Are Amazon Kindle and Sony Reader Too Expensive?
Found on eWEEK on Friday, 04 September 2009
The latest-generation Kindle DX, with a 9.7-inch screen, sells for $489 from Amazon.com, while the original Kindle sells for $299. On Aug. 5, Sony announced that it would release two e-readers within a month with $299 and $199 price points, in a bid to counter Amazon.com.
Like digital cameras, e-readers could effect a change in consumer behavior, specifically by making broad swaths of the population embrace reading from digital screens in lieu of paper.
But I don't want a screen to replace paper. When I read a book, I want to flip pages, and I want them to feel like paper. That's what makes reading the book enjoyable. If I wouldn't care about that, I could just read on the PC or laptop or netbook or smartphone. All those are by far better than the ebook readers.