Though e-readers have becoming more popular with New Yorkers, especially with the Kindle, Nook and iPad all having book reading capabilities, many city coffee shops will still not allow them in their stores as New York Times reporter Nick Bilton discovered this after being asked to put away his "devices" in two local New York City shops.
Sitting in a Manhattan coffee shop Bilton had barely pulled out his Kindle and begun to read before an employee came over telling him to put his computer away. After explaining it was "an e-book reader," not a computer, the employee realized he might be caught in an "existential debate" with Bilton and resolutely said, "Look, no computers in the coffee shop."
3 comments:
well, my Kindle will double as a computer with the whispernet on, although not a very easy to use one. That's crazy though. suddenly ebook readers are second class citizens. I take mine with me to quite a few restruant and so far haven't had anyone say anything. I've also not seen "ANYONE" else reading an ebook reader down here.
I'm really confused. What is the issue? Is this a NY thing? In Atlanta, our coffee shops are loaded with students and business folk using their laptop computers, e-readers, iPhones, etc. You expect to see them out and in use. Never any hassles.
I suppose PC's are banned from these places to keep the old style ambiance. I don't know - would the ban include mobile phones and Blacberrys?
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