The famous science fiction writer Isaac Asimov once said, “I do not fear computers. I fear the lack of them.” And that is a sentiment that can certainly be echoed by college students worldwide. Do students today even remember a time when typing a paper meant using a typewriter? Most don’t even understand the idea that not too many years ago, they couldn’t send a document wirelessly to their portable mini-printer, but instead had to put it on a disk and take it to the one and only public printer on campus, in the library (because nobody had personal printers in their dorm rooms, even if they were lucky enough to have a computer, which was huge and expensive)? Yup, that sure was a long time ago. And students, thank goodness, are in no need of lamenting the lack of technology that afflicted their forefathers (darn it, no more white out and the correcting tape is kaput…guess I’ll have to re-type the entire page). In fact, one gadget has recently appeared on campuses everywhere as the standout of the decade, at the very least, and weighing in at less than a pound, it might be the smallest big idea to change the way students live their lives. I speak, or course, of the e-reader.

E-books are not just for fun or a little light reading on the airplane. With dozens for e-readers on the market (notably: Amazon’s Kindle, Barnes & Nobles’ Nook, and the latest through the gate, Apple’s iPad) and more books becoming e-friendly, there’s really no reason not to cater to the first generation to have grown up on computers. And Amazon seems to have delivered the goods with over 6,000 textbooks available for the Kindle. Do you realize what this means? No more waiting at the campus bookstore for three hours during the first week of school with fifty pounds of books in your arms (and a line that winds around the block). No more ordering texts online only to sweat it out for two weeks until they arrive (while you miss the first four assignments or fight with twenty other kids for the only copy on library reserve). You can now get an entire textbook in less than a minute from the relative comfort of your own little dorm room. Not only that, in true Amazon fashion, books are offered at a discount. For example, the Clinical Textbook of Addictive Disorders, 3rd Edition (by Richard J. Frances MD) is $90 in print or $71.44 for the Kindle (no shipping, naturally). Applied Chemistry – A Textbook for Engineers and Technologists (by H.D. Gesser) is normally $169. Kindle price: $119.20. That’s a savings of seventy dollars on just two books. You can almost see the dollar signs in every eager college student’s eyes. And while the devices themselves can run into the hundreds of dollars, considering what will be saved (in money, time, and your aching back), they will soon pay for themselves.

Add in extras like Wi-Fi, text-to-speech, and pertinent functionality like highlighting and note-taking options and you are in serious business where college students are concerned. And while nay-sayers expound on the perils of eye-strain, most doctors say that it is no different than starting at a book or any other screen, for that matter. As long as you take frequent breaks, you should be fine. So it looks like everything’s coming up roses for this neat, new technology. It’s no wonder college students everywhere have started a love affair with greatest thing since care packages and key-chain can openers…and this one will actually help them learn.

Derwood Talbot is a writer for the popular book review website, Written Word. Browse the site to find information on the latest book gadgets and information on your favorite authors.