Review of the Kindle 3 from the Observer in the Guardian UK

[DMcCunney]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology...-john-naughton
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Dennis

[HarryT]

Nice article; there's a lot of truth in what he says, which is that Amazon are selling a book buying and reading "system", not just a piece of hardware.

[charleski]

Yes, the Kindle's all-in-one wireless vertical integration has always been its strong point. I've had Kindle-owners complain before when I suggested it was a good choice for people who are uncomfortable with computers, but the fact is that this is true of a lot of people. The downside of this sort of appliance model is that it locks you in to one provider, but Amazon is big enough and cheap enough that most people don't mind.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by charleski

The downside of this sort of appliance model is that it locks you in to one provider, but Amazon is big enough and cheap enough that most people don't mind.

It doesn't lock you in if you have a bit of technical knowledge. The Kindle can read any DRM-free Mobipocket-format book.

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Nice article; there's a lot of truth in what he says, which is that Amazon are selling a book buying and reading "system", not just a piece of hardware.

Yep. The comparison with the Apple iPod and iTunes and the Apple music store is well taken. It's why Sony has an uphill battle competing with the Kindle: they had to create the rest of the ecosystem to provide content the user could read on the Sony Reader.

And it illustrates a difference between the approaches. Sony is selling hardware. Amazon is selling content, and its greatest strength is the enormous amount of content it has, and the extreme ease of getting that content.
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Dennis

[Fbone]

One commenter made an interesting point. He said if most book reading people obtain their material from libraries for free, what makes these companies believe they will suddenly buy a device and their ebooks. So he felt library support was important.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Fbone

One commenter made an interesting point. He said if most book reading people obtain their material from libraries for free, what makes these companies believe they will suddenly buy a device and their ebooks. So he felt library support was important.

It's certainly a good point, but is it a valid assumption? I'm an avid reader, for example, but haven't been to a library in years. I have no idea at all how many people who are keen readers do use libraries.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by HarryT

It's certainly a good point, but is it a valid assumption? I'm an avid reader, for example, but haven't been to a library in years. I have no idea at all how many people who are keen readers do use libraries.

I havent seen reliable figures.

If a person reads 2 books a year, would he most likely obtain those books from a store or library?

If a person reads 100 books a year, would he most likely obtain those books from a store or library?

If a family borrows videos from the library, would they obtain their books from a store or library?

If a family of five borrows hundreds of children's book from the library, would the adults still purchase their books?

[carld]

I don't go to the library as often as i used to, but I've noticed how few people are there for the books. The internet terminals are full, there's some sort of meeting going on the in the public conference room, and people are browsing the DVD racks, but there aren't many wandering the book aisles.

[Marcy]

Originally Posted by carld

I don't go to the library as often as i used to, but I've noticed how few people are there for the books. The internet terminals are full, there's some sort of meeting going on the in the public conference room, and people are browsing the DVD racks, but there aren't many wandering the book aisles.

Perhaps it's due to the modernization of libraries? I used to use mine extensively before I went digital, but my library has a great online interface. I requested whatever books I wanted. If they were in, they would get pulled for me and be waiting at a cart in the front. If there was a list, they would email me when my turn came up and again they were waiting up front.

So, I never wandered the book shelves, since I would come in, pick up and check out my books (5 minutes max) and be on my way.

-Marcy

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by HarryT

It doesn't lock you in if you have a bit of technical knowledge. The Kindle can read any DRM-free Mobipocket-format book.

The keyword is "DRM-free". The vast majority of the market lacks that technical knowledge. They may discover they can get Mobipocket volumes in free editions from elsewhere, like Project Gutenberg or here, and obtain them, but they are far less likely to know how to remove DRM, or want to.

Vendor lock-in is the point of Amazon's exercise, and the reason for their proprietary DRM. They don't care about the free books. But any content you purchase, you must purchase from them. Their pricing and selection is such that the vast majority of Kindle owners don't care, as they can get anything they want at a price they think reasonable, but it's still vendor lock-in.
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Dennis

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by Fbone

One commenter made an interesting point. He said if most book reading people obtain their material from libraries for free, what makes these companies believe they will suddenly buy a device and their ebooks. So he felt library support was important.

That's a big if. How many book reading people do get their content free from the library? Certainly not the majority in most cases. If they did, bookstores would be even more of an endangered species than they are now.

People certainly get some content free from the library. It's useful for research, for access to volumes you don't own and don't want (or maybe can't afford) to buy. And it's a handy way to get and read books you want to read but don't expect to re-read and have no interest in keeping. It's also a no-cost way of discovering if a book is something you do want to buy and keep.

But while library support is useful, it's hardly critical.
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Dennis

[RDaneel54]

Originally Posted by carld

The internet terminals are full, there's some sort of meeting going on the in the public conference room, and people are browsing the DVD racks, but there aren't many wandering the book aisles.

Spot on. Same at my library.

However, there is a virtual wall of bookshelves with reserved books for folks to pick up on their own and check out using the self-service machines across the aisle. Modern libraries with digital search, reserve and checkout are a whole different animal than what I grew up with.

I'm in there maybe 5 minutes at a time. I think most of the folks that spend time there do so for other purposes than books.

The Kindle can give a very similar experience to what you can get at the library - without the computer reservation, going to the library to get the books, etc.

[Strether]

I actually use the library more than I did before I bought an e-reader. Sometimes it's because the book isn't available as an e-book, but also I use it when a publisher ticks me off. Recently, a SF series by L.E. Modesitt was recommended in some thread here on Mobileread. When I checked at Amazon, I saw the series was available. The first book was about $8, reasonable enough, but the next two were $14.99, even though the second was available in a mass market paperback at about 6 or 7 bucks. I ended up ordering them all at the library.

Jim

[charleski]

Originally Posted by HarryT

It doesn't lock you in if you have a bit of technical knowledge. The Kindle can read any DRM-free Mobipocket-format book.

But the vast majority of Kindle owners don't get books from other sources, that's the whole point.

For someone who doesn't want to be bothered managing book transfer from a computer the notion of finding compatible books from other sources is another country, and converting a book to mobi format (let alone removing the DRM) is something people do on another planet.