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eBooks - bad for consumers, good for publishers
boomchuck1 21st Oct 2009
Here's my beef (several) about eBooks:
1. The reader is expensive! Even a cheap one is $200+. This compared to a plain paper book that comes with a user interface included.
2. The reader will be obsolete shortly. The technology, though technically not all that new, is being upgraded all the time.
3. Formats aren't compatible across readers. Admittedly I haven't researched this part but I assume some books are available in one format but not others so you can't really read everything on any reader.
4. The eBooks cost as much as a real book. This is ridiculous. I can understand the price on a real book since you've got a physical product, but when all the publisher/distributor has to do is download a bunch of bits and bytes why do you have to pay as much as if you got a real book?
5. You finish the book and that is it. Hey, I like to pass books on to friends and I like to get books from friends. I also like used book stores, Goodwill, and garage sales. But with the eBook you buy it for your reader and you can't loan it to a friend without giving them your reader. This truly diminishes the value of the book.
6. Just more electronics. The Reader is just another thing to lose, misplace, break, have the batteries run down, buy another charger for, etc.
7. It's just duplicating something most of us already have - a computer. And if you go with a netbook, nearly the same size, you can get a full functioning computer for not much more than the Reader.

No, I'm not a Luddite. I stay close to the leading edge on equipment and make a living maintaining and supporting tech stuff. I just don't see the value of eBooks and readers.
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