It's no secret that there's a pretty big consensus out there when it comes to e-readers. Just sit in the subway and you'll get a quick overview of the leading brands on the market, at a glance. At техно, we are no strangers to trends, regardless of how much new stuff we now receive on a weekly basis. So when we first started reading on screens, like almost everyone else, we went for one of the big players.
For one, the device was easy to find, and the books were more easily accessible too. After all, one of the big selling points of reading on a tablet is to make reading less cumbersome, so the idea is not to be bothered in turn with the download of books. In that sense, the easier the better. Digital users are less patient—and that is where efficiency is key.
Over time, the team also received the latest versions of other major players on the market—you can read our reviews in the archives. Now, we want to stress straight away how the reason for our recent change of heart has nothing to do with the quality or capacity of the tablets of the brands which we've featured here before. We would still recommend them for all the reasons which we've listed in the past. However, as early adopters of e-readers, we were curious to discover a new take on the tool. Which is exactly what this gem below stands for:
Let us introduce you to our new favorite nighstand sidekick! So, what's new about it you might ask? It's true that, at first sight, the look and feel is no different from what you've seen before. What's truly outstanding however is the purpose behind the brand. Their vision is not to antagonize ebooks on the one hand and good old paperback books on the other hand. They've decided that the two were stronger together. How did they achieve that? Through a very smart partnership with libraries all over the world. Since the company started in Europe, the list of libraries which support the technology is more extensive on the old continent, however, it's already taking the US by storm.
The idea is pretty basic actually. As long as you have a valid membership at a library in your area, you can browse the collection of books from the online platform and get snippets for each book. Now, this might not sound like much if you picture the one chapter rule offered by other players. But since this brand partnered with libraries you can actually read through more chapters. You are not limited by chapters but by time. You have 2 hours total to leaf through the book or start reading it, whichever is your favorite reading habit. And from then on you can decide to 1 ) keep on reading the book on their platform, aka buy it from them, or 2 ) get the book from a local library, no purchase (you read that right).
So how does their business model work? First they've crafted a robust product which sells for a little more than the average of the market. They also edit authors themselves and collections of classics adorned by designers which they sell on their platform, on top of offering the partnership service with libraries. But, most importantly, they trust their product to deliver such a pleasant reading experience that the ebook reader might be convinced or hooked enough to simply make the purchase. The option to get the book in a library is just a bonus then.
In the end, it's really a freeing concept. Just what reading should always be about!
*This is demo content