I’m typically an early adopter, or at least on the early part of the curve, but I also am a highly tactile, visual learner/thinker. Perhaps this is why I have yet to buy a Kindle. I do know once I use one, that I’ll likely become addicted, a tech trait I covet. But the smell of a book, the touch of the pages and the satisfaction I receive when I’m more than 1/2 way complete prevents me from embracing the innovation. This is a similar reason why I still receive my magazines and don’t adopt the online option. 

Times will change. I’ll surrender to the Kindle at some point, just as my grandparents gave up the typewriter for the computer.

But, what’s interesting is as a culture, we’ve changed many of our sensibilities. What imagery once brought a sense of newness? A crisp shirt brought back from the dry cleaners or the scent of a new car. Now? The factory freshness of airtight packaging or taking off the protective plastic on an iPhone screen. What about the lure of vintage? I vividly remember Pong on the Atari, but as seen by Atari sales, there is no room for nostalgia in innovation.

An evolving and inevitable redefinition of sensibilities will continue to change the way we read, listen, talk and touch. A continuous wave that will hopefully balance what makes us more efficient with what makes us individually unique.