eBook Readers: Very Nearly Almost There
Courtesy of John Blyberg on Flickr
Rumours of Amazon’s new Kindle eBook reader have been floating around the web recently, with one rumour hinting on the new 2.0 version of the device being announced this coming Monday, and another about a possible education model targeted at students as an alternative to textbooks. The current version of the Kindle has been quite successful, with one analyst believing that about 500,000 Kindles were sold in 2008; pretty good considering it’s a niche device and only available in the United States.
The sudden reminder of the Kindle’s existence also made me remember why I haven’t bought an eBook reader yet despite really liking the idea, and the possible reasons why they’re not very popular here in Australia.
Kindle isn’t the only eBook reader to exist, of course. There are a few others including the Sony Reader (also only available in the U.S.), iRex iLiad and Bookeen Cybook. The major issue with all of these devices is actually getting the content onto them in the first place.
The Kindle is somewhat different in that it uses the oddly named ‘Amazon Whispernet’ service via EV-DO to allow U.S. customers to purchase and download eBooks straight to their Kindle. This makes it practical, simple and fast for customers to get the books they want and begin reading straight away. If Amazon were to bring the Kindle to Australia one day, they’d have to implement a similar service as I think it’s a large portion of the Kindle’s appeal.
Most other eBook readers require you to browse for and purchase your eBooks from an online bookstore on a computer, and then transfer them from the computer to your device. While this method works just as well, manual transferring of data is definitely not going to help the eBook reader adoption rate when devices like the Kindle and iPhone exist which allow you to buy content on the fly and begin using it instantly.
Another major reason has to do with eBook formats. To put it simply, there’s just too many of them and no single standard. Some eBook readers including the Kindle have their own proprietary DRM formats which are less than ideal if there’s a possibility you’ll want to switch your current eBook Reader for another brand in the future. Why should your electronic book collection be tied exclusively to a single device?
You can find eBooks in various other formats including Mobipocket and PDF, both of which are a sort of quasi-standard. Fortunately, many eBook readers and online eBook stores support these formats (especially Dymocks in Australia who have been trying to push the eBook revolution for a while now), but it still doesn’t solve the problem completely.
The last major issue that I believe contributes to the eBook reader’s unpopularity is the price. Most of them are still quite expensive, especially in Australia (and some more than others due to different feature sets). Dymocks lists the iLiad readers for AU$1199 and AU$999 depending on the model, and the Cybook at AU$599. In comparison, the Kindle retails for US$359 and the cheapest Sony Reader for US$300.
Despite all the obvious issues with eBook readers, what attracts me the most to these devices is the way they display text using electronic paper. There is no backlight making it much easier on the eyes, just like reading a regular paper book. After spending the day in front of a computer screen, I think this makes a welcome change and is the reason I would like a dedicated reading device as opposed to just using my iPhone or a laptop. Would it replace regular paper books for me? Definitely not; I love my books, but I think both mediums could co-exist quite happily.
I also think they would be at their most useful at schools and universities. Students would benefit from using an eBook reader for their textbooks rather than having to lug around several insanely heavy paper textbooks all day.
I do predict that they’ll become quite popular in the not too distant future when delivery of content is implemented better, knowledge of these devices increases, and the prices finally start to drop. Perhaps Amazon will cannibalise the market with the Kindle 2.0. We’ll have to wait and see.
I’m curious to know which side of the fence everyone else sits on when it comes to eBook readers. Who owns one? Where do you primarily use it? What kinds of books do you read on it, and where do you purchase them? Do they replace paper books for you? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
I can’t justify buying an ebook reader at the prices they charge in Australia. I have boxes of information technology related books that very rairly get opened, so EBooks would cut down on storage of dead tree’s. An added bonus of ebooks would be I could have all of my reference material on my notebook or ebook reader when and where I need it.
Nice post. I am disappointed to hear that many of these eReaders aren’t available in Australia (I was unaware) since I was very tempted to buy one. The huge price is definitely the main reason why I’d hesitate to buy one, but as a university student I feel they’d be a huge assist.
Personally, I see them replacing a large percentage of the paper book arena in the near future as prices come down. And I’m happy to see that happen.
Thanks for the post – I would really love an eBook reader as I generally devour books and a reader would cut down on trees, weight, costs (in the long term), It’s clear from your post that the US is leading the charge in this particular technology; I’m curious, what is the UK and Europe doing?
Good news for ebook lovers to follow up on your post. I think the Australian Ebook readers market is changing rapidly, with more ebook readers becoming available. We will be selling the Bebook ebook reader soon, available for around AUS$400 on http://www.bookhampers.com.au.
Keep us posted on your thought about the ebook readers.
Robert
I have been reading Ebooks for about 10 years, my first ebook reader being an early PALM, later I -went up the ladder ( with palm) in their Pilots and Zires which had E-Reader available free.
There were many suppliers of good eBooks in fiction and non fiction as well as reference, mostly in the States. These were and still are cheap to buy. There are even rebates anywhere from 20% to 100% for buying promoted books.
Being an avid reader I discarded my Paperback book collection and started to accrue digital versions. I was also a member of a P2P site where books are shared and cost nothing. I see this as being like the music share groups. Not good for the writers, and used the genuine sellers more and more to stay on the right side of the law and thus encourage the authors to write more books.
These suppliers also had more recent releases at affordable prices
The entrance of other large format readers is a waste of technology as far as I am concerned they are not portable in the sense of being convenient. Many people would think that a Palm 750 screen be too small to read books. However, not for me, all my technology is contained , phone, music, notes and Ebooks. Even my GPS now supports Ebooks and is easier to carry around than these mini laptop readers. I can read in a dark place because of the back lit screen, at the fish n chip shop while waiting, during travel and even in the loo. My reading at night does not affect my partner as I do not need to have the light on.It is small and light and is not an extra burden to carry around, it is always with me
If you want an Ereader, use one that has convenient size and weight …Palm ,,Ipod Blackberry etc unless you are whelchair bound and have poor vision then don’t buy these dinosaursat sky high prices!
I love the Ereader on my phone.. check out the options and give those cumbersome units a wide berth they are far too expensive for what they offer.
Ugh. If there was ever an industry capable of killing the nascent eBook market stone dead by fragmenting it and frustrating their customers, it’s the publishing industry. These people make the music industry look like a group of forward-thinking visionaries.
Irrespective of the technical capability of eBook readers, these clowns will probably kill the whole industry. They’ll all end up backing different, incompatible DRM formats, thus driving their customers back to paper.
The only hope is that the newspapers, sensing their impending doom, make a last ditch effort to make digital readers easy to use, and make the formats universal to increase their customer base. The newspapers may just drag the publishers kicking and screaming into an open market.
If that doesn’t happen, eBooks are doomed (except the pirated ones).
I would love to buy an ebook reader, of whatever brand – but the ebooks I want to buy are only available in the UK or the US.
What’s the point of owning a device and not being able to access content? I don’t want to steal ebooks, I want to buy them legally and not rip off the author.
Does anyone know where I can purchase ebooks in Austarlia.
I was buying from Fictionwise but with these interational restrictions in place I am struggling to find a site where I can buy a book.
I would love to buy ebook or have it on the phone to save me carry the book in my bag it is hard enough to lug shopping bags on overcrowded bus I recond that is a great idea for students to save them to lug hugh amount of books with them it is time to have it in Australia at a reduced price I have checked Sony and they do not have it here (aust)
I too have been reading ebooks for about 5 years now and have been using fictionwise almost religiously. I have probably purchased less than 10 paper based books in that 5 years and probably 150+ ebooks. However, like Ian above, I am now forced to start looking for a legal way to obtain books in Australia. Does the publishing industry have rocks in its head or what? What on earth are all these “geographical restrictions” on about?
In the meantime, I love having my phone, audio books, ebooks, music, calendar and everything else i need (for pleasure & work) all in one handy gadget.
and yes i back it up religiously, but touch wood i never loose it!
I agree with you Jule. I have been reading e books for years on my Palm and suddenly no one wants to sell them in Australia (except Dymocks whose system doesn’t seem to support iPhone). I am really, really disappointed and don’t understand what the copyright issues are if you are actually paying for the book. I look forward to hearing about an easy way to legally buy ebooks that I want for my just acquired iPhone,