In Want of an eBook Reader

Previously, I've been against buying any sort of eBook reader. You've heard the arguments before--it's not the same as having a hard copy of a book, etc. I was also quite turned off when I heard Amazon remotely deleted 1984 from peoples' Kindles because of some copyright issue the company who published it had.

But then, I stumbled upon Barnes & Noble's nook. After looking over it, the appeal is quite large. The wi-fi and 3G features will make buying eBooks on the device convenient. (Imagine being stuck on a road trip, yearning for a new book to buy as the driver is fueling up at some middle-of-nowhere gas station. Just hop on the 3G network!) I've read that it also supports Overdrive formats, meaning I can use Kentucky's Libraries Unbound to borrow books that I can read on it.

I've looked over the prices of eBooks on B&N's website, and honestly, it's a steal. You've got new-released bestsellers that go for over $20 hardback but can be bought in eBook form for only $10. I could easily buy enough books for the savings to pay for the nook. In addition, there are free eBooks to be found, although thus far, I haven't found ones I'd want.

The only downside for me is that as of now, no manga is being made available in eBook form. As someone who buys and reads a LOT of manga, that would be ideal.

Ahh well. I could live without that capability, if only for the fact that I could buy an eBook version of the Bible, which would mean less bulk in my Sunday morning purse.