Backpack too heavy? Textbook papers getting torn? Never fear, Kindle is here!

 

A few years ago, Amazon.com introduced the Kindle to read digital books on a little screen that can go anywhere. The standard Kindle costs around $300 while books may be purchased for additional fees. In May, Amazon introduced the Kindle DX (Deluxe), a big screen Kindle designed for university students and newspaper readers. It costs about $189 more but will include more partnerships with newspapers such as the New York Times, The Boston Globe, and The Washington Post.

 

Recently, many universities such as Princeton University, Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia, Case Western Reserve University, Reed College, Pace University and Arizona State University began offering free kindles and reading assignments from several classes to certain students. Laura Robinson-Brown, the assistant vice president for communications at Princeton stated, "Sustainability is the driving force behind Princeton using Kindle." Using Kindles would mean saving paper, labor and textbook costs.

 

Also on the market is the Sony Digital Reader which is also a handheld device that can read books in the .pdf format. Personally, I think Kindles are an ingenious idea to market books to youth and help the environment. Kindles may inspire more readers who would normally skip reading textbooks or assignments because they don't enjoy carrying big books and reading small text. Also, the amount of paper they save will be a huge step towards greening our environment.

 

Photo: Amazon.com