Audiobook Downloads and Rentals FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions about Audiobook Downloads and Rentals

• What is an audiobook?
• What are the advantages of audiobooks?
• Do I get the whole book when I order an audiobook?
• What is an audiobook subscription service?
• Which is cheaper, an audiobook subscription plan, a rent-by-mail service, or an a la carte audiobook purchase?
• What are the advantages of an audiobook rent-by-mail service?
• What are the advantages of audiobook downloads?
• What is DRM?
• What programs or special equipment do I need to listen to audiobooks?
• How do audiobook downloads work?
• What about sound quality?
• How did NextAdvisor review these audiobook download and rental services?

What is an audiobook?

An audiobook is the recorded narration of a work of fiction or nonfiction. We used to call them "books on tape." Now these voice-narrated books are mostly distributed as CDs or downloadable audio files. Sometimes they're narrated by the author, and sometimes they're narrated by voice-over artists. Some of the services we reviewed offer audio programs that aren't strictly books. Audible, for instance, offers magazines, newspapers, and radio programs for download.

What are the advantages of audiobooks?

Audiobooks offer many advantages. Some people prefer hearing a work read to them. Books narrated by their authors are particularly fun to listen to. Audiobooks offer particular advantages to those who commute by car. Audiobooks are also incredibly useful for those with visual impairments or learning disabilities.

Do I get the whole book when I order an audiobook?

When shopping for a title, it's important to note whether the audiobook is abridged or unabridged. An unabridged audiobook contains the complete text, while an abridged audiobook has some content removed in order to make the program shorter.

What is an audiobook subscription service?

With an audiobook subscription service you pay a flat monthly fee for a certain number of download credits. You redeem these credits for audiobooks. Generally, one credit buys one download, but some titles may cost more than one credit. Subscription services offer a substantial discount on most titles.

Which is cheaper, an audiobook subscription plan, a rent-by-mail service, or an a la carte audiobook purchase?

An audiobook that costs $40.00 on an à la carte service like iTunes can have the equivalent cost of $10.00 to $20.00 with a subscription service. Depending on how quickly you go through an audiobook, a rent-by-mail service may offer the best value since you can receive multiple titles in one month for one price. For frequent audiobook listeners these plans make a lot of sense.

What are the advantages of an audiobook rent-by-mail service?

Besides the cost-per-title advantages, rent-by-mail services usually offer the original CD program, meaning you get the highest quality recording available. You also don't have to worry about file formats with a traditional CD, as long as you have a CD player. CDs can also be better for individuals with slow Internet connections, particularly those with dial-up service. One service that we reviewed offers both traditional CDs and MP3-CDs. MP3-CDs must either be played from a computer or a CD player that can read MP3 files.

What are the advantages of audiobook downloads?

With rent-by-mail services you only borrow the audiobook. With an audio download you own the audiobook. You can listen to it, burn it to a CD, sync it to your media player, and share it among computers in your household.

What is DRM?

Some services put DRM (Digital Rights Management) controls on their audiobook files. DRM is technology that limits the number of computers a file can be played on and/or the number of times a CD can be synced or burned. We point these restrictions out in our reviews.

What programs or special equipment do I need to listen to audiobooks?

This depends on the service you choose. For a rent-by-mail service you'll just need a CD player for most of the titles. Different download services have different device compatibilities. Audible and eMusic offer the greatest range of device choices. Apple's iTunes music store only works on iPods, iPhones, and computers running iTunes. Some files downloaded from Simply Audiobooks cannot be played on the iPod or iPhone.

How do audiobook downloads work?

Downloadable audiobooks are distributed as digital audio files. Generically, these are known as MP3s, although an MP3 is just a type of file. There are other types as well, such as WMA (the file format of Windows Media). Digital audio files are compressed versions of the original recording; this is done to save space and increase download speed. Compressing an audio file does affect the sound quality. The greater the compression, the more it will affect the quality.

What about sound quality?

We recognize that sound quality is a very subjective thing. Some people may hear great differences between an MP3 and CD, and others may not. Every service we tried was perfectly listenable. However, using high end headphones we were able to detect some differences between different formats. Those users with particularly sensitive hearing may find the portion of the review dealing with sound quality to be useful.

How did NextAdvisor review these audiobook download and rental services?

We tried them all. We signed up for every service here. When it was a download service, we tried the downloadable files. When it was a rental service we tried that. We always used the same book so we could compare sound quality and file size (where applicable). We also spent time browsing the web sites in order to get a sense of how easy the sites were to navigate, and which titles they carry.