What was your ultimate reason for getting an E-Reader?

[mopping five]

For the last few years, every time I'd go to the bookstore I'd get all weepy because the books I was most interested in had type that was too small for me to read comfortably. It kept getting worse.

One day an employee asked if there was anything she could help me find and tears started just rolling down my face.

This embarrassed us both.

So I downloaded a bunch of books to read on my computer because I could change the type to any size I wanted.

But....it just didn't work.

So when the price of the nook and Kindle dropped to 'Hey! I can buy this!' levels, I went for it.

That was August 31, and I chose the nook. B&N has a 14 day return policy. My guess is the nook2 will be announced on the 15th and it will have fixed every single thing I find irksome with this one.

I'm really, really likin' the eInk screen because I can just read!

And I felt so....smug...when I went to the lake the other day carrying 64 books. ;')

[alecE]

I'd run out of shelf space, so I could only borrow from the library or buy a new book if I disposed of an older one. Then I met my 505 liseuse - it was love at first page turn, we go everywhere together, we are inseparable.
More to the point, I can store a humungous library on my reader, I can buy new titles, I can indulge my geekier urges by converting pbooks to ebooks. Plus of course I then discovered MR.

[watsinaname]

I was in love with reading a few years back, used to read upto 5 books a month, until when my work schedules got better of my interests and I got some buying power for gizmos, ipods, its friends and foes, my library still has more than 60% books unread, then came a time when I could only read a few pages and something would turn me off. Perhaps I grew impatient and or it could be the coolness of the other gizmos.

Few days back, I saw the Nook and then the Reader, affordability was still a question and naggging doubt in my mind, and then while just browsing through the electronics section in Target, I found the Reader for under 100$, I did not think twice

The benefits I see:
- A reader is a cool toy/device.
- Multiple books on the same device means I can switch to another with in minutes if I loose concentration.
- Free books from domains like Google make it worth every cent.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by tiniree

Curious as to why all you ultimately bought an ereader .

My reason was because my eyesight took a major nosedive and I needed to be able to read large print. Also, the books on tape were driving me nuts

I bought my Nook five days ago and have downloaded almost 60 books. With the Nooks extra extra large font, my glasses and a magnifying glass, I am once again able to read a book!!!

Oh, and one more reason I just thought of: Being able to download free from the library gives me a little more independence (I don't have to rely on someone to drive me to the library.

Marie

My main reason is quite simple: I love to shop via webstores. Mainly because I like to hold my purchases in hands instantaneously. That's why I prefer iTunes (and some "more grey" sources) over DVDs. And that's why I prefer Nintendo's and Sony's online sources over UMDs/cartridges. And eBooks over paperbooks...

[~Kate]

Because I kept hearing from "people who love reading" that they really, really love their Kindle!

[creativelywarped]

My reason was that I was having issues holding books open and turning pages. I could only read at one table because it was the right height, and even then I would end up bothering someone every 20 minutes to adjust my arms. I like being able to read more independently, only needing help getting it out of the case and turning it on. Plus, I can read while waiting for appointments, something I haven't been able to do in years!

[nohmi2]

Originally Posted by mopping five

For the last few years, every time I'd go to the bookstore I'd get all weepy because the books I was most interested in had type that was too small for me to read comfortably. It kept getting worse.

One day an employee asked if there was anything she could help me find and tears started just rolling down my face.

This embarrassed us both.

So I downloaded a bunch of books to read on my computer because I could change the type to any size I wanted.

But....it just didn't work.

So when the price of the nook and Kindle dropped to 'Hey! I can buy this!' levels, I went for it.

That was August 31, and I chose the nook. B&N has a 14 day return policy. My guess is the nook2 will be announced on the 15th and it will have fixed every single thing I find irksome with this one.

I'm really, really likin' the eInk screen because I can just read!

And I felt so....smug...when I went to the lake the other day carrying 64 books. ;')

Oh! I can really relate to your tale of woe.

I have had laser surgery on both eyes, and the printed page was usually still too small. Being one of Creations vain children, the thought of those awful large print books was off-putting. The Kindle with it's very smart cover is more to my taste; plus the sixty-two books I have on so far.

I bow to the creator of ebooks.

Cheers

[yche09]

Books here in my country costs too much especially the newer ones . So i resorted on ebooks.

I bought a reader ultimately to stop my eyes from straining any further. I am now wearing glasses (tried contacts but it causes more problems for me) and i have no intentions of letting my eye grade go higher than what i have now which is ridiculously high for my age. I've been reading ebooks with my nintendo ds lite and my psp for at least half a year now so yes, i admit that i have been abusing my eyes.

[GlenBarrington]

Curiosity about the technology. I felt no burning need for an eReader. Now, I prefer eReading.

[Cyclops]

3 reasons:

1: Space, or lack thereof! I got a lot of free books from bookmooch but my shelves are groaning!

2: Availability of older, classic books, especially historic SF. No chance of finding such books as M.P.Shiel's The Purple Cloud in our public library!

3:Finally I love gadgets!!

[lost66615]

shelve space and sick off running out out printer ink use my reader for novels and studying Latin and health and safety books

[JimKal]

There are quite a few reasons for my getting an e-reader:

The idea had intrigued me for years but I was waiting for it to become cost effective.
Amazon e-Book pricing
Instant gratification
Access to classics for free or low cost
Interesting new authors available only in eBook format
Scaleable fonts!!!
The truly amazing iPad with access to multiple formats

Some things I didn't expect:
I find I actually prefer to read eBooks as opposed to traditional books. This was totally unexpected as I've always loved books and still do.
I find I like the iPad Kindle app that allows us to use white print on a black background. When I first saw it I thought I would never use it. Just too strange for me. Now I love it for reading at night or in any dim light situation.
I've found Amazon offering access to some authors I loved as a young man that haven't made it to the non-copyright stage and who will never be "classic", but whom I enjoyed so much and am willing to revisit for an incredibly low cost.

Things I'm still waiting for:
Agreement on one common format for eBooks
The publishing industry to embrace e-publishing rather than seeing it as a threat

[Latinandgreek]

Originally Posted by lost66615

shelve space and sick off running out out printer ink use my reader for novels and studying Latin and health and safety books

Latin (and Greek) was on of the driving forces for me getting a reader, as well.

[Selcien]

It may seem to be completely unrelated but I'd say that it has a lot to do with the way that I responded to the Blu-ray format. My interests are, as ever, sporadic, but I've found that it's far easier for me to get interested in watching something in the Blu-ray format than it is for me to watch something in the DVD format. May not seem like much but it's the difference between watching something and not, and I was doing a whole lot of that not watching prior to Blu-ray. I've found that I enjoy the content more as well.

I figured that if switching from standard definition to high definition could increase my interest in watching movies, then perhaps shifting from paper to electronic could have similar results with reading, which was of particular interest since I was doing a whole lot of not reading. It's a work in progress but there has been progress.

The K1 was my first e-reader. What I found is that the way it displays only one page at a time improves my ability to stay focused on what I'm reading. Unfortunately, it's form factor ended up getting in the way. I found it to be much too bulky and much too book like in it's case, and outside of the case, well, it's corners dug into my palms and made it unpleasant to use.

My next reader was a DX. I was very happy with it at first, but I came to realize that the screen, as well as the entire device itself, was much too large. I gave it to my mom though so I don't feel that I wasted any money on it.

The one that I use now is the PRS-600 and it came very close to being the perfect device for me, the major flaw being it's screen, the other being a feeling that slightly smaller would be better.

I'm currently waiting on my PRS-350 to ship. I'm expecting it to be a perfect fit, however, if I find that I have to use the Mighty Bright with it for indoor use like I currently am with the 600 (a truly awkward affair considering that it has to be attached directly to the Reader as I refuse to use a cover), then I'm going to return it and hunt for a similarly sized touchscreen enabled device that uses a back lit screen.

My interest in reading will never be like it was when I was a teenager but it has improved, and once I lay my hands on a device that is perfect for me my interest in reading will be as strong as it can possibly be. That is what I've been after.

[Cyclops]

Originally Posted by Latinandgreek

Latin (and Greek) was on of the driving forces for me getting a reader, as well.

I'd love to learn Latin! Being an amateur botansit I picked up a lot of latin names of plants (and animals) over the years and their meanings fascinate me!