Why I Switched to an eReader (And why Nook Color instead of a Kindle)

In light of some of my realizations about “going digital,” I thought I would dedicate a post to talking about how I converted to a Nook Color eReader.    

Like most of us (I think), I was a little apprehensive about the switch.  It was not an easy decision.  I love the feel of books.  I love the way they smell and being able to scribble in the margins and turn the pages to my heart’s content.  I disliked reading anything on a computer monitor, and was irritated that some books are actually more expensive in an eBook format than the regular used print editions on Amazon.  

So what changed?

Honestly, I think I was forced to reconsider since I was going to India and had fourteen books I was supposed to take with me.  When you plan on backpacking all over India and Europe, carrying that much weight is suicide.  I thought a lot about the Amazon Kindle but ended up getting a Nook Color based on this review that my dad sent me from the Chicago Times.

The review is great, but I thought I would give my own thoughts on owning a Nook Color and how it has changed my reading experience.

Benefits:

Since my Nook is now “rooted,” or boots from Android software (thanks to my brilliant brother, Michael), I basically own a mini tablet that I got for $200 bucks instead of $500.  The review from the Chicago Times did not mention this since it is a recent option, but it pretty much makes the debate between Kindle and a Nook irrelevant.  Now my Nook Color functions just like a tablet—I can store my music, pictures, etc.  and still have access to thousands of free apps.  Among those I have the Amazon application, meaning that I can read Kindle books on my Barns and Noble Nook Color!  That allows me to price check and go with whichever version, or another ePub store, to get the best deal. 

You still can make lots of notes and highlights in the book, and in fact, it is even easier to navigate since my Nook has a search bar for each book and keeps track of all of my highlights.

Weight—even if I am not trekking through India, it is no fun moving hundreds of books from one apartment to the next.  I now have tons of books for my classes in a 1 lb tablet.  This has also helped my backpack be much kinder on my back this semester.  

Enhanced reading experience—since I am reading on an eReader, I can immediately look up words and references in a book that I otherwise would not if I were just reading along.  It has helped me to improve my vocabulary and clears up confusing passages by giving me a little more context.

Even though I was initially put off that it was an LCD screen, there are ways to adjust the brightness, text, background colors, etc. so that it can be customized to your reading experience. 

I have always been slightly irritated by how many PDF handouts my teachers post for us to print off and bring to class.  Instead of wasting all of that paper and money, I now just put them all on my Nook and read them just like any other text.

Free books!  You can get pretty much anything published before copyright laws, including the classics, for free on an eReader!  I’ve also been able to search for FREE PDF versions of more modern texts such as The Road by McCarthy, To the Lighthouse by Woolf, The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis, etc.  Unlike a Kindle, the Nook Color allows you to read virtually any file types, and lots of reading apps have features that make it seem like you are turning the page, even in a PDF!

This might be a stupid benefit to mention, but I always seem to be slightly paranoid about the house burning down and losing all of my books.  Buying books online means that you have access to that book and the comments you made no matter what happens to your eReader.  Your books and notes are safe and sound.

Last, the change is inevitable.  I have no doubt that in the same way that the Internet changed the world eBooks will be the future for us.  The sooner we hop on the band wagon the better.