I did a feature on NetGalley a while back, and now that I've read my first eBook, I thought I'd let you guys know my thoughts. I read the book The Bad Queen: Rules and Instructions for Marie-Antoinette on my PC using Adobe Digital Editions, and as far as the actual reading goes it was fine - Adobe Digital Editions is a pretty funky tool, and you can increase the page sizes so that eye-strain and squinting are eliminated. So far, so good. Problem is that it wasn't much fun for me to sit at my PC for hours reading the book. Usually I like to read at night curled up in bed, or if the sun is out, I like to hit my garden or the beach with my books. In this sense, my PC was a real let down. I read the last hundred pages or so of the book on my boyfriend's laptop, and that was better, but there was still a problem. That problem was me, and my poor concentration. OMG! When I am reading on a computer I can't stop checking the internet! Every ten minutes I was checking my email, checking twitter, checking out extra facts about Marie-Antoinette, Versailles and the French Revolution. (I'm a history nerd!).
So, while I've been really hesitant to ever read an e-book, in the end that wasn't the problem. It was mainly me. I think NetGalley is too good a resource to pass up just because I don't enjoy reading on my PC or because of my poor concentration. So, I thought that maybe I should invest in an eReader. I think there are enough great titles on NetGalley to make the purchase worthwhile. The Galleys I plan to download would never replace my actual books, but it would enable me to feature some pre-release books on here, which is always fun to do. So, where to start? I know absolutely nothing about eReaders, but I found one I thought looked good- The Sony Pocket eReader PRS300R. Well, it's pink, and that was my main reason for choosing this one. In addition, the lovely Beth from Maybe Tomorrow assures me that she has one, and it's great. I can't remember our twitter conversation now, but I'm sure it went something like that.
So, that's my follow up post, and for any of you who were holding off on NetGalley or eBooks for the same reasons as me, then I hope this post is helpful to you.
Some questions to you:
- To anybody else that has already invested in an eReader, I'd love to know if you have any other recommendations for me? I'm looking for readers that are on the cheap side of economical as I'll only be using them for books I can get on NetGalley. Well, that's the plan. Let me know in comments if you have any suggestions for me!
- Can anybody tell me if all the galleys on NetGalley are downloadable onto eReaders? I presume this information is available on the site, but I'm still pretty clueless about eReaders, and I'm not sure if you can read the galleys on all platforms or if some are just available to read on Adobe Digital Editions? If anybody has read a lot of galleys from NetGalley and can fill me it, that'd be great!
I have both an e-reader and a subscription to Net Galley, and yes Net Galley does work with the e-reader.
ReplyDeleteI choose the Barnes and Noble nook and I absolutely love it. One plus that you don't get with many e-readers, is that I can take it into any B&N and simply ask for help if I need it--they are so wonderful, helpful, and excited about it you wouldn't believe it. I love my nook and am so excited to finally own one. They are constantly making upgrades to it--it now has a beta web browser, which while clunky is useful--especially since I didn't know it would have that option. I like the fact that it has a color display on the bottom screen because I love to look at book covers--not really an issue with Net Galley, but for the ones I download from B&N for free or purchase it is great. The nook is the same price as the Kindle at $259 but they are offering a promotion where you can get a $50 giftcard right now--don't know how long that will last (kind of made me wish I waited so I could have gotten the giftcard).
I have downloaded one Net Galley book onto my nook and it is really simple. Just plug your e-reader into the computer, open Adobi Digital Editions (your e-reader should appear on the screen) and then drag and drop the book onto your reader.
The only limitation I am aware of with Net Galley has to do with the Kindles--I think Net Galley has to have a Kindle version of the Galley for it to work on the Kindle reader.
With the nook you have a B&N account where you can store your books if you don't want them all on the reader. I can also purchase e-books from anywhere since it has a 3G connection and my B&N account is activated.
I love my e-reader and it was worth the money. I may even buy more books this way since they are cheaper than physical books. Even if I don't want to purchase any, between Net Galley and all the free e-books out there, I won't have to worry about running out of reading material any time soon.
Email me if you have any specific questions! I would love to answer them.
wheems01 (at) gmail (dot) com
I still haven't been able to finish a single E-book! Maybe I should check out Adobe Digital Editions.
ReplyDeleteAll Netgallery books I've gotten so far have worked fine on my kindle, I'm assuming it's the same for all the other ereaders.
ReplyDeleteI have a Kindle and love it but any e-reader with PDF support should be fine for the Net Galley books. I could wax on and on why I love the Kindle but if you wait a few weeks they will be for sale in Target Stores (who also sale Sony eReaders), so you can go pick one up and look at it before buying. I would also go to a B&N play with a Nook and I believe one of the cell phone companies have Kobos for sale in their stores (would have to check). I don't really think you will go wrong with whichever you choose. Since I have only had a Kindle(going on a year now), I can tell you that I have had very little issues. The two times something has been wrong, customer service was helpful and prompt(even when I broke my screen they replaced it free and overnight). I think with any of them there will be pros and cons- So go with the one that will feel right too you :)
ReplyDeleteI love the pink ereader! very cute, I need to get one too because I hate reading on my pc it gives me a headache and you're right NetGalley has really good ebooks that I really want to read.
ReplyDeletehello! i have an award for you and your beautiful blog at the plumbean!
ReplyDeletethe kindle for emerging writers is so scary because they just have not worked out the rights yet!
I have a Kobo which is a very budget-friendly e-reader recently released by Chapters Indigo in Canada and Borders, I believe, in the US. I've read PDF and ePUB books on it without any problems whatsoever. It retails for $149 CDN and certainly doesn't have the bells and whistles you can find on the Nook or Kindle or even some of the Sony's but it does what it was designed to do well, in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I prefer to read in bed before going to sleep. I read The Mermaid's Mirror on my PC with the same Adobe program and it was weird... and I was easily distracted. Finishing it felt like FOREVER.
ReplyDeleteI just got my Amazon Kindle today. I picked the Kindle because I order all of my books from Amazon... it was just easier for me. But it looks so plain! I like how the Sony E-Reader menu looks much better!
I have the Sony pocket reader, and it's great. It works perfect with Netgalley (which is pretty much all I use it for too). It's relatively cheap, too. I think you'll love it, if that's what you end up getting.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the helpful replies guys! I'm only getting around to responding now as I didn't have time during the week. I love the sounds of the B&N Nook, but unfortunately it's not available over here, so I think my pink Sony is the one I'd go for. I have to say though, that even though I don't like reading on my PC, the Adobe Digital Editions is pretty good. :)
ReplyDeleteI also received an email from the helpful NetGalley people with a list of compatible readers if anyone wants to check it out!
http://www.adobe.com/products/digitaleditions/devices/
Thanks for the mini shout out :)
ReplyDeleteHave you made any progress in your decision making? I use mine with NetGalley all the time and it's really dead easy to use!
I'm not overly sold on digital books, but it's a nice compliment to my ever growing bookshelf.
I've bought a couple of books for it, though books that I know I can't get in print. At the moment most eBooks cost the same, or not more than their paperback companions!
Whatever choice you make I hope you enjoy it! NetGalley is so much better on the eyes when you're not sat in front of a computer screen!
Hey, Beth!
ReplyDeleteYup. I decided on the pink sony reader we were discussing on twitter. It's my birthday soon, so I've been madly dropping hints about it. haha! If that doesn't work though, I'll just have to go ahead and buy it myself. (This is probably what will happen, as people never seem to pick up on my hints). Hmmmm...
Woo! That's awesome!
ReplyDeleteI find leaving print outs of the things I want in random places around the house often works ;) lol - that or I shamelessly mention it in every conversation I have with any member of my family!
I hope you get one for your birthday! :)