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Is the tablet killing the ereader?
February 14, 2012 | 9:21 am
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By Paul Biba
From E-Reader-info:
E Ink published their January financial results, and the revenue was about $48 million – which is a 63% drop compared to last year (and 11% drop compared to December). Despite this the company is still expected to post revenues of over NT$40 billion in 2012 – a 5% increase over 2011.
Some web sites are reporting that this marks the “end of the e-reader” – with tablets clearly winning the race. This is an interesting debate. Most people agree that a dedicated e-paper reader is far better as a reading device (because of the screen quality, sunlight readability, weight, cost and battery life) – but Tablets are obviously much more versatile.
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Comments:
You are several years out of date. Every tech journalist in the know announced the death of the Kindle the day Apple announced the ipad. So, since the Kindle has been dead for several years now, decrying the death of eink is a bit late.
And I kind of go toward the hybrid devices like my Nook Color. I like the reading experience of the Nook Color reader, and I like having the option of having apps. I’ve used an E-Ink reader in the past, so I’ve tried both, and I still go for the tablet experience. But I don’t want a “pure” tablet like the iPad or Galaxy series. I like the 7″ size, and I like the reader experience better on the Nook than reader apps. I have an N2A card, but I’ve stopped using it. Even Aldiko, which was the closest to the Nook experience, didn’t quite do it for me.
I recall that screen reading advocates projected the death of the book. This death precept is apparently now extended to dedicated, e-ink book devices too. This tells us something; (1) that screen book advocates fear market stabilization, and (2) that these advocates also fear displacement of book reading within the LCD tablet market.
E-ink book readers are dedicated simulants of print and as such will shadow a market associated with print books. What ever those markets may become they are not disappearing.
LCD tablet market cannot suppress multifunction uses and inherent multi-media production and display unrelated to books. In that ever expanding market we could almost project a death of book reading.
Expansive notions of the future of the book are not withstanding. Look what happened to newspapers and magazines where tablets enabled new media rather than simulations of print models. We will need to define these new media without use of their previous names.
I don’t use either a dedicated reader or pad. I read on my Razr, and before that I used a Palm TX. The reason is that I can carry it around easier than the other devices, which means that I always have it with me. The Screen is large enough for me to read easily, even for my eyes I am 60 yrs old.
I think the basic problem with dedicated readers is the market is more limited. I suspect that we are getting near the point where most people who will use a dedicated reader will have one. At that point the market essentially has no room to grow. Basically, I think for most of us who are dedicated readers, our purchase of e-readers will be dictated by the old one ceasing to function properly.
For a certain group of more casual readers, tablets probably are a better choice, but for the large majority of people who read a novel or more a week (which alas, is a very small percentage of the population), the E-Ink solution is vastly superior.
“Some web sites” ……. yeah right. Yet another “death of” trolling exercise more likely. (No Paul … not by you, necessarily ! LOL)
I don’t see any significant direct competition between eReaders and Tablets. Both will continue to grow in the market. eReaders have only touched the surface of the potential market, and the same with Tablets.
It’s like the Fire and the iPad, two completely different devices.
This whole new markets place is in it’s embryonic infancy folks. look at the number of mobile phones in the world. Now look at the number of eReaders and tablets.
@MarylandBill I read more than a novel a week (more like 3-4), and I find the tablet superior, still. But based on what I’ve been seeing in the ebook world, I’m very much in the minority. Might be changing though, with how much people love their Fires.
I agree with MarylandBill, I think most super bookworms have already purchased at least one eInk reader, they would have been the early adapters, not casual readers.
I much prefer reading on my eInk Kindle than on a tablet, for all of the advantages listed in the post. It’s much easier on my eyes and much lighter to hold. I can’t imagine reading for hours on a Kindle Fire, my arm would go to sleep!
I also can’t stand reading on my smartphone, the screen is much too small and the glar is hard on my eyes.
Neither work well or at all in the sun.
My husband and son love their Kindle Fires, but they are also big TV and movie watchers and game players, I am not. My son is reading a lot more with his Fire though, which is great to see, my husband doesn’t read much. My daughter is a reader like I am and prefers her K3. My eldest son doesn’t read.
We all have laptops and smartphones so have no need of a tablet with more robust computing power.