being able to shop around and for best prices; have you found that you can buy cheaper than Amazon? I have only done a few comparisons but so far Amazon seem to be significantly cheaper than say WH Smith or Waterstones.
You say that you read a lot of elibrary books; do you get them from your local library or have you somehow managed to enrol in lots?
I think that I am leaning away from Amazon. It seems that a lot of people have the Sony but I think the price will be a little too steep for me. If I buy another eReader that can read ePUBs will I be able to shop at the same stores that Sony owners do?
Can you suggest an alternative to Sony that is cheaper?
Thanks
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Yes, the prices of ereaders in the UK is quite high, and I sympathize with you! That was ultimately why my English friend went with the Kindle 3 Wifi-only version.
I get my ebooks from my local library. I am very fortunate that I live in an area where the local city libraries have pooled together into one large website that serves the entire county and therefore a very large population. Thus the selection of ebooks is quite excellent.
WH Smith and Waterstones are probably the most popular ebook sites in the UK. Some publishers like Penguin UK also sell direct on their website. Kobobooks.com is a Canadian company and might have a good selection for UK users. I buy frequently from their website. Other companies in the US are booksonboard.com, ebooks.com and booksamillion.com just to name a few of the more popular options. But as I said before, there will be geographic restrictions because a US bookseller can't sell every ebook to a non-US resident. It's not the booksellers fault. It's the publisher that says what countries the bookseller can sell certain books too.
The Sony UK website has some info on where to find ebooks. It also has a UK library finder that might help you.
http://www.sony.co.uk/hub/reader-want/6/2
From what I know from helping my friend, Amazon UK often does have the cheapest prices. It's not always the case in the US. We have what is called "agency pricing". Certain big publishers have told the booksellers that they must sell their ebooks for a set price, no discounts or sales allowed. Thus many ebooks are priced the exact same at all the booksellers. Agency pricing hasn't come to the UK yet, but the publishers are trying to implement it. There have been many articles in the UK news recently on this subject. Hachette seems to be the first publisher in the UK attempting to implement agency pricing.
In the US the Nook Wifi and Kobo are popular low-cost options to the Sony. Somebody who lives in the UK would be better than me to offer suggestions of other ereaders. Yes, if you buy another EPUB ereader, you generally should be able to shop at the same stores as a Sony user if they say they are compatible with Adobe Digital Editions. I see that the WH Smith website sells Sony, Samsung and iRiver brands. It looks like Waterstones sells just Sony. I know that you can buy other ereaders from outside the UK, but I think the price increases significantly because of the import fees, exchange rates and 3rd party shipping companies you have to deal with. So I'm not sure it's worth it? Now you see why a lot of people in the UK have the Sony.
One thing that nobody has mentioned is that the Kindle has better magazine and newspaper options. You can buy individual editions or subscriptions. I will on occasion buy an issue of the Daily Mail on my Kindle. It's not many pictures and mostly text. However, it's pretty good for me to keep up to date with the British news. Easy access to newspapers was the other reason why my friend went with the Kindle. He doesn't subscribe to a print daily, and he travels out of country sometimes and wanted to see the news back home. You should look at the options on the Amazon UK website to see if that appeals to you.
I have had several Sony ereaders, and I also have a Kindle 3 Wifi only. I like them both. If you don't have library access and Amazon UK offers the cheapest books for you, then I don't think you can go wrong with a Kindle. I am a very analytical person as you can probably tell by my lengthy, detailed postings! I often get paralyzed making a decision because I have to research all the available information. I honestly and sincerely don't think you could go wrong with either option and will be happy with your decision either way.