TL;DR at the bottom.

Hi all. I came across this forum when trying to determine whether or not I should buy an eReader -- as an avid bibliophile with plenty of time on my hands to read, friends have told me that I'm an excellent candidate for one.

What I've looked at, and what my impressions are:

I've looked at the following devices in-store: Kobo Touch, Kobo Glo, Kobo Aura, Sony T2, Sony T3, Kindle, Kindle Paperwhite. I've read several books on my friend's Kindle Keyboard -- she loaned it to me for several weeks so that I could properly experience it, as I wouldn't 'get a feel for it' just looking at demo units. I read the first five Harry Potter books before giving it back. I've also borrowed a friend's Sony T1 to read Neil Gaiman's American Gods.

So, I have at least limited exposure to a large number of eReaders. When sitting and reading, I preferred the Sony device. However, when navigating to books and otherwise interacting with menu and settings options, I thought that the Kindle was a lot more intuitive. My friends also showed me how to use the devices both wirelessly and through USB; the Kindle was easier to pick up quickly, but I've gotten the hang of both of them. I did not like the Kobo devices that I looked at in store.

My needs, and why I'm unwilling to make the plunge:

I know that this is something that you hear all the time, because my eReading friends roll their eyes and groan when I say it: I'm a tactile reader. It's easier to absorb myself in a paper book than it is to absorb myself in an eBook. The screens surprised me -- they certainly don't look like screens, but I still don't get into "reading mode" when I use eReaders. I'm too aware that I'm using an electronic device. I don't associate reading and electronics, so I need to employ greater focus to pay attention to an eReader.

I'm a regular library patron. I live in a rural community, and our library system doesn't provide eBook lending. This system is the system used for the libraries within a ~100km radius, and I am simply not willing to join libraries father away; I'm supporting my community by using this library system, and it's convenient. I enjoy browsing the aisles, sitting in the library to read, and engaging my librarians. I worry that if I pursued an eReader, it would either deter me from using my library, or sit on a shelf gathering dust in favour of library usage.

I can't browse online! I've created an Amazon account specifically for the purpose of browsing the Kindle store. I don't shop online unless I know exactly what I want to buy as it is; I find online cataloguing systems bloated and messy. When I go to the library or to a brick and mortar store, I have plenty of visual and spatial queues to aid my browsing, as well as staff members who know my tastes and engage me in discussions. When browsing Amazon (or Book Depository, when I've gone there for paper books), I find myself wading through endless lists of books I have no interest in, and eventually filtering down so rigidly that I've only got lists of authors I'm already familiar with.

(The romance genre, for instance, is full of absolute dreck on Amazon, and I inevitably find myself filtering down to Diana Gabaldon and a few similar authors; that's no way to browse! It takes me hours to make no progress, and I'm not happy about that.)

My needs, and why I'm strongly considering making a purchase:

Despite all of this, I am leaning more towards buying an eReader. They do look cool, and they are fun, even if I hate online shopping and I can't borrow library books in my area. One of the biggest reasons that I'm considering buying an eReader is for series compilation: It was a surprisingly good feeling to finish one Harry Potter book and move straight to the next one, especially as I wasn't at home! Had I been reading on paper, I'd have had to wait until I got home to pick up the next book.

I do read a few public domain titles, and high quality translations or publication runs can really climb in price, which is unfortunate -- I'm just unwilling to spend $25 on an extremely readable print run of Moby-Dick when I now know that I can choose my own font on an eReader! (I don't know if it's common, but the public domain books I've been exposed to tend to have tiny, grainy fonts -- moreso than others.) Though I despise Project Gutenberg for the purpose of readability, Delphi Classics is a place where I'd invest my money with enthusiasm!

I read a lot of genre fiction, and I prefer hardcovers over paperbacks, and while I'm having trouble browsing for it, when I already know titles and authors to search for, the eBooks are often cheaper than the hardcover books -- notable examples are the Warcraft novels, the Forgotten Realms novels and, surprisingly, the Black Library novels (where I've found bundles that equate to $8 per eBook, where the paper books are $15-25 each).

TL;DR: I've tried the three major brands. Cons: Books are a tactile experience, my library doesn't loan eBooks, and I hate online browsing. Pros: Series management, public domain title access, cheap genre fiction.

So what do you think? Should I take the plunge? I'm a student, so even the cheapest Kindle is an expense that I can only make if I know I'll use the device.