Sep 17 2006
How an ebook reader can save you money and maybe your marriage!
Many times I hear from people that the ebook reader is too expensive and that is what is holding them back. Not true. I present to you the top 10 reasons why buying an ebook reader is economical and may just save your marriage.
- 10. Ebooks don’t take up any space. The average bookshelf costs about $30.00. A 2GB SD card can run as low as $28.99 and can store over 4000 books. In order to store over 4,000 books you would have to buy approximately 25 bookshelves (assuming 160 books per shelf) which costs you $750.00. Savings of $720.00.
- 9. Because of the need for 25 bookshelves, your out of town guests must stay at a hotel for which you must pay (if you are any kind of host). The ebook reader allows you to reclaim that space for a guest room or a special reading room. Or prevents the cost of an addition. Savings between $80 for a hotel room and $80,000.00 for an addition.
- 8. Ebooks don’t require a separate suitcase for vacation. 10 books weigh about 5 lbs and require at least half of the space of a suitcase. An extra piece of luggage costs $85 and overweight piece of luggage costs $50 one way. Savings of $260 per trip.
- 7. No gas money spent driving from bookstore to grocery store to convenience store looking for the latest releases. Savings of $24.00 per year
- 6. Ebooks are environmentally sound. The average US citizen consumes 700 lbs of paper per year which is equal to about 2 trees. Readers consume more. Over 200 million trees are used annually to feed our reading needs. Savings of $28.00 from not buying two trees per year.
- 5. Don’t have to buy bookmarks, highlighters or pens. Savings of $10.00 per year.
- 4. Many ebooks can be purchased anywhere from 10% to 40% off the cover price. Anya Bast’s A Change of Season print version is $10.99 + S&H + tax and the ebook version is $5.95. SimonSays books are all 40% off. Fictionwise sells many of its books for some discount. If you spend $100 on books, you will save anywhere from $10 to $40 per month. Savings of $120 to $480 savings per year.
- 3. You know immediately what you have purchased in the past because your entire library is on that 2GB card you carry with you everywhere. No more gaffes at the bookstore buying a second copy of a book you already own. $96.00 savings per year.
- 2. You no longer have disagreements about the light in the bedroom. Because ebook readers are backlit (one reason NOT to buy the Sony Reader), you don’t have to buy the clip on booklight that never works or replacement batteries for the booklight that never works. Read as late as you want. No one else will be bothered. Marital harmony restored. Savings of $24.99 (for the booklight).
- 1. You will have saved so much money by buying an ebook reader, your SO will have enough to purchase that Plasma Flat Screen he’s been crying about for the last year. Buy an ebook reader and save your marriage.
Drop a line in the comment box about 1 good reason to buy an ebook reader and you’ll be entered into a contest to win a new and unread copy of Nalini Singh’s Slave to Sensation.
Send to Kindle
Sep 17, 2006 @ 09:37:47
The intimacy and immediacy of taking the ebook reader with you anytime, anywhere and no one judging you on what you’re reading by the bookcover.
Sep 17, 2006 @ 09:39:15
Oops, I meant to add not to enter me in the contest since I have the book already. Thanks!
Sep 17, 2006 @ 10:54:28
With ebook readers, you don’t do what I did and trip over the ginormous pile of books beside your bed and break your ankle. Potential savings, $870, lol
Sep 17, 2006 @ 11:30:50
Instant gratification of buying ebooks online: priceless!
Sanity saved from going through my older books: priceless again!
Note: Please exclude me from the contest as well.
Sep 17, 2006 @ 11:52:19
You can take ‘em on the bus, to work, even your kid’s ballgames, and not have to worry about the cover art. :-)
Sep 17, 2006 @ 11:56:53
Considering the breakdown I had last week when I realized how many books I have and nowhere to put them all, so I’ll either have to get rid of them, or leave them messily scattered around the house, pissing off everyone else who comes over… e-books would not only save my sanity, but think about the cost of tissues, throat lozenges and under-eye no-puffy gel. :)
Sep 17, 2006 @ 15:46:06
I’ve completely made up for the 100+ dollars I spent on the ebookwise by downloading free classics alone. An ebook reader is a must have if you love classics!
I don’t need to be in the contest either.
Sep 17, 2006 @ 20:19:25
I have eReader on my PDA. This means I can take the smallest bag (or even slip it in my pocket) & have a book to read everywhere! I used to buy handbags with the proviso that they could fit a book – not anymore:)
I devour books & have been known to go & buy one just because I finished the last one at lunch & still have a few minutes to kill before going back to work. I can now feed my habit instantaneously.
Savings: sanity, cash & employer’s ire at coming back from lunch late – again!
Sep 17, 2006 @ 20:34:58
We just finished moving 13 bookcases. If we hadn’t gone to ereaders and started buying ebooks 2 years ago, we’d be up to 15 bookcases and no room for anything else! The weight of 1 book box alone is a convincing argument to go ebook…or never move again.
Sep 17, 2006 @ 23:32:35
You can amaze and impress friends and family who still think that books only come on paper. I was able to do this very thing yesterday while at a family gathering. My nephew and I were showing off our respective PDAs and even my tech-savvy nephew remarked that it hadn’t occurred to him to download books onto his device.
Sep 17, 2006 @ 23:45:57
An opportunity to read ebooks by authors currently only available electronically. May of the ebook authors I first discovered two years ago are now being picked up by print publishing houses, too!
Sep 18, 2006 @ 02:42:22
My husband can’t see exactly how many books are in my to-read pile if they’re ebooks sitting on an ebook reader. He thinks piles of books are untidy :-) Silly man!
Sep 18, 2006 @ 06:17:54
I just made the leap today! I’d been looking at a Palm Z22, since it’s cheap and all. But then this morning my husband surprised me with a brand spankin’ new HP iPAQ. :D Squee! What a fabulous man.
Anyways, my reason – the Army may pay for our moves whenever they change our duty station, but we have a weight limit. This way, I don’t have to pick between buying a shrunk (big piece of furniture) or keeping my books.
Sep 18, 2006 @ 06:49:51
e-book readers are much harder and slightly heavier than books. This is a plus when you’re being mugged on the subway. A quick bash to the nose with your e-book reader, and the mugger is out of commission. And you can go back to chapter ten.
Sep 18, 2006 @ 17:27:41
Ok, what do you think is the best e-reader? I see several mentioned.
My husband wouldn’t know our house if there aren’t piles of books everywhere.
Sep 18, 2006 @ 21:49:16
[quote comment="3953"]Ok, what do you think is the best e-reader? I see several mentioned.[/quote]
I think it depends. If you just want an ebook reader and don’t want to wait until Christmas season or January for an eink device or a possible Apple ebook reader, Ebookwise is the way to go.
If you want a multi function device, ie. something that you can use to surf the web, read emails, etc., go for a palm or pocket pc.
Sep 19, 2006 @ 07:05:28
YAY! When I first discovered ebook readers, Gemstar was still the readers of choice. My husband complained, but bought me one, anyway. I cried when they went out of business a year later…and so did he. As ebooks made the revolutionary comeback, I moved to my laptop…and then to a pocket pc and then to a smartphone. At present, every technology toy I own will read an ebook…and I’m waiting with bated breath for the next generation of ebook readers to replace mine with one I can buy new (mainstream) content for.
I will say this, though…it’s good for authors. In general, mainstream ebooks don’t release until after the new release rush is off. For me, that means I end up purchasing hardbacks, paperbacks and at least one ebook format on my favorite authors. The print books get boxed and stuffed into the attic, but the ebook copy gets read until the proverbial pages tear.
Just for the record, if it’s a really, really good book…I buy the audiobook, too. I may never listen to it, but everyone has to make a living and writers don’t get paid if no one buys their books.
Sep 21, 2006 @ 03:18:56
Holy Cripes, Rocky, you’re the reader every author dreams about!
Sep 21, 2006 @ 06:42:15
*Rolling on the floor laughing* Well, call it incentive to put out the best book you can. *grins* Seriously, I’m a voracious reader and the bottom line is that readers won’t have anything to read if writers starved to death on us.
Unfortunately, I’m also a very critical reader and I’d say a good 30% of the books I buy I don’t finish because of various things, usually holes in the story or logistics so far off that the story is just beyond reasonable probability or worse, inconsistencies in the story. There’s nothing I hate more than a good premise, but a shody storyline. Those writers, I scribble on a list to remember, too.
Okay, I’m off my soapbox.
Sep 21, 2006 @ 10:33:34
The best thing I like about my eBook reader is that I can make the font as big as I need to read comfortably for hours. As I only tend to read at home I bought the Cybook and a comfy cushion to prop it on (it’s a little heavy to hold for long) – but it is wonderful to read on and I have discovered so many new authors. I can’t say it has saved me any money as I have been buying books like crazy, but it has brought back the joy of reading that printed books with tiny fonts had started to take away.
Apr 15, 2007 @ 01:07:58
I am hoping to make the leap soon, but can’t seem to find anyone out there who can really talk to me about the ebook readers available. I would like to get my hands on one and see what I like. I have been looking at the new generation of umpc which seem to be a good way to go, but expensive. Can someone tell me where to look and compare or perhaps tell me which is a good reader of these new gens coming out? I was looking at the KIDC 700 which a umpc or the athena/advantage. These are all well and good if they truly do as advertised. Some are so multifunctional that you’ll be on the computer (umpc) while listening to music and talking on the cell phone all in one device. A little much I think, but hey save space in my purse with only one device to rule them all. Seriously though what is a good backlit reader preferably a screen no smaller than 5-6 inches and where can get it.
Apr 15, 2007 @ 05:40:56
Well, I have the RCA 1200 (from the Gemstar site that’s now defunct), the new Sony Reader (which I absolutely love), a pocket PC (that I use with sites, most often, ereader.com and fictionwise.com), my cell phone (also uses those websites), and my laptop which will read ALL of the above.
The best thing I can tell you as far as choosing a device is to decide how much the source information means to you. For example, do you want mainstream new releases while it’s still on the new release shelf? Do you shop at one of the many up and coming ebook publishers out there – if so, which format do you buy? Microsoft Reader and PDF can be read on things like Pocket PCs, but not on actual readers like the Rocketbooks or the Sony, which will read a PDF, if it’s the unsecured version, but the text is very small.
A device is only as good as the material you can read on it. The reader with the greatest features…really isn’t so great if you can’t get content for it.
Bottom line, consider your ebook library – and your buying tendencies and go from there.
For me, I don’t buy new content from my 1200, but I still use it to read the books I’ve bought for it in the past. Instead, I buy new release content from the Sony Reader bookstore or ereader.com for my pocket pc, if the book I want releases there first. For the record, of all the ebook sites out there, ereader.com is my FAVORITE – even above the Connect bookstore for my Sony – because their reader software is above and beyond the best on the market!
May 04, 2007 @ 08:35:28
In regards to point number 5:
The saving of $10 per year is unrealistic.
Whilst the book industry is worth billions of dollars a year, the bookmark industry is worth around $80 million in the US. With a population of 300 million, this means that the average consumer in the US spends just $0.27 per year on bookmarks.
The average highlighter can highlight roughly 50 meters of text and costs less than $2.00, equating to highlighting 1000′s of words – extremely unrealistic.
The average pen costs less than $1.00 and has a life span of approximately 3 years.
This data would indicate that the average US consumer spends less than $1.00 per year on bookmarks, and pens and highlighters used in the specific highlighting role. With this figure being 10 times lower than the $10 suggested by the author I believe that this is an indicator of just how utterlty unrealistic the whole breakdown is.
Finally, anybody who talks about using a highlighter in a good book obviously doesn’t really appreciate proper books in the first place.
Apr 03, 2008 @ 01:33:46
My husband can't see exactly how many books are in my to-read pile if they're ebooks sitting on an ebook reader. He thinks piles of books are untidy :-) Silly man!
Apr 03, 2008 @ 01:35:00
Holy Cripes, Rocky, you're the reader every author dreams about!
Apr 03, 2008 @ 05:46:19
LOL!
I try to be. It’s very hard to make a living as an author, so supporting those I enjoy is an absolute must.
I’ve now graduated to a Sony Reader, so I’m with you on the TBR pile. After packing off all the paperbacks sitting around the house and donating them to a women’s shelter, my husband made the comment about how much neater it was. I just grinned – because I had gone and bought all the ones I liked to reread for my readers.
:)
May 27, 2008 @ 01:11:06
okay, having just discovered there actually ARE e-readers (yes yes, I love in Australia, people dont seem to own them) I nearly cried for joy, as at present my library takes up an entire spare room in the house and simply cannot be expanded too much more because otherwise I will never be able to move again! Now I’m looking to get an ereader so I can haul enough books around with me when I’m working and travelling to satisfy my voracious appetite for the literary word. So any feedback on what to get would be good, everyone says get the sony but frankly I would like something thats got a backlight for reading in the dark, can play music at the same time, clear and easy to read, hand held handbag size and can take a reasonable selection of titles. Also, which one is best for availablility of titles and flexibility of format? If I but a book in txt pdf or something else, which one will be able to run most of the formats?
May 30, 2008 @ 00:11:17
Rosanna, if you really want a reader that reads more than just one or two formats, you need to look into a UMPC or mini-laptop. If you can stand the smaller screen, you could also look for a PDA (I love my Dell Axim x51v, but you’d have to find one from a reseller, since Dell doesn’t sell them anymore).
The “official” ebook readers are generally limited to one encrypted format (Kindle has a special Mobipocket format, Sony uses its own BBeB format, eBookwise – only backlit model – uses its IMP format, Cybook Gen 3/4 uses Mobipocket). Then, for unencrypted books some MIGHT read PDFs (rarely well), Word DOC or RTF, some HTML, some TXT.
So if you really want something that can handle most of the encrypted formats AND the unencrypted ones, plus be backlit and play music, you’re almost certainly limited to PDA or mini-laptop/UMPC. The downside of that is…poor battery life compared to the dedicated ebook readers.
Sep 27, 2008 @ 11:35:09
This is a good Aand interesting topics .Ebook readers can also use some tricks to save their money ,read this article http://diggincome.blogspot.com/search/label/Save%20money%20Online
Oct 05, 2008 @ 05:21:33
I am constantly on the go and do not own a laptop. I NEED an e-reader to let me read while I’m out and about. I also agree with what someone said that you don’t get judged on the cover when it is an ebook.
Lecteur e-book économiser de l’argent … et peut-être votre mariage! | Info Apple
Jan 17, 2011 @ 11:06:11
[...] site DearAuthor présente une intéressante liste des 10 raisons pour lesquelles un e-book reader peut vous faire économiser [...]