Google has launched the Google eBookstore in direct competition to the Amazon Kindle. It already claims the largest selection of books available boasting some 3 million books available at launch.
The eBooks are compatible with most of the platforms with free readers available for PC/Mac, Android, Apple (iPhone, iPad, iPod), Nook & Sony, but not on the Amazon Kindle. One of the cleverest features is the ability to start reading on your PC, go out of the door with your Android phone and continue reading and then switch to your iPod later in the day. Each time you switch device Google saves the position in the eBook so you carry on reading straight from where you left off.
This multi-device multi-platform approach isn’t the norm for eBook readers, so makes a welcome change allowing you to access books you’ve purchased on whichever device is most convenient at the time.
Google are working with publishers to make sample pages available along with the ability to purchase the book should you choose. For books which are out of copywrite in many cases the entire book is available to download and read for free.
Google eBooks are currently only available for sale to users located in the United States, but you can still browse nearly 3 million free ebooks from the public domain. That means even for users outside the US you still can read the likes of Charles Dickens, Jane Austen and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes for free.
