Comparing ebook vs pbook prices

[ApK]

Assume we're talking about a book that you are interested in buying, and if there was no paper edition to compare to, you would indeed be buying the ebook at the offered price.

Several threads about e-book vs. dead-tree-book price and value going on.

This has probably be polled before, but as the ebook/ereadrer market continues to grow and evolve, it's worth revisiting.

Please see if you can legitimately fit your opinion into one of the specified choices before choosing "Other" but if "other" it must be, please explain in a post.

Thanks!

ApK

[ghostyjack]

Uhh, where's the poll?

[ApK]

Originally Posted by ghostyjack

Uhh, where's the poll?

It's there. Geesh. Give me time to type, 'kay!?

[HarryT]

I really don't give a damn what the paper book costs. If I'm buying an ebook, it's the ebook price that interests me (not that I'm particularly price conscious when it comes to books - I regularly buy $50+ "coffee table" paper books).

[ilovejedd]

I chose "Other". If the price of an ebook is under $10, I'd buy it even if the paperback version costs less. If it's over $10 (usually for new releases), if the hardcover is cheaper than the ebook, I'd be more likely to wait for prices to go down unless it's a title that I really, really, really want.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I really don't give a damn what the paper book costs. If I'm buying an ebook, it's the ebook price that interests me (not that I'm particularly price conscious when it comes to books - I regularly buy $50+ "coffee table" paper books).

I assume the real purpose of that big Microsoft Surface table was to offer a platform for coffee table ebooks....

[HarryT]

They're mainly art books. Devoted though I am to ebooks, it's going to be a long time before they can compete with high-quality photography in large-format paper books.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

I chose "Other". If the price of an ebook is under $10, I'd buy it even if the paperback version costs less. If it's over $10 (usually for new releases), if the hardcover is cheaper than the ebook, I'd be more likely to wait for prices to go down unless it's a title that I really, really, really want.

Interesting. What happens at $10 that makes the pbook a factor?
It almost sounds like you are using the hardcover as a governor to try keep your spending under control, and if the hardcovers weren't there, you'd go on a crazy book-buying spree.

[gweeks]

It's highly dependent on the book. Most fiction I don't have physical room for anymore. There are a few exceptions. If it's something I don't want paper for and they want to charge more for the ebook, I'll just skip the book. I also refuse to buy DRMed ebooks. My TBR pile is years deep at this point, so it's not like skipping something really matters to me.

Greg

In my mind, it really depends upon the book. Non-fiction and reference works are worth more in my mind, both in terms of utility and long-term use. So I'll buy the format that I think will be more useful as long as the prices are within 20% or so. If the difference is more than 20%, I'll go for the cheaper one.

Fiction is different though. I value some fiction, but most of it is purely entertainment in my mind. This means that I'm virtually all of my purchases are second hand copies. Since there are no second-hand ebooks, the prices virtually always drive me to pbooks.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by BWinmill

In my mind, it really depends upon the book. Non-fiction and reference works are worth more in my mind, both in terms of utility and long-term use. So I'll buy the format that I think will be more useful as long as the prices are within 20% or so. If the difference is more than 20%, I'll go for the cheaper one.

That sounds like it would fit the first poll option best. The poll gives me a limited number of characters in which to express the idea that the content drives the format choice and the price could then a driving factor to choose one format over another, which seems to be what you're saying.

[ucfgrad93]

I buy ebooks only. It doesn't matter what the price of the paper book is, I'm not going to buy it. My limit for ebooks is $10, if it is more than that it goes on my wish list until the price comes down.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by ucfgrad93

I buy ebooks only. It doesn't matter what the price of the paper book is, I'm not going to buy it. My limit for ebooks is $10, if it is more than that it goes on my wish list until the price comes down.

It's always seemed a little curious to me to set an absolute limit. For me it depends on how much I want to read it. I can't imagine not buying a new book by one of my favourite authors because it cost $10.01 rather than $10. You'd deprive yourself of a book you really wanted to read for the sake of 1c?

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by ApK

Interesting. What happens at $10 that makes the pbook a factor?

At $9.99 or lower, it falls into impulse buy territory and with ebooks, I don't have to worry about not having storage space.

Originally Posted by ApK

It almost sounds like you are using the hardcover as a governor to try keep your spending under control, and if the hardcovers weren't there, you'd go on a crazy book-buying spree.

The thing is I almost never buy hardcover books. I'm generally happy to wait for the cheaper and smaller paperback release. I only buy hardcover when it's a title I really, really want to read right away (and there are very few of those). I'm actually buying new releases more often now since the ebooks tend to sell at $12.99 or so and I don't have to worry about not having space to store them. However, when I can get the hardcover for $14-16 and the ebook is $18-20, I usually put on the brakes on purchasing.

I go on crazy book-buying sprees regardless. The hardcovers are just my barometer for determining the prices I'd be willing to pay.

In general:
<$10: buy
$10~15: needs some thought
>$15: most likely a no with some exceptions

For obvious reasons, reference books are an exception to the above rule.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by HarryT

It's always seemed a little curious to me to set an absolute limit. For me it depends on how much I want to read it. I can't imagine not buying a new book by one of my favourite authors because it cost $10.01 rather than $10. You'd deprive yourself of a book you really wanted to read for the sake of 1c?

I'll sometimes set an "absolute limit" for stuff like bidding on ebay, but as a responsible adult, I'm free to bend my rule on a case by case basis in accordance with my judgment. It's just a mechanism to help control irrational spending impulses (a governor, as I mentioned above).
Do you, ucfgrad93, perhaps do the same, or are you more rigid about it?