Reading is an important part of a student’s college career and with the costs of textbooks getting higher, one should consider having e-readers replace textbooks.

An e-book reader, is a portable electronic device that is designed for reading digital books. Most students spend hundreds of dollars on textbooks a semester.

According to the College Board website, students in the US spend on average $1,137 per year on textbooks in public colleges.

That is why textbooks should go digital.

During this economy, people try and find the best deals and what works best for their wallets.

While students cannot control how much tuition and other things costs, they can have control over how much they spend on their textbooks.

Many students try websites such as Amazon, Craigslist and Half.com to find the necessary textbooks at a cheap price, but the time waiting for them to get mailed can take anywhere from three to seven business days.

While it is true that textbooks allow students to highlight, write and physically turn the page with one’s fingers, the benefits of having e-reader’s replace textbooks are greater.

First off, the price of a textbook found at the EC Bookstore can range anywhere from $19 to $220.

Some classes don’t only require one textbook, but two or even three. With the e-reader, you pay a one-time fee for the device, itself, with prices starting from $200 to $400.

Although the reading material itself won’t be free of cost, the price for any required textbook would be minimal compared to the hundreds of dollars for one  textbook.

Some say that reading and studying would be difficult because of the amount of time spent glaring at a screen, making it uncomfortable for the eyes.

However, don’t students do that with laptops, cell phones and let’s not forget, TV’s?

According to the Review Relay, a website designed to review new technology gadgets, “the display on e-readers is not displayed with backlighting like LCD monitors are, and the e-ink is much easier on the eyes.”

Meaning that the time spent staring at an e-reader won’t hurt the eyes and make studying and reading easy to do.