Quote:
Originally Posted by jocampo
Hmmm, interesting... The can opener analogy, lol ...
So why iphones sell like hotcakes? If, like can openers, most people have one already, same or different brand.
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There's a world of difference between a dedicated e-reader and an iPhone. A dedicated e-reader just reads books - there's not much you can offer the customer to persuade them to upgrade to the newest model, just like it's really a hard sell to get someone to upgrade to the newest model of a can opener. As long as single-function devices perform their task, people are less likely to get the new model.
A iPhone isn't really a phone at all. It's a portable computer that just happens to make phone calls. Few people upgrade to the new model of the iPhone based on the telephone functionality. With computers - whether that computer is a desktop, laptop, tablet or smartphone -, there is always a "killer app" that just won't work with the previous model.
With e-books, as long as the format is supported, the reader will never become obsolete. If I dust off a Windows 95 computer, that computer will be of very little use. I could run some very old programs, but not anything new. But a dedicated e-reader will continue to work just as well until it breaks, assuming that the format isn't abandoned. There's just far less incentive to upgrade a dedicated e-reader than there is to upgrade a general purpose device.