eReaders

Serephel

Does anybody here use any eReaders? I am considering getting one, since having a bunch of heavy books is not suitable for an internationally traveling guy such as myself.

Right now I'm leaning more towards a Sony eReader, since the Kindle and Nook run up to $250 bucks just for their cheap models. Maybe I'm biased because I've been living in China where everything is so damn cheap, but I have trouble justifying spending several hundred bucks on a glorified text display. The Sony eReader is $170 for their cheap model, but it's also not weighed down as much by DRM.

Anybody have suggestions or input? I'm also considering checking out the electronics district this weekend, since I may just say fuck it to overpriced readers and buy a Chinese knockoff.

bruce

If all you want is an ebook reader, then don't get an iPad, which some might suggest. It's a bit surplus to requirements.

Sony ones seem pretty slick to me, so I'd suggest that.

Behemoth

I have no insight into any specific models, but the greatest consideration should really be whether or not you'll go blind from staring at a bad screen for extended periods of time. Just looking at 2 of them in a store for 10 minutes might make the $100 model seem the same as the $250 model. But it might be a huge difference after looking at one for an hour.

mario

I do like my iPad, but I could understand getting a lower-end, cheaper device if you don't need all the features. I hear good things about the Kindle. The e-ink screen is supposedly easiest on the eyes, and they've got a well-established store.

shakeycat

I have a friend who bought a Kobo. She likes it, but the batteries don't last near as long as advertised. I figure a real book never runs out of BATTERIES. And then if your bus is delayed on the way home? and your book won't run? arghhh

Screen looks good, but the fade to black transition between pages is lame.

X'o'Lore

"The Kindle has better battery life and lasts 2 weeks with wireless off and 1 week with wireless on. Nook lasts 10 days with wireless off."

If that bit of info is true, I'd say the battery life isn't exactly terrible on those things at least.

TheFlameOfHearts

Still not as good a battery as on a regular book though, then again, books don't have back-lights... hmm... decisions decisions.

X'o'Lore

Actually I'm pretty sure the e-ink screens on those things aren't backlit either.

illithid235

I know the Kindle isn't backlit. It helps reduce the eye strain, supposedly.

TheFlameOfHearts

What!?!?! What's the point if you can't see it?

X'o'Lore

The point is that you have a little tablet that act as a veritable library of books all contained in a small device rather than one singular book.

illithid235

And it's more like a real book in that respect. It has e-ink and no backlight so it looks much more like a book than an electronic screen with text. It actually looks really nice.

hlavco

I have a Nintendo e-reader.

NoLonger

As do I, I use Audible more though.

Serephel

I'm still having trouble with this. I really want one, but dropping a couple hundred bucks on it is a waste. Also, the Kindle store at least will not offer instant downloads straight to my reader from China, so I'll need to acquire my books manually on my computer and transfer that way. Which I'm fine with, I guess, I just want to make sure whatever reader I buy has that capability.

Rorandon

I'd really advise against getting one. I've used a few them before, such as the iPod Touch and the iPad, and I just don't think it's the same as reading an actual book.

god

Those aren't meant specifically as eReaders.

Rorandon

I knows. But they ultimately accomplish the same thing, no? What's the difference besides the iPad and iPod Touch having more features?
I might be totally wrong here, I don't happen to be an e-reader expert

Behemoth

The screens on the e-readers are way better. The text looks more like a real book.

Serephel

I should update this. I bought a Sony eReader while I was back in the US two weeks ago.

It's pretty nifty. I used it for a large chunk of my 14 hour flight back to China, and the battery stayed ostensibly over 75% the entire time (as it has 4 battery levels which did not change throughout the trip).

I am an enthusiastic reader, and as someone who travels around quite a bit, I find it very convenient to carry around instead of large bags of books. Though there is satisfaction in owning actual copies of the book, that luxury does not fit my current lifestyle, so I'll be using my eReader for a while.

Rorandon

Gotcha.
Glad to see that it works well then!

kukopanki

I really really need one. And my birthday's tomorrow.

Serephel

MOTHERFUCKER I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN

In Price War, E-Readers Go Below $200

A price war is brewing in the growing market for electronic reading devices.

Barnes & Noble, the national bookseller, announced Monday that it was dropping the price of its six-month-old Nook e-reader to $199 from $259 and introducing a new version of the device, which connects to the Internet only over Wi-Fi networks, for $149.

Responding rapidly, Amazon.com then cut the price of its popular Kindle e-reader below the Nook, to $189 from $259.

The price cuts were made as manufacturers of e-readers faced a mounting threat from Apple’s iPad. Even though it is far more expensive than the e-readers, the iPad, which starts at $500, performs a range of functions with a versatile, colorful display that contrasts sharply with the static, monochrome screen of e-book readers. Apple said it sold more than two million iPads in the two months since the tablet’s introduction.

“It was obvious that the price of stand-alone e-readers had to come down,” said James McQuivey, an analyst at Forrester Research, citing the threat by Apple and other tablet makers. “We just never thought it was going to happen this rapidly.”

Analysts had expected the prices of e-readers would gradually fall because of the natural decline in component costs and the increased profitability of e-books themselves.

Until this spring, e-book sellers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble sold many best-selling e-books at a loss to entice customers. But then five of the six major American publishers agreed with Apple to change to a so-called agency sales model.

Under the new agreement, booksellers were required to raise prices on many digital books and were able to make a 30 percent commission on the sales, which allows them to sacrifice some profit on their hardware.

Steven P. Jobs, Apple’s chief executive, said this month at the announcement for the company’s new iPhone model that iPad owners had downloaded more than five million books in the last two months, or 2.5 books for each iPad. It was seen then as a troubling sign for Amazon because it revealed that iPad buyers were willing to make small sacrifices to read books on a general-purpose tablet that is heavier and has a bright LCD screen that can cause eye fatigue.

The price cuts should add further momentum to what, despite incursions by the iPad, has been a growing market for dedicated e-reading devices. Amazon and its rivals are on pace to sell 6.6 million e-reading devices this year, up from 3.1 million in 2009, according to Forrester.

But even as the market grows, several smaller players have encountered problems. IRex Technologies, based in the Netherlands, recently sought bankruptcy protection from creditors, citing problems with its division in the United States.

This month, the Skiff e-reading platform, developed by Hearst, was acquired by the News Corporation, casting doubts on the planned introduction of a Skiff reading device.

Plastic Logic, the 10-year-old offspring of Cambridge University, has been delaying its $800 professional document- and book-reading device, the Que. It planned to have the reader on the market in April, but keeps pushing back a release date.

Sony may be particularly affected by the price cuts. It was the first to the market with an e-reader in 2006, but it has fallen behind its rivals because it lacks Amazon’s online sales prowess and Barnes & Noble’s physical retail presence. Its $169 Pocket Edition model lacks a wireless connection, which suggests that Monday’s price cuts will put pressure on Sony to also cut prices. Sony has two other models, the $199 Touch Edition and the $349 Internet-connected Daily Edition.

With recent software upgrades, Barnes & Noble has improved the Nook, which now has features to counter Amazon’s aggressiveness on e-book prices and the brand power of the Kindle. Barnes & Noble allows Nook owners to read entire e-books within stores and lend e-books to friends for up to two weeks. Now, with yet another software upgrade, Nook owners have free access to AT&T’s nationwide Wi-Fi network.

“I don’t see more than two, or maybe three dedicated reading companies in the market for selling e-books,” William J. Lynch, chief executive of Barnes & Noble, said. “I think you are starting to see a shake-out now.”

Mr. Lynch also predicted that within 12 months, e-reading devices “that people will actually want to buy” could be available for less than $100.

Behemoth

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

X'o'Lore

You know I was totally going to post that but then I totally spaced out and forgot to do so. Looks like Ryan is on task.

...so, yeah. They made a cheaper one now. Just to spite Ryan of course.

bruce

kukopanki wrote: »

I really really need one. And my birthday's tomorrow.

Birthday thieving bastard! :hulk:

X'o'Lore

Technically you're the young one, so you are the birthday thieving bastard. Much like Jake stole my birthday.

bruce

XoLore wrote: »

Technically you're the young one, so you are the birthday thieving bastard. Much like Jake stole my birthday.

Well, erm, I mean...


Damnit.



:hulk: