So the new Kindle
Do you think it’s this year’s iPod? I’m actually not sure and don’t know that much about it but I thought it had more potential if they tried to take into consideration how, for example, college students might use it.
– When I first learned about it, I thought they made it so it could read pdfs…but it doesn’t. I hate dealing with all the pdfs I get assigned for reading and that I use for research, but if I could download them all onto something like this, it’d be pretty cool and over the course of 4 years of college would likely pay for itself in printing costs alone.
– Paying $400 down and $10 for a book is ridiculous. They should have at least thrown in 10 free books or subscriptions of some sort.
– It probably will never catch on in terms of textbook downloads. They’ll probably only stick with bestsellers and the like for a really long time. But I can imagine people really resonating with this if they could get their $110 chemistry textbook digitalized for $30. (Could you imagine a searchable Chemistry textbook? That would be amazing.)
– Also, everything is DRM. Ew.
Overall, I don’t think I like it. I thought when they first introduced it that it would revolutionize how we see reading, but they’re playing it way too safe. If they designed this as something college students could really see themselves needing to make their lives easier, then maybe?? But they seem to really only focus on the novelty rather than the real potential.
What do you think? Do you want one?
http://diveintomark.org/archives/2007/11/19/the-future-of-reading
http://diveintomark.org/archives/2007/11/19/the-future-of-reading
@EricNintendo is actually turning a profit with Wii and DS sales alone.
@Eric
Nintendo is actually turning a profit with Wii and DS sales alone.
Ya, that’s far too much money to spend so I can pay more money on an e-book than I would on a paper copy. $10 for a DRM-infested e-book is obvious price inflation. It’s not even like bandwidth for hosting books is at all an issue. (And honestly there’s no way they couldn’t price the Kindle lower and still make money–an e-book reader costing as much as an Eee PC or an XBox 360 is way too expensive.@anon 10:31:That works pretty nicely as well.
Ya, that’s far too much money to spend so I can pay more money on an e-book than I would on a paper copy. $10 for a DRM-infested e-book is obvious price inflation. It’s not even like bandwidth for hosting books is at all an issue. (And honestly there’s no way they couldn’t price the Kindle lower and still make money–an e-book reader costing as much as an Eee PC or an XBox 360 is way too expensive.
@anon 10:31:
That works pretty nicely as well.
They should take a tip from the gaming console playbook and price the kindle more competitively, even losing money per unit sold, and then make that back via subscriptions and book sales. Thats what consoles have been doing for years.
They should take a tip from the gaming console playbook and price the kindle more competitively, even losing money per unit sold, and then make that back via subscriptions and book sales. Thats what consoles have been doing for years.
Hi Wesleying,I hope someone that runs the blog reads this post.The link http://www.wesleying.net is NOT functioning at 10:57 PM EST. However, wesleying.blogspot.com works. Perhaps this is a faulty connection of some sort, but I just wanted to bring it to your attention.
Hi Wesleying,
I hope someone that runs the blog reads this post.
The link http://www.wesleying.net is NOT functioning at 10:57 PM EST. However, wesleying.blogspot.com works. Perhaps this is a faulty connection of some sort, but I just wanted to bring it to your attention.
I often read books in my leisure time on my computer. Up to several consecutive hours sometimes. But I don’t like to pay for them, so I don’t want a kindle. Bookchan. Google it.You can just turn your brightness down and read text white-on-black in a well-lit room. You’ll be fine.
I often read books in my leisure time on my computer. Up to several consecutive hours sometimes. But I don’t like to pay for them, so I don’t want a kindle. Bookchan. Google it.
You can just turn your brightness down and read text white-on-black in a well-lit room. You’ll be fine.
don’t know you. kinda jealous that you got phi beta kappa and that I will never even get remotely close to getting it, but congratulations, holly!!!! yay!!!
don’t know you. kinda jealous that you got phi beta kappa and that I will never even get remotely close to getting it, but congratulations, holly!!!! yay!!!
That’s not the new iPod. It looks like an Apple II
That’s not the new iPod. It looks like an Apple II
It’s not a normal computer screen.It’s e-ink not an LCD screen–it has a low refresh rate (think frames per second) and it’s not bright white so reading it isn’t anything like reading a computer screen–it’s much much easier on the eyes.
It’s not a normal computer screen.
It’s e-ink not an LCD screen–it has a low refresh rate (think frames per second) and it’s not bright white so reading it isn’t anything like reading a computer screen–it’s much much easier on the eyes.
Re: 6:32 pmI thought the point of the the Kindle was that it mimicked paper in such a way that it did not create the same kind of eye strain as staring at a computer screen.
I have a bit of gadget lust for the EeePC, and for the money would probably pick up one of those way before a Kindle. Anon 6:32 — the Kindle uses an e-ink display that is supposedly as easy to read in any light as paper is. For taking notes, if you are accustomed to writing in the margins then you’ll have a hard time doing so on the Kindle but you can mark pages and search.Holly — a searchable textbook (of any kind) would be amazing. I bought the electronic version of my Econ textbook for $60, figuring that since the hardcover is $120 I would only get about $60 for it on re-sale anyway. I wish I’d sprung for the hardcover instead, because this electronic version has all the disadvantages of the hardcover and no advantages of digitization. It’s unsearchable, it’s DRMed, can only be read online (unless you print it to paper or pdf…with your full name and e-mail address emblazoned on each page) and I can’t re-sell it. The only plus is that it adds zero pounds to my bag.
Re: 6:32 pm
I thought the point of the the Kindle was that it mimicked paper in such a way that it did not create the same kind of eye strain as staring at a computer screen.
I have a bit of gadget lust for the EeePC, and for the money would probably pick up one of those way before a Kindle.
Anon 6:32 — the Kindle uses an e-ink display that is supposedly as easy to read in any light as paper is. For taking notes, if you are accustomed to writing in the margins then you’ll have a hard time doing so on the Kindle but you can mark pages and search.
Holly — a searchable textbook (of any kind) would be amazing. I bought the electronic version of my Econ textbook for $60, figuring that since the hardcover is $120 I would only get about $60 for it on re-sale anyway. I wish I’d sprung for the hardcover instead, because this electronic version has all the disadvantages of the hardcover and no advantages of digitization. It’s unsearchable, it’s DRMed, can only be read online (unless you print it to paper or pdf…with your full name and e-mail address emblazoned on each page) and I can’t re-sell it. The only plus is that it adds zero pounds to my bag.
the thing I really don’t understand is that if reading a computer screen for a long time is detrimental to eye-sight, and personally I think makes it harder to concentrate on reading, take notes, etc, how are they expecting a lot of people to start reading full-length stuff electronically? sure, printing things out is a pain and not so hot for the environment, and textbooks are way too expensive, but give me a regualr book to read for class any day, and i’ll get a lot more done.
the thing I really don’t understand is that if reading a computer screen for a long time is detrimental to eye-sight, and personally I think makes it harder to concentrate on reading, take notes, etc, how are they expecting a lot of people to start reading full-length stuff electronically?
sure, printing things out is a pain and not so hot for the environment, and textbooks are way too expensive, but give me a regualr book to read for class any day, and i’ll get a lot more done.
Those are pretty much the exact reasons I’m not at all excited by the Kindle. I would, however, love an Eee PC.
Those are pretty much the exact reasons I’m not at all excited by the Kindle.
I would, however, love an Eee PC.
Asus EeePC
Asus EeePC
that was indeed an emphatic embrace of the conventional book
that was indeed an emphatic embrace of the conventional book
i’m sorry, but no electronic device could ever replace the same feeling i get when reading a real book: turning a page, bending the spine for the first time, that wonderful musty smell of old books… i emphatically do not want one.
i’m sorry, but no electronic device could ever replace the same feeling i get when reading a real book: turning a page, bending the spine for the first time, that wonderful musty smell of old books… i emphatically do not want one.