Has the ‘iPod’ of Books Finally Arrived?

Sony’s reader might be the electronic book device we’ve all been waiting for. If so, you’re probably seeing the prototype of what the future of reading is heading toward. According to Mike Musgrove of The Washington Post, the screen is about the size of an average paperback, and you “turn pages” by pushing a button with your left thumb. Musgrove said he read a Stephen King thriller and Freakonomics on the reader and barely put a bent in the battery power. The device costs about $300 and can hold about 80 books. You buy books for the Reader the same way you buy songs for your iPod-from an electronic bookstore via your computer. The big advantage of the device is saving space. The electronic books are a little cheaper, but not significantly so. Disadvantages? Who wants to curl up with an electronic device? You can’t put it on a shelf and look at it when you’re done or loan it to a friend.