|
I remember seeing a sony ereader at borders circa 2006. I played with it, but it didn't make much impression. It was a curiosity, nothing more. The price tag certainly precluded any thought of actually buying the thing. I was vaguely aware of the Kindle when it came out, but again, that price tag. I was also at the time still in the "I like the feel/smell/look/etc/ of actual books" camp. I guess I sort of thought of ereaders as a fad.
Fast forward to 2010 when I learned that the Kindle 3 wifi would be a mere $139. That price point seemed reasonable & got me thinking about the possibilities of ebooks. I had noticed real books' shortcomings - primarily the unwieldiness of them, as well as the difficulty in certain situations - i.e. for me, at lunchtime, trying to read while eating a sandwich. The possibility of obtaining for free the classics I always had intended to read was also an incentive as I became aware of sites like this one, Project Gutenburg, and Amazon's own free offerings.
Soon enough, having talked about the Kindle incessantly to my wife, she took the hint and got me one for my birthday. I loved it. I have never looked back, and now strongly prefer ebooks over paper, though I still check out plenty of library books when the library doesn't have the ebook or if I don't want to purchase it from amazon.
|