That is the number quoted in a recent study from Forrester Research.

Another huge number quoted in the study is that digital book readers are the number one sought after personal electronic gadget this Christmas season, coming ahead of game consoles and mp3 players.

The convenience factor is my guess as to why they’re so popular in general, but I think PRICE is the reason they’re going to sell like hotcakes this Christmas 2009 holiday season. With Amazon slashing the price of the Kindle Wireless to $259 just last week, and another price drop expected closer to December the digital reader as we know it, is getting closer to going mainstream.

Everyone from industry analysts to retail executives are claiming that the Amazon Kindle will take the lions share of the market, followed closely by the Sony digital reader.

Make no mistake about it, these are the top digital book readers to watch at the end of 2009.