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Is it finally time to give up paper books and buy an ebook reader? With so many new models and formats available, the answer might be yes. You need to do your research first though. Not every ebook format is supported by every reader. When you finally take the plunge, just think how exciting it will be to take dozens of books and magazines with you on your next long trip!

Unfortunately, there are no set standards as to the format ebooks come in. The manufacturers of these ebook readers have to decide what formats they’re going to support. In addition, these same manufacturers also create their own proprietary ebook formats hoping that their format will become the industry standard. Before you buy, you need to pay attention to what the format is of the ebooks you’re interested in and the formats supported by the ebook reader you’re interested in.

The different reader formats include:

Adobe Reader Format (PDF)

If you have read ebooks on your computer you’re probably already very familiar with PDF files. These files have become the standard over the years for ebooks read on a computer. The problem with ebook readers, however, is the size of the display. It’s too small to display a PDF file accurately. Fortunately, the two biggest players in the ebook reader industry, Amazon and Sony, have ways of converting PDF files so they can be displayed on their devices.

Mobipocket Format (MOBI)

Another popular format is MOBI. This is more of a standard, and does not limit its own use on devices (though devices can limit it.) MOBI software is a free download on your computer, and is included in the Amazon Kindle. MOBI is not available on Sony readers.

Amazon Kindle Format (AZW)

The Amazon Kindle, Amazon’s own portable ebook reader, sets a new bar for competition to aim for. Amazon’s AZW format only works on the Kindle, but at the time of this writing there are over 240,000 titles to choose from and all are priced at $9.99 or below.

Sony Reader Format (LRF)

This file format is the one you will be using for ebooks on the Sony Reader, as this is the proprietary format Sony has developed and has chosen to support. Be sure to examine the choices available in the Sony store to make sure they have books you want to read. The selection is smaller than those offered by other companies such as Amazon.

Selecting the right ebook reader is mainly a matter of making a commitment to your preference of file formats. With development in the industry, we’re bound to see more standardization in the formats offered. Currently, the situation is somewhat fragmented, yet it’s possible to discover the majority of the titles you’re looking for in all types of formats.

When you’re looking to buy an ebook reader be sure to read reviews and comments from actual customers. It’s a pretty good bet that if a lot of people find the file formats on a device difficult to handle, you will too. No matter which ebook reader you end up buying, you’ll have plenty of reading material to choose from as their are thousands of ebooks available now in a variety of formats.