Survey Reveals 49% of iPad Owners No Longer Want an eReader

[Maggie Leung]

Originally Posted by Talldog

I think you folks are getting a little defensive about the use of the term "serious readers".

You've misread into this in my case. (I can't speak for anyone else, of course.) I actually am surprised by readers who don't see the value of color, even if they don't care for it. I don't care for math, but I see the value of it, lol.

[DJHARKAVY]

Originally Posted by foreverjuly

Didn't I see one of those in 2001: A Space Odyssey? Oh no, that was Hal. It's amazing how quickly the futuristic morphs into the archaic.

First portable computer I saw was an Osborn one. I don't remember what color the screen was but it was a tiny screen on a big box.

Originally Posted by LDBoblo

Amusingly, a lot of the ebook defenders seem to feel that fiction novels and other applications that slow monochrome EPDs are adequate for are "serious" reading, and the forms of reading that fast color screens can do are somehow less "serious". "Serious" tends to be chosen as it allows the user to be arrogant without outright calling themselves better.

Well, the monochrome part is not really a big deal. After all, the majority of books are monochrome, except for the cover.

On the other hand, to reach the mass market, the colored reader is probably neccessary. Far more people read magazines than read books.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by DJHARKAVY

On the other hand, to reach the mass market, the colored reader is probably neccessary. Far more people read magazines than read books.

Colour and large screens. Not many magazines are published on 6" diagonal paper .

[Maggie Leung]

Originally Posted by DJHARKAVY

On the other hand, to reach the mass market, the colored reader is probably neccessary. Far more people read magazines than read books.

Agreed. I think color is key to many textbooks as well. Something as basic as the periodic table would be rendered less useful in black and white, for instance.

[DJHARKAVY]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Colour and large screens. Not many magazines are published on 6" diagonal paper .

True.

[bminata]

Originally Posted by pwjone1

1. They do color
2. They do color
3. They do color
4. Not many of read all that much in direct sunlight
5. A day of reading is good enough for most of us
6. Better one device that may cost a bit more, but does a lot more

Yes, color is nice. Magazines, comics, newspapers, technical books, blogs look much better on my iPad than on my Kindle 2. I have iBooks, Kindle for iPad and Goodreader on my iPad.

Battery on the iPad is quite OK too.. enough power for a day. I can charge every night so it's not that big a deal.

Biggest problem for me is eyestrain. Yes I know some people call it fantasy but for me it's real. I tried reading a novel on my iPad (and sometimes I still do when my Kindle is not handy) but I just can't stand staring at the iPad to read novels for too long. Approx 30 minutes and my eyes start to hurt. Maybe because novels are mostly black text on bright white background with nothing else? I can stare at my notebook for much longer than I can on my iPad, but maybe because I have matte screen on my MBP? Dunno.. but those are the facts..

[LDBoblo]

Originally Posted by bminata

Yes, color is nice. Magazines, comics, newspapers, technical books, blogs look much better on my iPad than on my Kindle 2. I have iBooks, Kindle for iPad and Goodreader on my iPad.

Battery on the iPad is quite OK too.. enough power for a day. I can charge every night so it's not that big a deal.

Biggest problem for me is eyestrain. Yes I know some people call it fantasy but for me it's real. I tried reading a novel on my iPad (and sometimes I still do when my Kindle is not handy) but I just can't stand staring at the iPad to read novels for too long. Approx 30 minutes and my eyes start to hurt. Maybe because novels are mostly black text on bright white background with nothing else? I can stare at my notebook for much longer than I can on my iPad, but maybe because I have matte screen on my MBP? Dunno.. but those are the facts..

Yes, you have the brightness set too high. Eye strain and fatigue in the case of emissive displays is caused predominantly by the imbalance of brightness between the center of focus (the page, screen, whatever) and its surrounding environment.

[devilsadvocate]

Originally Posted by pwjone1

I think that despite the problems with the battery life and reading in sunlight, the iPad and similar are going to take a huge chunk out of the market for eReader potential market because:

1. They do color
2. They do color
3. They do color
4. Not many of read all that much in direct sunlight
5. A day of reading is good enough for most of us
6. Better one device that may cost a bit more, but does a lot more

That's what I would have thought, but I know "some people" for whom that logic doesn't apply. Maybe it's just me, but a device that covers all those bases doesn't seem analogous to using a screwdriver as a hammer. That said...

Originally Posted by LDBoblo

...I think the iPad is largely wasted potential.

Don't worry, Jobs will magically unveil "new" functionality for it sometime next year or whenever the initial revenue swell dies down, whichever comes first.

[nursedude]

Originally Posted by HarryT

78.3% of statistics are meaningless...

9/10 dentists don't believe that....

Seriously tho'...I use my iPad almost exclusively for reading at present. Have only used the kobo a couple of times since purchasing.

Doesn't mean I won't use the kobo anymore. I anticipate using the kobo more when I go to the beach/park or am in transit as it's lighter to carry and can fit in my parka pocket (being Canadian this is something I worry about).

ND

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by BenLee

The fact that half those surveyed responsed in the same way suggests something.

It probably suggests that it was a poorly written survey.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by ThomasMc

I wish tech writers would be a little more objective, instead of being blown about by the current fad.

Being blown away by the latest fad is what brings hits to their sites. Tech writes don't want to be objective, they want to make money.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by devilsadvocate

Jobs declared the end of the desktop PC earlier this year as well. By my calendar, the desktop PC has been "ending" for the last 6 years but neither AMD nor Intel are exactly slashing prices on their latest-gen desktop hardware so once again it appears it's safe for us to just let the press continue thinking it knows anything about the subject.

I was reading articles 10+ years ago declaring the end of the internet.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by LDBoblo

I've been very entertained by the EPD-LCD feud and how the different sides act.

I think any such "feud" is mostly imaginary.

Now that I think of it, most of the hostile reactions have been from EPD defenders who are angry at pseudojournalists for writing all those "iPad killing ereaders" articles. Regardless of the truth to those statements, it's easy for most any sensationalist writer to know which camp will react more strongly.

Such hostile reactions exist just about every time Apple comes out with a new product that is instantly hyped as the "greatest thing ever". It has nothing to do with EPD, or even eBooks. Same thing happened with the iPhone, iPod... etc. Reactions to the current iPad marketing machine are no different.

[happy_terd]

How many ereader owners no longer want an iPad?

[BenLee]

Originally Posted by Shaggy

It probably suggests that it was a poorly written survey.

Have you seen the survey?