This is a sequel to my original post where I proclaimed that the future of reading was the iPhone and NOT the Kindle. Since then, we’ve seen a slew of posts that repeated my claims and more recently we saw some numbers that claimed the Kindle was a big success! hmm… where do we stand now?
What has changed since then. Let’s do a recap in 3 parts:
1. My original comparison – iPhone vs. Kindle (Nov 07)
Apple iPhone vs. Amazon Kindle
2. iPhone could give Kindle a run for its money
Bloggers who think like me
Certainly, the Kindle’s advantages as an e-reader aren’t enough to trump the host of iPhone features: a phone on a new faster network, camera, video player, it holds photos, contacts, you can play games and there’s the apps we don’t know about yet. With the Kindle I get Web browsing and e-mail.
The Kindle does very few things with its black and white screen. It reads books, it checks some RSS feeds and gets the news… that’s about it. The iPhone, on the other hand, lets you do all of that, and pretty much anything else you can do on the Internet. And it’s a phone. And a portable media player. With sites like eBooks.com out there, which sells over 100,000 books, most in the PDF format that Readdle supports, theoretically the same content available on the Kindle is available on the iPhone.
Yet those advantages, plus the Kindle’s ability to tap into content from Amazon, coupled with its wireless connection, may not be enough to make it a winner. At $399 it’s not only pricier than a small library of used books, it’s more expensive than Asustek’s 2-pound, $299 Eee PC laptop. Another catch: Amazon, according to Newsweek, is going to charge subscription fees for blogs, magazines and newspapers. Yet most magazines and newspapers — and practically every blog — can be had online for free.
3. But its raining Kindles!
Is the Kindle starting to catch fire with consumers? From the Department of Inscrutable Data Points comes word that e-book sales for Amazon’s Kindle — its digital reading device-have doubled during the past two months. Kind of, sort of, maybe.
So, we don’t have a definitive answer on this yet, but it looks like Kindle’s definitely not a flop. The question, remains, would Apple eliminate the need for a Kindle if it focuses on selling books.
But I think the Kindle’s killer features (immediate access to books – wherever, whenever; stronger battery life, readability, and the range of books available) will give them an advantage with book lovers.
What do you think? Kindle or the iPhone?
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Filed under: Technology I Love , amazon, amazon-kindle, apple, iphone
It might appeal to a very niche minority of book lovers who don’t mind carrying around 2 devices. For the rest of the world iPhone and its competitors will suffice
I have to put a plug in for the Kindle. I’m addicted to the instant gratification of having a book in my hands about 12 seconds after someone recommends it. And it is easy to rig an RSS reader for the blogs. If the goal is hard-core info sponging, the iPhone interface just isn’t a curl-up-in-bedder.
@Sachendra and @Pamela,
I agree. It looks like the Kindle is a solid option for voracious readers.
I guess I’m not as much of a reader yet, but if I were, the Kindle may sound like a decent option for me.
[...] Kindle, Sony Reader). Readers of this blog are probably aware of my intense debates (see here and here) on the Kindle that ranged from hatred to slow acceptance of the inevitable onslaught and dominance [...]
I think the iPhone is going to give the kindle a run for its money!! This iPhone will be amazing!!
the Kindle’s got the iPhone beat easily
My observation is that people who already own an iPhone or are considering one will most likely use the apps available for reading ebooks on the iPhone rather than purchase another device to carry around. Those who do not presently have a phone will most likely consider the Kindle. My opinion: Why spend so much money on an item that does so little?