Sony Vs. Kindle big deal...

[Richard]

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/200096/sony-reaches-deal-share-google-s-ebook-library

I really can't get worked up over the Kindle or this new Sony reader. I have to say that I believe in 5 years these things will be in the bargain bins at Big Lots. It seems like they are assembling technology that has been around for 10 years in a very dull way (black and white) and then trying to sell it off like it is some new big thing for 400$. My cell phone can read ebooks.

I'm not saying that I don't like the idea of a handheld book reader. I do. I like ebooks very much, but these seem kinda like a rip off. It is very low technology put together in a dull way with a huge price tag, who cares. Mini-laptops seem much wiser at this point. If the kindle or the sony were say 100$ or even less than 100$ it might be worth it, but: http://www.squidoo.com/best-minilaptops I would much rather have a keyboard, color, wireless, web, and a 300$ price tag. 

[preciseedit]

As the author of two e-books I have two comments about this. 1) These are "sexy" technologies, even if they are not ground breaking. 2) I am dissappointed by corporate decisions to limit file types usable on these readers. I understand the need to protect copyrighted/licensed material, but the results seems to be that readers have fewer choices for text to read, and authors have fewer options for publishing.

On the flip side, authors could simply bypass the e-book readers and publish in PDF. We have sold many, many copies of our Precise Edit Training Manual (http://preciseedit.com) as an electronic download. We may eventually convert to reader file types, but haven't yet seen a real need to do so.

[Richard]

I think they are serving to make people more aware of ebooks. I think this is more the point. Honestly, in 10 years these WILL be very low cost, but right now the hype has to do a lot for ebook writers and publishers which I think is great! I don't like the idea of technology sexy or otherwise being so over priced that many will not buy it. When they hit say 50 or 100$ everyone will have one, and then the ebook biz will boom even more than it is right now. I too think they need to agree on a format, and I'm sure they will.

[Lin Robinson]

I agree with precisedit.
The press has made a darling out of Kindle, and thinks it's the reading iPod that will start the revolution.

Instead of thinking it's an overpriced monopoly tool where the customer pays to jerk himself around.

This whole obsession with creating special readers requiring proprietary formats is strangling the future maket

What's REALLY stupid is you see mobipocket or other readers for devices that HAVE BROWSERS!!!!!
So they can read html documents AS IS, cross platform.

It's a big mess.  The industry wants to consolidate on ePub but all the players want their little eight track fiefdoms.   

The "reding iPod" is still in the offiing.  My guess it will be a phone.

[phmadore]

I own the Sony PRS-505. I've found it enables me to do a lot more reading of electronic literature than I would otherwise.

NOt so much on the old Kindle, but I may give the new one a go someday.

PHM

[phmadore]

Also, I'm willing to bet that the most successful electronic book will be from Apple. I may be a mac freak, but I'm pretty sure of this as it is. I think they'll rape Kindle of sales and force Amazon to work with them. Amazon is already talking about putting books out for other devices. That was my biggest problem with Kindle, was that you had to use Amazon and had to have an internet connection and such. "8track Fiefdom" is right, but I'll have you know I haven't bought a single book for my Sony Reader--I've used it almost exclusively for reading free online content just copied/pasted into RTF files.

[Lin Robinson]

The new Kindle removed the memory car slot.   Thus the ONLY source of reading material is amazon.com

Even without the practical objections, that is just plain monopolistic, wrong-headed fasism.   It's an evil company and Kindle is a great example.

They aren't selling a reader, they're selling an interface to their company and making consumers pay through the nose for it.   By the way, are we aware that in only works within range of a Sprint footprint?

It's the Hummer of readers, and as messed-up as iTunes.

You have to have doubts about people who are afraid to play in the Free Market.

But an obvious caveat here is not to get something made and disrtibuted by the application retailer.  Would you buy a TV that only got HBO?   Or a computer that would only connect to AOL?

[Richard]

They aren't selling a reader, they're selling an interface to their company and making consumers pay through the nose for it. 

I think this is exactly right. It does do some good for the industry, but overall it is not worth it.

[Lin Robinson]

I'm much more interested in people thinking of ways to publish and read books on PDA's, Blackberries, phones, music players, etc.

I personally think that glasses will replace screens just like earphones became more popular than speakers.  But maybe not.

Any screen bigger than the print area of a paperback book is kind of useless.

One other thing... the successful breakthrough device, if connected, will allow reading news feeds and online papers, etc.

There is really no need for a reader to be wifi, though.   If we're talking about reading books, how hard is it to upload from a card, USB port, or docking station?

[Richard]

I think this way too. I think the size will be between a kindle and an I phone. Something that is part computer, part phone. The iphone of course is all these things, but I would like to have the screen bigger so I could write on it like a small note pad.

[Lin Robinson]

One thing I think happened: they made phones to small.  It was a great competitoin for awhile, whipping out a smaller phone than the next guy.  But lots of them were too small to talk on, literally.

Now you're seeing a swing more toward the Treo/blackberry kind of thing.  And once you start having the screen cover a whole side of the device, and with touchscreen controls... why get something smaller.  Hell a CHECKBOOK is bigger than that. 

Everybody uses the "I want to curl up with a book" line about ebooks, but is that where most reading gets done?   Seems to me a lot gets done on pubic transportation (getting more popular in the New Scarcity Age)  lunch hours,  the beach and park, etc.    Guy's on a subway for a half hour, he pulls out his phone and starts reading the latest Tom Clancey.   
Guy across the aisle asks about the book, he zaps him the link.   Etc.

You want to curl up on the couch, or concentrate, you plug in your glasses.

I've also seem some cool readers about the size of a passport, by the way.  Little leather cover, open up to a screen with dial and touch selection.

Bottom line: why carry a book reader, camera, phone, recorder, music player  when you can just have one.  That's what the Blackberry already is, I think.  I've seen some pretty cheap devices that do all that except the phone/internet.

And SOMEBODY is going to figure out it easier to just have a modified linux browser (like the portable apps Firefox, for instance) reading straight HTML than a specialized book reader.