DefectiveByDesign.org has a good piece entitled the Kindle Swindle, which describes some of the issues surrounding Amazon’s DRM policies. Sony’s aren’t any better. I’m traveling with both my Sony Reader PRS-505 and my Amazon Kindle. Why both? I’ve got some books on the former that I can’t transfer to the latter, and I’m seeing what it’s like to use the latter for reading the New York Times on the go.

Now I’ve finished all the books on the Sony. I can’t buy a new book for it because that requires software that runs only on Windows and I’m traveling with just my trusty old PowerBook G4. And if I buy the book I want using the Kindle via its EVDO connectivity, I can’t transfer the book to the Sony, which is far nicer for holding and page flipping.

The result? Tonight I stopped by the local Barnes and Noble and bought a paperback book for tomorrow’s flight home. And when I’m done, I can give it to a friend. And I’ve decided to go back to subscribing to the hardcopy NY Times when I’m home, and just not reading it — or perhaps trying to read it via the web — when I’m on the road. And I think I’ll sell the Kindle on eBay. I saved all the packaging.