Last week I took a look at TextBookFlix, an invite-only service that ships loaner text books at a sizable discount to cash-strapped college students. This week I've been browsing BookSwim, a similar service that's been around a little longer, and is open to everyone.
Look familiar? If you've used Netflix before, you've got the gist behind BookSwim.
(Credit: BookSwim.com)BookSwim makes strong self-comparisons to Netflix, with its own books-by-mail turnaround service that lets you keep anywhere from 3 to 11 titles out at a time with five different subscription plans ranging from $20, all the way up to $36 per month. Like Netflix, BookSwim gives each user a queue of books, and will ship you more when you send them back. Instead of shipping books back one at a time, the service requires you to send several books back at a once depending on your plan.
To find new titles to put in your queue, there's a socialized browsing system that includes recommendations and reviews for each title that are written by users. There's also a top rentals listing, along with a "celebrity queue" run by a resident book head named Viral, who offers reading suggestions.
If you feel like keeping a title or purchasing it directly, BookSwim sells each of its titles through an Amazon.com affiliate store and a discounted purchase price you can pay through your account, similar to other rental services like Netflix, GamesnFlix, and GreenCine.
This service sounds absolutely fantastic for quick readers without a library or used bookstore nearby. Or if they're agoraphobic, yet addicted to new hardcovers and expensive manual-style books. Otherwise, you'd be better off picking up a handful of used books each month for about the same price.
If you dig expensive technology-related books like how-to guides and books from the 'Dummies' series you'll find them on BookSwim.
(Credit: CNET Networks)
Here's a concept for textbooks that's almost as cool as library checkouts. It's called TextBookFlix, and as the name would suggest, it's pretty much like Netflix for textbooks--with a twist. There's no monthly subscription fee, just a one-time fee to "check out" a book for an entire semester. It's kind of a hybrid between the "no late fees" mentality of Netflix, and the loaner system you get with libraries. The service already has more than two million titles available and a search tool that lets you find your books via ISBN, author, title, or by course.
Cheapskates might not be getting off scot-free however. You're not paying full prices, but many of the books still aren't "cheap." In my testing I found that TextBookFlix was saving about 50 to 60 percent on the retail price on the large, reference-style textbooks--which means you still end up paying a hefty price (more than three pizzas) on a $130-plus textbook. For the smaller titles priced less than $50, the price is a little less. A lot depends on whether or not the titles are new, along with the discount that's been generated.
As a recent college grad, I remember all too well having to buy absurdly expensive textbooks that are now sitting vacantly in some storage boxes in my closet. While book swaps and intercampus book purchase programs are handy, services like this would be great for some of the titles that you know you're not going to be using come the end of semester.
The service is currently in an invite-only beta. To get access, you need to sign up for the waiting list. In the meantime, you can search through the catalog and calculate prices.
Norton Anthologies, one of the more expensive items for most English majors, can be fetched at less than half the cost on TextBookFlix. The only snag is you need to return the book a few months later.
(Credit: CNET Networks)
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