The conversion begins? Dreaming of a Kindle! December 24, 2008
Posted by Mario Sundar in Technology I Love.Tags: amazon-kindle, iphone
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Brad Stone of the New York Times co-authors an article asking if readers are ready for e-Readers (like the Amazon 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 of e-readers. But I digress…
Sales of e-books:
The publishers say sales of e-books have tripled or quadrupled in the last year.
Sales of Kindle:
Peter Hildick-Smith, president of the Codex Group, a book market research company, said he believed Amazon had sold as many as 260,000 units through the beginning of October, before Ms. Winfrey’s endorsement. Others say the number could be as high as a million.
Sales of Sony’s e-Reader:
Mr. Haber said Sony’s sales had tripled this holiday season over last, in part because the device is now available in the Target, Borders and Sam’s Club chains. He said Sony had sold more than 300,000 devices since the debut of the original Reader in 2006.
The article even talks about the iPhone and it’s challenge to the ecosystem of e-Readers, a much overlooked topic that I’ve discussed on this blog.
Perhaps the most overlooked boost to e-books this year — and a challenge to some of the standard thinking about them — came from Apple’s do-it-all gadget, the iPhone.
Having said that, I’ve got to confess: I’m on the path of overcoming my initial skepticism around the Kindle.
Why?
Kindle v2.0 (more aesthetically pleasing – not an eyesore), the desire to centralize all my reading in one simple device vs. a life of strewn unread books, battery life, lower price point expected (between $249 to $299), but most importantly the fact that nobody has a better, more complete catalog of books on the planet than Amazon. In much the same way as Apple currently reigns supreme in the music business, thanks to iTunes.
Where do you stand on the conversion scale? Want a Kindle for next Christmas?
Nope!
I’m happy with 1.0
Which I ordered 1st day
@Tom,
That’s good to hear. Top 3 reasons you do like it? Besides, the fact that you’re probably a voracious consumer of content?
The so-called 2.0 kindle pic looks like a complete hoax – or a much cheaper intro version to “compete” with the poorer selling Sony Reader. Actually, it looks MOST like an upgrade to the Sony Reader (or a very, very old mockup when they first kicked around the Kindle idea. No SD card, no replaceable battery, rear design near identical to the Sony, “wireless” (not CDMA/Whispernet), poor keyboard style/placement …. all would be steps back in Kindle design/functionality, but a major step up in Sony design (anything that actually encouraged someone to buy something in the Sony store would be a step up, but there is no reason to suppose that a reader based version of it would be better than the extremely poor PC experience; at least it would finally let you get a(n overpriced) book onto the reader without a PC, I suppose).
@Karen,
Could be. Although, I think it still looks more like a Kindle than a Sony Reader. But your observations seem right on.
Thanks for the comment.
Yeah, it does look like a kindle, not a sony reader.
I own both the Kindle (1.0) and the iPhone. I love both. I read a lot of content on both. But if I am going to read a “book” then I use the kindle.
Reading on the kindle is like reading a paper book. Once you get going, you forget you are reading on an electronic device. Reading on the iPhone always feels like I am reading on an electronic device. It detracts from the reading experience.
For short content (or short reading sessions), the iPhone is fine. But I like to sit down and read for 4 – 6 hours at a time. I find that impossible on the iPhone. I’ve read over 20 books on my Kindle since I first got it last year. Literally thousands of pages. The experience is no different than reading dead-tree books.
Cost is the obvious issue. If you can only afford once device then buy an iPhone and either live with the subpar reading experience or continue buying paper books. If you can afford both, and you read “a lot”, then you will love the kindle.
That’s definitely the general impression I get from Kindle users. If you’re a voracious reader and can spend $359.00 then probably Kindle is your reading device.
I hope to get a Kindle someday, when I can keep up my read a book a month resolution
Someday, I will…