Quote:
Originally Posted by Mathlete
I agree completely. Epaper is a luxury item at the moment with too many drawbacks to be considered a "solution" for people who just want to read for fun. There are many people on these forums who say that they need this technology because of its convenience or (what is even more ridiculous) that it will save them money in the long term.
It wont. It wont because anyone who buys one of these things is the type of person who makes frivolous purchases. We will buy more ebooks than we can read (before this you probably bought more paper books than you could read...you know, just to have them), upgrade devices within two years—if that long, and pay for repairs when the flimsy screens inevitably shatter.
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Everyone is different. For example, the OP is a very fast reader so the slow page turns alone, of this gen reader, make e-readers a no-go. And he has other issues that make it a poor purchasing decision for him.
Your argument is to describe a caricature of a person you don't seem to like (frivolous purchaser, buys more books than they can read, don't really mean it when they say they appreciate convenience, and are ridiculous in saying it saves them money).
Here's my personal value proposition:
+ Calibre magazines and newspapers - already worth $100, and more every day. (OK, minus the $30 I donated to Kovid.)
+ approximately 50 4.5-star and 5-star ebooks given out free by Sony and others (using Amazon customer ratings from 1 to 5 stars) - worth about $50 to me.
+ lack of print clutter around the house - worth about $50 to me.
+ easy access to Classics (I'm less likely to read them on my PDA or get hard cover editions from my library) - worth at least $50 to me, as I'm enjoying more classics every day.
+ Bookit web captures (like Plucker for the PDA) - worth about $50 to me, captures web tutorials and such.
+ Consolidation of PDF info I use a lot, like schedules, etc., in one place - worth about $10 to me.
Minor pluses and minuses:
+ multiple reading material in the same small device, e.g., can easily switch between Sports Illustrated and a book.
- another gadget to charge and tend to.
I still use the public library for some print editions (free is good). And prefer paperbacks for traveling and the beach (no worrying about a valuable).
My Sony Reader cost $200 + ~$80 protection plan and charger and memory card expansion. I didn't actually total the above until now, and see the Sony Reader's value is a wash: also $280. Currently not convincing, but certainly not ridiculous.