Comments on: CrunchPad: Potential e-book reader, too—not just a webpad

By: David Rothman

David Rothman — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 19:22:07 +0000

From Bill Smith:

Not to get up on my own personal soapbox *again* but please note that the CrunchPad does read HTML ebooks without any special software. Just start it and open the webpage or stored file.

Bill Smith, http://www.BillSmithBooks.com

(posted for him after the anti-spam Dobermans did their thing on the wrong comment.)

By: Joseph Gray

Joseph Gray — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 03:38:05 +0000

David, since it is running Linux and a Webkit-based browser, I’m sure that someone could add ebook functionality. All it takes is someone with the programming talent and the willingness to make it happen.

By: David Rothman

David Rothman — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 20:34:21 +0000

Thanks, Michael, but I still wonder if, via clever programming and design, e-book capabilities could be very cheap. David

By: Michael Harris

Michael Harris — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:30:35 +0000

Unfortunately for us ebook fans, the way I read it this is ONLY intended to be a web browsing device. They want to simplify the design and make it cheap by concentrating only on web browsing. For every one of us who wants ebook capabilities there is someone else who wants media player functions and another looking for MSOffice. Here are some quotes from a recent NY Times article:

Mr. Arrington said the CrunchPad would be different from netbooks, the mini-laptops made by companies like Acer, Asustek and Dell that my colleagues have written about. Many of those have small keyboards and offer more capabilities than just a browser, like running Microsoft Word.

The additional applications bog down the performance of netbooks, Mr. Arrington said. “Most people will find it works as good as a netbook or better,” he said of the CrunchPad.

He said it will also be different from the tablet computer that Apple is rumored to be building. He has speculated that an Apple tablet could run iPhone applications and be $500 to $1,000. “I’ll buy three of those, that sounds awesome,” he said. “I don’t intend to be the Pre for the iPhone,” he said. “This is very different from what they’re doing.”

The article is at:
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/03/apple-acer-arrington/