Nook

Nook is Barnes and Noble’s new e-reader and Amazon’s big competition.

With a full-color touch screen with e-ink, millions of available titles and a $259 price tag, the Nook is looking to supplant Kindle in the electronic book market.

Nook even lets you lend books to friends for free. You can send the book to your friends phone, computer or e-reader for up to 14 days.  Also, there are thousands of free e-books (like all your English teacher’s favorites).

The reader has 2GB memory and measures 7.7 x 4.9 inches. It weighs just 11.2 ounces.  You can also use the reader as an mP3 player. Unlike Kindle, the memory is expandable via microSD card.

Another plus for Nook is the ability to share your e-book with your iPod touch, iPhone, Blackberry or PC. Kindle is working on this as well with PC in Beta.

nook arrives Nov. 30, but you can preorder it online now, or beginning Wednesday in any Barnes & Noble store. And come Nov. 30, you’ll be able to test-drive nook in any Barnes & Noble store as well.

Kindle gets a price-cut

Amazon’s popular Kindle digital reader is now even better with its price cut to $259.

This is almost $100 cheaper than the price just earlier this summer at $359. In July it dropped to $299.

The Christian Science Monitor wrote in July that the earlier price drop was about helping the Kindle gain “iPod like traction” in the soon to be crowded electronic reader market. Kind of like a preemptive strike to up-and- coming technology. Perhaps a similar tactic is in play now.

If that is still to rich for your blood, you can check out a refurbished unit for just $219.

Page by Page

We’ve all been there, attempting to scan either a lost report back into the digital world, or all those old photos up onto the computer for the first time. We all understand the time consuming and tedious time that comes with the average scanning job. Well, Tokyo University is hoping to change all that.

The university has recently presented its prototype scanner that scans pages as they turn. The camera adjusts for movement and light and produces pretty clear copies of the original. Imagine the possibilities? Every book could make it to the kindle. Well, we’ll see how I feel about a full “paper-less” revolution when we get there.

Academy trades books for digital versions

Cushing Academy in Massachutsetts has traded in its 20,000 volume library of traditional books for a  web-based multimedia library including 18 Amazon Kindles and Sony readers.  Is this the future of reading?

The Boston Globe quote headmaster James Tracy : “When I look at books, I see an outdated technology, like scrolls before books.”

The school likes to think they are trading in 20,000 books for millions but I don’t know. For me there is still something about holding a book in your hand. Maybe I’m just old-fashioned. It is very true that kids are more familiar with technology at younger ages than even my age is, but I just wish books were as timeless as I hope they are.

Another quote from the story was very telling:

Tia Alliy, a 16-year-old junior, said she visits the library nearly every day, but only once looked for a book in the stacks. She’s not alone. School officials said when they checked library records one day last spring only 48 books had been checked out, and 30 of those were children’s books.

Really?

The school is one of the first to go this route, but I suspect they won’t be the last.  . .

The Kindle Ate My Homework

Even as a very tech oriented person I still love books. Not just stories, but books. The paper, the pages, the bookmarks, Barnes and Noble, I sincerely love it, so I’ve never fallen in love with the Kindle (I fear it actually).

Well, here’s just another reason why I trust paper. The Kindle ate a kid’s homework. Literally, Kindle gobbled his notes into cyber space never to be seen again. I know you can lose a notebook, but that’s a personal fault, this was a technology problem. I guess the version of George Orwell’s 1984 he was taking electronic notes on was discontinued by the retailer not only did his copy of the book disappear but so did his hard written notes (and 1984 is not a short book). Amazon has since offered a refund for those who lost their copy, but that doesn’t take the sting out of things.

So again I say, lets not step beyond out bounds in gadgetry. Developments in tech and science are supposed to help, not hurt, after all.

Kindle DX in time for hitting the books this fall

Kindle DX is the beefier version of Amazon’s Kindle reader.  Compared to the traditional Kindle it is larger (9.7″ vs. 6″ diagonal), holds more books (3,500 vs. 1,500) and is more expensive ($489 vs $359).

Another important difference is that the Kindle DX has an auto-rotating screen that allows you to view full screen maps, graphs, tables, web pages, etc. This is especially important to on of the primary audiences for this device–college students who are using them in place of traditional textbooks.

Technology is changing education in many ways. This is just one more step in the journey.  Six universities Arizona State University, Case Western Reserve University, Pace University, Princeton, Reed College and the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia will participate in DX pilot studies.

Would you pick Kindle over traditional textbooks?

Kindle 2

Amazon has announced the newest member of the Kindle family.

The Kindle 2 is sleeker and lighter but has a stronger battery. The Amazon homepage touts it as being thinner than a magazine and lighter than a paperback. It also can operate for two weeks on a single charge.

The Kindle 2 can also store 1,500 titles and with its text-to-speech feature it can even read it to you.

You can download more than 230,000 different titles to the Kindle 2, including more than 100 books on the NYT best seller list. Amazon says their goal is to have every book ever written available for download.

The new device will be available Feb. 24, 2009 and they are now accepting preorders. Price is $359.

If you already own a Kindle, you can get first priority if you place your order by midnight PST tonight (Feb. 10).

I’ve been a little skeptical in the past, but this new version is very enticing. See Amazon’s site for complete details.  I never thought I would really be able to make the switch, but I can begin to see the appeal.

Book Glutton takes reading online

If you aren’t ready for Amazon’s Kindle, but you want to see what online book reading is all about try out Book Glutton. (Found via Geek Sugar)

Now, in some ways there is no comparison as Kindle is its own dedicated device, but the Book Glutton site is an interesting option for those who don’t want to carry books or additional equipment with them.

You can read public-domain works (like all the classics and thousands of other things) via their reader. In addition, you can comment and read what others are saying page by page. If you have your own group, you can have a “virtual book club.”  If you prefer, you can also read in private.

The site is currently in beta with additional features and more contemporary works in the plans.  For now, it is a nice way to find public-domain works in a readable format. It also could work well for your kids who are online anyway so they could at least be reading a good book! Many English teacher favorites are on the site.  You might recommend it to your child’s English teacher as an alternative to the “reader-response” notebooks we are all so found of assigning. Integrating technology in the classroom is a great way to get kids engaged.

Book Week–Kindle

I can’t let my “book week” pass without commenting on Amazon’s Kindle . I’m sure in the future we may all get our books this way, but for now, I think, I still prefer good ol’ ink and paper.
The Kindle is a hand-held device that allows you to download more than 140,000+ titles directly via its 3G network. No hotspot needed. Subscribe to your favorite newspapers, read your favorite blogs and catch up on the latest bestseller all from its 6-inch “electronic-paper” display.
I have to say I am intrigued to see how the display looks. It isn’t backlit like other electronic screens, which supposedly cuts down on the glare. The closest I have gotten to one was Jeff Bezos on The Martha Stewart Show a few months ago.
However, they do have a community called “See a Kindle in Your City” to help you connect with others who have one and might let you take a look. I couldn’t find any takers in my neck of the woods.
At $359 a pop, I’m certainly not going to run out and buy one without seeing it in person. Honestly, I love books, but I don’t buy that many. That hasn’t always been the case, but now I am in the library with my kids so much I don’t really see the need to. It would take me a long time to recoup my costs at $9.99 a book, but finance website Wesabe has done an interesting analysis to see how long it would take to make your money back.
The Kindle has six different font sizes so those with vision difficulties might benefit, however that might mean your fingers tire of scrolling. I’m curious if the text looks as it does in the printed book or if it is standard Times New Roman or something.

In other pros, there is the environmentally-friendly aspect in that it isn’t using paper to print all the books, newspapers, etc. you might read. Also, if you are a traveller or you have a commute by train or bus, this may be a great way to take your reading materials without having the extra weight.
Do you have a Kindle? What do you think of it? Why did you choose to buy it?