Will prices of readers drop in 2011?

booot · 01-18-2011, 05:42 AM

Greeting all e-reader fans,

how do you expect the prices of major readers like those from SONY and Amazon are going to develop this year? Are there some new models from SONY or new Kindle expected? Or is it possible that Kindle 3 is aiming at 99$ threshold later this year, which SONY would hopefully follow with its 5" device?

It seems to me that with all that tablet humbug on CES, e-readers are slowly fading away. I'm the proud owner of old 505 and considering some touchscreen model like 650, but the prices of SONY devices seems unreasonably high (comparing with the Amazon devices or the others). Are there any pre-releases on new stuff?

HarryT · 01-18-2011, 05:44 AM

Moderator Notice
This is not "News". Moved to the "General Discussions" forum.

SleepyBob · 01-18-2011, 10:36 AM

I think some price reduction is likely, but probably minimal $10-$20. We may see more promotional sales at lower prices, like we did with the $99 Nook on Black Friday and the refurb Nook sales.

Anthem · 01-18-2011, 10:57 AM

Unless I'm missing something gigantic e-reading devices are basically like video game systems (ignoring the current Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo generation, that is!). Constant improvements in hardware and software will necessitate elevated prices while a premium will almost always be expected for the device even though overall price trends may seem to dip or at least remain stable.

You paid 200 dollars for a Sega Genesis and SNES when they came out and you still pay in that range (including adjustments for inflation things aren't so bad really and the trend has been slightly lower) these days for the new stuff in spite of everything.

Things do come down (look at computers, right?) but there are such things as stability points and it can be remarkably hard to know when we have hit one and when we are still in search of one.

tubemonkey · 01-18-2011, 11:00 AM

The Kobo is currently $100 at Borders.

pdurrant · 01-18-2011, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by booot

how do you expect the prices of major readers like those from SONY and Amazon are going to develop this year?

Amazon will have a sub-$100 Kindle by mid-November this year. I don't think that Sony or Kobo will have the volume to follow suit.

I also expect Amazon to have a colour Kindle sometime this year, but that might be up to $299.

tubemonkey · 01-18-2011, 11:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Amazon will have a sub-$100 Kindle by mid-November this year. I don't think that Sony or Kobo will have the volume to follow suit.

Sony doesn't even care what they charge. After all, they are Sony.

booot · 01-18-2011, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Sony doesn't even care what they charge. After all, they are Sony.

Yes, that saddens me the most. Recently, nobody is able to follow the price policy of Amazon devices, their market share is unbeatable and it seem that nobody cares, especially Sony

elemenoP · 01-18-2011, 12:21 PM

By next Christmas, I think b&w wifi-only Kindle, Nook, and Kobo will all be $99. Sony's next round will probably be the same as this round, except with wireless... and the new models will be priced the same as what the 350/650 are now. Since the 950 already has wireless, I don't know how they will make a new model of that one.

eP

Mortis · 01-18-2011, 03:51 PM

My best guess would be that there will be a drop, how big will depend on current technology improvements. From what I understand the biggest expense in an e-reader is the screen and if thats the case then we will only see a drop when either the number of screens sold makes a huge jump or they come up with a new screen technology.

The price of the TTF screened devices has dropped in the last year or so and this is likely due to the screens being cheap.

Cpl Punishment · 01-18-2011, 05:00 PM

When sales drop off, so will the price.....

Poppaea · 01-18-2011, 06:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Sony doesn't even care what they charge. After all, they are Sony.

Quote:

Originally Posted by booot

Yes, that saddens me the most. Recently, nobody is able to follow the price policy of Amazon devices, their market share is unbeatable and it seem that nobody cares, especially Sony

Why in this world should the one company in the world that has a touchscreen working with fingers and a stylus with absolutly matte screens not be the most expensive and be on par with an outdated device that only has a pearl screen on its best feature list????

fjtorres · 01-18-2011, 06:21 PM

My expectations are that:
Wifi-only eink readers will hit US$99 by summer.
Cellular wireless models will hit US$159.
Large format eink will hit $259.
LCD-based readers and webpads will run $99-199 depending on the touch screen.
Amazon won't put the Kindle name on anything with an LCD screen.
50 regional vendors will announce 200 readers and tablets, ship maybe 40, and together get 4% market share.
Sony will do about that well.

CazMar · 01-18-2011, 06:22 PM

Most new technology is expensive when it first arrives, but eventually competition drives it down to a price level where manufacturers make a reasonable profit and it stays there for a long while. My guess is about $80 US. But by then there is a shiny new gadget to soak up our dollars.....

GA Russell · 01-18-2011, 07:58 PM

My concern is that manufacturers, rather than continuing to lower the price of their basic model, will discontinue that model; and instead offer more fancy models at the same price level.

I see that level to be $85 in the next year, two max.

01-18-2011, 05:42 AM	#1
booot 505 adorer Posts: 18 Karma: 24 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Czech Republic Device: Sony PRS-505	Will prices of readers drop in 2011? Greeting all e-reader fans, how do you expect the prices of major readers like those from SONY and Amazon are going to develop this year? Are there some new models from SONY or new Kindle expected? Or is it possible that Kindle 3 is aiming at 99$ threshold later this year, which SONY would hopefully follow with its 5" device? It seems to me that with all that tablet humbug on CES, e-readers are slowly fading away. I'm the proud owner of old 505 and considering some touchscreen model like 650, but the prices of SONY devices seems unreasonably high (comparing with the Amazon devices or the others). Are there any pre-releases on new stuff?

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Likely 2011 large screen prices	Whipet	General Discussions	0	12-18-2010 07:03 AM
Content WiFi Edition! Will Prices drop?	bear4hunter	Amazon Kindle	2	07-29-2010 08:58 AM
Prices of e-book readers not likely to drop soon	grimo1re	News	34	11-25-2009 05:07 PM
Tracking Kindle book prices - automatic alerts and price drop info	zooLert	Amazon Kindle	62	11-14-2009 08:35 AM
Do you think Sony will drop prices before Christmas?	Andanzas	Sony Reader	6	10-21-2009 01:55 PM

01-18-2011, 05:44 AM	#2
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Moderator Notice This is not "News". Moved to the "General Discussions" forum.

01-18-2011, 10:36 AM	#3
SleepyBob Evangelist Posts: 420 Karma: 8522810 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Wisconsin, USA Device: Kindle PW3	I think some price reduction is likely, but probably minimal $10-$20. We may see more promotional sales at lower prices, like we did with the $99 Nook on Black Friday and the refurb Nook sales.

01-18-2011, 10:57 AM	#4
Anthem Guru Posts: 704 Karma: 1622328 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: USA Device: Kindle Oasis, OnePlus Nord	Unless I'm missing something gigantic e-reading devices are basically like video game systems (ignoring the current Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo generation, that is!). Constant improvements in hardware and software will necessitate elevated prices while a premium will almost always be expected for the device even though overall price trends may seem to dip or at least remain stable. You paid 200 dollars for a Sega Genesis and SNES when they came out and you still pay in that range (including adjustments for inflation things aren't so bad really and the trend has been slightly lower) these days for the new stuff in spite of everything. Things do come down (look at computers, right?) but there are such things as stability points and it can be remarkably hard to know when we have hit one and when we are still in search of one.

01-18-2011, 11:00 AM	#5
tubemonkey monkey on the fringe Posts: 45,477 Karma: 158151390 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Seattle Metro Device: Moto E6, Echo Show	The Kobo is currently $100 at Borders.

01-18-2011, 12:21 PM	#9
elemenoP Wizard Posts: 1,717 Karma: 3790058 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: NYC Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Sony 650	By next Christmas, I think b&w wifi-only Kindle, Nook, and Kobo will all be $99. Sony's next round will probably be the same as this round, except with wireless... and the new models will be priced the same as what the 350/650 are now. Since the 950 already has wireless, I don't know how they will make a new model of that one. eP

01-18-2011, 03:51 PM	#10
Mortis Canucklehead in Malaysia Posts: 1,633 Karma: 3127774 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Device: iPhone, Kindle	My best guess would be that there will be a drop, how big will depend on current technology improvements. From what I understand the biggest expense in an e-reader is the screen and if thats the case then we will only see a drop when either the number of screens sold makes a huge jump or they come up with a new screen technology. The price of the TTF screened devices has dropped in the last year or so and this is likely due to the screens being cheap.

01-18-2011, 05:00 PM	#11
Cpl Punishment Guru Posts: 682 Karma: 4156546 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: On The Move Device: Ipad 103rd Gen	When sales drop off, so will the price.....

01-18-2011, 06:21 PM	#13
fjtorres Grand Sorcerer Posts: 11,732 Karma: 128354696 Join Date: May 2009 Location: 26 kly from Sgr A* Device: T100TA,PW2,PRS-T1,KT,FireHD 8.9,K2, PB360,BeBook One,Axim51v,TC1000	My expectations are that: Wifi-only eink readers will hit US$99 by summer. Cellular wireless models will hit US$159. Large format eink will hit $259. LCD-based readers and webpads will run $99-199 depending on the touch screen. Amazon won't put the Kindle name on anything with an LCD screen. 50 regional vendors will announce 200 readers and tablets, ship maybe 40, and together get 4% market share. Sony will do about that well.

01-18-2011, 06:22 PM	#14
CazMar Book Geek Posts: 596 Karma: 1499085 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Adelaide, Australia Device: Kobo Touch, Asus MemPad 7" tablet, Nexus 5, Asus 10" tablet	Most new technology is expensive when it first arrives, but eventually competition drives it down to a price level where manufacturers make a reasonable profit and it stays there for a long while. My guess is about $80 US. But by then there is a shiny new gadget to soak up our dollars.....

01-18-2011, 07:58 PM	#15
GA Russell Montreal wins Grey Cup! Posts: 7,583 Karma: 31484197 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Raleigh, NC Device: Paperwhite, Kindles 10 & 4 and jetBook Lite	My concern is that manufacturers, rather than continuing to lower the price of their basic model, will discontinue that model; and instead offer more fancy models at the same price level. I see that level to be $85 in the next year, two max.

Advert

Advert