I often get questions asked to me directly about gadgets and technology. Below is a response to one such question. The exact question was:

“Are e-books worth the money? My wife reads 2 books per week.”

Well I guess it depends on what you’re reading them on. The iPad, for example, could be cool but it’s like reading on a screen which is an issue on the eyes.

Now an actual e-book reader like a Kindle, Nook or the Sony has what’s called e-ink. This is just an alignment of particles to represent a page. It looks like paper which is easier on the eyes, causing less strain. Additionally, since it’s not a backlit LCD, OLED or IPS screen, the battery life is excellent.

Real books have the price of the book only but they take up room, they’re heavy, they get worn, etc.

The e-book reader has the expense of the unit up front but you have no clutter whatsoever and you can store tons of books on one. The books are generally a little cheaper on a device and some are even free. Again, you have to pay for the device itself. The Kindle by Amazon, for instance, keeps the books on it or in their database. So you pay once and read. If you delete it midway through you can re-download again later for free and it even saves your page. Some have built-in dictionaries or a thesaurus or allow you to make margin notes or highlight certain parts.

The libraries are awesome so almost any book you want can be found. I would do a cost to value analysis. How much are you spending in books? How badly do you want the physical copy? Are you prepared to spend the money on the device? Weigh both sides and see what fits you best. I would have bought a Kindle but I think I’ll wait for an iPad. It’s an e-book reader plus all of the other functions it serves. The lack of e-ink technology sucks but it’s not a deal breaker for me.