An evaluation of second-generation ebook readers

Purpose – This study seeks to evaluate a selection of second‐generation ebook readers in order to determine which devices deliver the best experience for the user, in terms of functionality and overall experience. The technical and physical elements of the devices are also compared.Design/methodology/approach – This paper starts with a brief discussion of the current ebook marketplace, and previous studies that evaluate ebook readers. It then reports on a study in which 33 Master's students from an Information and Library Studies course were each given an ebook reader and asked to complete a task designed to engage them with the device. The participants then evaluated the devices by completing a questionnaire. A discussion of the results of the study and implications for the development of ebook reading devices follows.Findings – Although some issues, specifically size, weight, and screen quality, have been addressed in the new generation of ebook readers, some residual dissatisfaction remains. The partic...

[1]  R. Lonsdale,et al.  Virtually there? E‐books in UK academic libraries , 2002 .

[2]  Robert A. Virzi.  Streamlining the Design Process: Running Fewer Subjects , 1990 .

[3]  Nancy K. Herther.  The Ebook Reader: Not the future of Ebooks , 2008 .

[4]  Jakob Nielsen,et al.  Usability engineering at a discount , 1989 .

[5]  James Dearnley,et al.  The revolution starts next week: the findings of two studies considering electronic books , 2001 .

[6]  Ruth Wilson,et al.  Ebook Readers in Higher Education , 2003, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[7]  Ruth Wilson.  Evolution of Portable Electronic Books , 2001 .

[8]  Ruth Wilson,et al.  Evaluating the usability of portable electronic books , 2003, SAC '03.

[9]  W. Buxton.  Human-Computer Interaction , 1988, Springer Berlin Heidelberg.

[10]  Jennifer E. Rowley,et al.  An overview of the e-book marketplace , 2009, Online Inf. Rev..

[11]  Forbes Gibb,et al.  The WEB Book experiments in electronic textbook design , 2003, J. Documentation.

[12]  Forbes Gibb,et al.  From the Visual book to the WEB book: the importance of design , 2000, Electron. Libr..

[13]  Geoffrey A. Moore,et al.  Crossing the Chasm , 1991 .

[14]  Gabriella Kazai,et al.  Overview of the INEX 2009 Book Track , 2009, INEX.

[15]  James Dearnley,et al.  Making e-books available through public libraries , 2008, J. Libr. Inf. Sci..

[16]  Ruth Wilson,et al.  Fiction Electronic Books: A Usability Study , 2004, ECDL.

[17]  C. J. Armstrong,et al.  Books in a virtual world , 2008, J. Libr. Inf. Sci..

[18]  Forbes Gibb,et al.  Students' attitudes towards e‐books in a Scottish higher education institute: part 1 , 2008 .

[19]  Debora Shaw,et al.  Handbook of usability testing: How to plan, design, and conduct effective tests , 1996 .

[20]  Monica Landoni.  The active reading task: e-books and their readers , 2008, BooksOnline '08.

[21]  Jennifer E. Rowley,et al.  Progressing the definition of "e-book" , 2008, Libr. Hi Tech.

[22]  Monica Landoni,et al.  E-book reading groups: interacting with e-books in public libraries , 2007, Electron. Libr..

[23]  Carol M. Barnum,et al.  Usability testing and research , 2001 .

[24]  Boon-Chong Seet,et al.  Exploring the affordance and acceptance of an e-reader device as a collaborative learning system , 2012, Electron. Libr..