Electronic Dictionary Bookmark

While at work last week I noticed that we had started selling these electronic dictionary bookmarks in our branch of Waterstone's, but as we were quite busy at the time, I didn't have chance to have a proper look at them. This week however, I did.
They retail for the rather hefty price of £19.99, but for that, you not only get a flexible, but sturdy bookmark, you also get a Collins dictionary with over 38000 definitions built into the device! The bookmark is by 'that company called if' and I think they've done a fantastic job! You can choose between white and grey or white and pink, and they work really well.
Having bought one when I finished working my shift today, I am very impressed. I have of course already had a play with it, and I can report back with very positive comments. You may worry that it might get broken quite easily, but everything underneath the screen has a little flexibility to it, it isn't rigid, so it won't easily snap under too much pressure, and the screen is fairly clear, although it isn't backlit, so you would need a light in order to see the screen.
They also don't stick out too far when placed inside a book - the screen obviously doesn't fit inside the book as the keypad does, but it doesn't protrude too much. The batteries are also easily replaceable - at the back of the screen there is a slide-open battery compartment, and the device takes just one CR2032 battery, which is a lithium battery, so I don't foresee having to replace that in the too-near future.
The only downside to the bookmark that I can foresee, is that if you're at the very beginning, or very end of the novel you are reading, the screen sticking out of the top of the book, may cause the bookmark to fall out of the book if it is being carried in a large bag. I don't however see this as being a common problem (especially as when I carry my books, I tend to put them in the bag spine down and hold them in place with the rest of the contents of the bag!)

This is also a wonderful little product for those who don't own Kindles/other eReaders, as an advantage to these is that if you find a word that you don't understand, you simply click down to it, and the definition of the word appears at the bottom or top of the screen. However, with one of these bookmarks, you can also quickly find a definition for a word without too much interruption to your enjoyment of whatever book you happen to be devouring.

A slightly expensive, but really useful reading accessory!