The "ePaper" display is a real battery-miser compared to an LCD -- we're talking several multiple DAYS of use (or longer), compared to a few HOURS for an LCD device. It is the least eyestrain-inducing display medium. (All of the popular readers use the SAME actual ePaper display, BTW.)
Unlike the high-priced/big-name readers, the Sony is METAL, and, unlike most readers, it accepts a wide variety of ebook formats.
Better yet, with the free "calibre" ereader management suite -- MUCH nicer than the official software -- you can convert nearly ANY ebook format, and load it onto the reader (it supports a variety of readers, not just the Sony) -- or, download hundreds of newspapers, magazines, etc, and load them into the reader).
It has fantastic organization tools, a very well-thought out database, and makes ebook management unbelievably easy -- I downloaded it after reading one post after another by people raving about how good it was -- and they were telling the truth.
I have a total of six bucks invested in content -- I bought one book from Baen (Live Free or Die -- a "first contact" SF novel) -- all the rest are thanks to stuff like Gutenberg and the Baen free library. I'll probably buy a few more books, but there is SO much excellent stuff in the public domain (and, in the case of Baen, non-public domain, but, given away as free advertising for their other stuff).
To everyone saying why buy an e-reader when you have a laptop, the answer is obvious to anyone who's used both types of devices -- a laptop is big and heavy and cumbersome, compared to an e-reader (my Sony, with the big screen (they have a smaller pocket-size model too) is approximately the size of a THIN paperback book. My laptop? NO comparison!
Plus, the laptop eats the battery like it's going out of style, whereas the Sony just keeps on keeping on.
A device smaller than a typical paperback book, able to hold hundreds (thousands, if I pop in a five dollar memory card), weighing a few ounces, with a battery life that's just bleepin' unreal... or, a big, heavy laptop, with a bulky screen, a huge keyboard, a battery-eating processor, memory, disk, display....
NO contest!
I obviously meant GIGAbytes, argh!
I can second calibre. I have thousands of books, and it makes it really easy to find the particular one I want. Much superior to Sony’s bundled software. Plus, the ability to automatically fetch and convert rss feeds/news sites is fantastically useful.