Three Months with My Nook

My husband gave me an ereader for Christmas. Told me I could pick which one I wanted. It took me until March to decide. In case any of you are in the market for a reader, I’ll share with you my thought process for choosing the Nook.

Kindle: I knew immediately I didn’t want a Kindle, because it doesn’t read a lot of formats and I already had an extensive digital library. I wanted to be able to read those books. But everyone I know who has a Kindle loves it.

Sony touchscreen: This one gets great reviews and reads lots of formats, but I hadn’t spoken to one person who loved it. The price was a bit more than the Kindle and Nook ($50 more when I was looking), but the main reason I chose against it was the screen—too much glare.

Sony Pocket Reader: This was my front-runner the whole time. Great price ($160 or so when I was looking), reads lots of formats, and many of my writer friends have this one. I ultimately decided against it because the screen was small.

I-Pad: Way too expensive, and way too big. I want a reader to read books. I don’t need all the bells and whistles of the I-Pad. Also, it’s backlit and I plan to spend a lot of time reading. Backlit screens are harder on the eyes.

Why the Nook? It reads a lot of formats--that was my first criteria. I was able to check it out in person in the Barnes & Noble store, and it was simple to use and figure out. The BN staff is super helpful, so if I ever had problems with it, I’d have an actual place to go for help. After I'd had it a few weeks, I bought a pretty turquoise cover—it protects the Nook and makes it look and feel like a “real” book. I also bought a nightlight that clips onto the top and is perfect for reading in bed. It’s just bright enough to read but not so bright that it disturbs my sleeping husband.

Something LOVE about the Nook is free Friday books. Every Friday, you can enter the virtual store via the Nook and download the free book of the week. I’ve discovered some fabulous new-to-me authors this way.

The Nook has some other cool features, too, but honestly, I don’t care about them. All I care about is that the device is easy to learn and navigate (check), and I can easily download books onto it (check), and it works (check). It was a piece of cake to download my digital library from my computer to the Nook (just drag and drop into the correct file). If I want to buy from the Barnes & Noble store, it’s a bit more difficult. Not. You just open the store, click on the book you want, click BUY, and voila, it’s on the Nook. Almost TOO easy (dreading the upcoming VISA bill…I wonder if I can hide it from my husband…).

I think I would have loved whatever reader I had chosen. Having a reader is SO cool and so much fun. I’m reading way more than I was before, because I’ve been buying short stories, novellas and short novels—these are hard to come by in paperback format.

Plus, I just love the name. Nook. It’s fun to say. Try it. See? Fun.

So, tell me--do you have a reader? Which one, and how do you like it? Are you looking for a reader? Which one are you considering? Or are you one of those people who just wants to hold a good, old-fashioned book in your hands?