Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know. It's only the latter part of July, and the last thing you probably want to be thinking about is school being back in session. However, it'll be here before you know it, and one way you can be prepared is by looking into renting e-books, or rather e-textbooks. Heck, you might even save some money along the way!
Recently, Amazon announced that the Kindle and all of its associated apps would now allow users the capability to start renting textbooks. If there's one thing that's a standard when it comes to textbooks, it's that those puppies can cost some serious dinero. However, with the tech revolution of e-books, many textbook publishers have begun to adopt the electronic format, and consumers can reap the benefits of cheaper textbooks (usually).
With that, we thought it important to highlight the rental capabilities and features of Amazon's Kindle, Barnes & Noble's Nook, and an app called Overdrive, which allows you to virtually "check out" e-books from your local library.
(Image courtesy of ipadweek.ly)
Kindle's app comes in as a solid app for your Mac or iOS device. According to Amazon's page for renting e-textbooks, you can save up to 80% off of the list price of the print textbook. You can also only pay for the time that you actually need a textbook. For example, you can choose a rental length between 30 and 360 days. So if you have a shorter quarter or longer semester you're in luck! You can also extend your rental for as little as one day or convert it to purchase -- just in case you didn't pass the class and need to hold on to it a little bit longer.
You're also not limited to how you can use your textbook. Once you rent it, you can read it everywhere, such as your PC, Mac, Kindle or mobile device.
Need to make some notes? You can access your notes and highlights anytime, even AFTER the rental expires.
You search for your textbook in the Textbooks Store or from the search bar. Should a Kindle edition for your book be available, you'll see the option in the Formats section on the textbook page. Pick that option. Then on the textbook page, pick your rental end date. Click on the "Rent now with 1-click" button, and you're off to study hall in no time!
However, if Amazon isn't your flavor, Barnes & Noble can also provide another viable option.
If there's one thing Barnes & Noble knows, it's books, and e-textbooks are no stranger. The book giant claims that you can save up to to 60% on their selection e-textbooks, and you can read the e-textbooks via the free NOOKstudy app. It'll look just like the real deal as the physical book, including the same graphs, charts, drawings and more.
The NOOKstudy apps lets users go through their textbook and tag content, highlight sections and access coursework all in one place.
NOOKstudy also has the handy option of seven-day free trials of many of their e-textbook titles. You know how there always seems to be several editions of the same textbook, and the cover looks the same, but lo and behold, you have the wrong one? You can use the free trial option to make sure the edition you have will help you get the right grade.
You can also import documents, implement a dual-view, research online, print & copy, and export any notes you may have taken.
NOOKstudy is available on the Mac, though NOOKstudy e-textbooks can't be read on the NOOK or mobile devices due to the company claim of textbooks not displaying well on small screens.
For more, check out NOOKstudy here.
Finally, while they may not have quite as large of a book database as Amazon or Barnes & Noble, Overdrive allows you access to free eBooks courtesy of your local library.
(Image courtesy of the-digital-reader.com)
While there is definitely a plethora of eBooks apps to choose from, one of the perks that the OverDrive app has is that it can tap into your local library. According to the company page, OverDrive is a leading full-service digital distributor of e-books, audiobooks, and other digital content. The company delivers secure management, DRM protection, and download fulfillment services for publishers, libraries, schools and retailers.
They host a whopping 500,000 premium digital titles from over 1,000 publishers, including the likes of Random House, HarperCollins, BBC Audiobooks America, Harlequin, and Bloomsbury.
The company launched Content Reserve in 2000, their digital marketplace that now contains over 500,000 downloadable titles from more than 1,000 publishers. Then in 2002, they launched their download service for libraries which provided e-book, audiobook, and other other digital content to millions of library users.
Be sure to check out the free app here!
So there you have it readers. Before you head off to school this fall, make sure you check to see if you can get your textbook in the electronic format first. In case we missed any other options out there that are your favorite, make sure to list them in the comments below!
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