About the glut of devices on the ebook reader market

[Nate the great]

I've come across a bunch of articles on this topic; I almost wrote one myself. But I'm not so sure the market is over saturated; I'm not going to jump to the same conclusion as everyone else.

But I do think buyers should be cautious. I wouldn't buy a device that is dependent on a service (sorry, txtr). I wouldn't buy an ereader that is dependent on a locked in format (Jetbook Lite, eSlick). And I wouldn't plan on being able to use the wirelss connection of an e-reader; if (when) Irex shuts its doors, will Sprint continue to support the DR800SG?

And in case you're wondering why I don't include the Kindle in the above, it's because Amazon is the 800 pound gorilla. They're not going away.

CES: E-readers' next chapter might not have happy ending (CNet)

The e-book wars of 2010: displays and hardware (Ars Technica)

Too Many eReaders (Gawker)

CES is Not a Book Fair (Publishing Perspectives)

"Deluge" of devices threatens e-market (the Bookseller)

[Not_A_Crook]

Wow, it's like new cellphones arent announced every single freaking day, and MP3 players, and chip technology. Oh, and what about the "glut" of TV's being made? Oh right everyone buys TV's so why complain about there being so much E-readers?

Please leave us to our devices.

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by Not_A_Crook

Wow, it's like new cellphones arent announced every single freaking day, and MP3 players, and chip technology. Oh, and what about the "glut" of TV's being made? Oh right everyone buys TV's so why complain about there being so much E-readers?

Because most of the people who wrote those articles don't read, and they can't imagine a market made up of those who do?

[Not_A_Crook]

I don't know why I watch TV or play videogames, yet videogames have a massive market that is a major contribution to our fair economy.

(Im primarily a gamer)

[dsvick]

Originally Posted by Not_A_Crook

Wow, it's like new cellphones arent announced every single freaking day, and MP3 players, and chip technology. Oh, and what about the "glut" of TV's being made? Oh right everyone buys TV's so why complain about there being so much E-readers?

They may have a point though, I can definitely see the market becoming saturated eventually. There is certainly more demand for cell phones, TVs, and MP3 players than there is for eReaders. What some of these companies are going to try to a hook into are the impulse buys who think they must all be the same.

I see a whole slew of inexpensive and poorly made readers showing up in the coming months just so that they can jump on the bandwagon. You'll start seeing $20 readers in the check out line at Walmart. In the short term this will be bad for readers overall, people that get stung by a cheap on will assume that they are all poorly made. Eventually though the quality ones should emerge stronger.

[Not_A_Crook]

I have always dreamed that E-readers would have a substantiative comeback and boost reading alltogether, I suppose my ideals are run to ****....

[Not_A_Crook]

But then again, back in the early 2000's there was a glut of MP3 players being announced. So I should expect this kind of speculation- Sorry.

[RobbK]

I am glad to see a "glut" of E Readers since they will decrease the price.
The 200 dollar plus price I think is a hindrance to the market really taking off but if you could get a quality reader down to the 100 dollar mark I think more people would take a look at the readers as well a purchase them.

[Not_A_Crook]

I have to agree with rob, the audience for such devices are fixed and much different.

[JSWolf]

The question I have is...

Do any of the new 6" readers bring anything new?

[Not_A_Crook]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The question I have is...

Do any of the new 6" readers bring anything new?

They are more in-tune with traditionally sized novel pages.

[Kolenka]

Originally Posted by dsvick

I see a whole slew of inexpensive and poorly made readers showing up in the coming months just so that they can jump on the bandwagon. You'll start seeing $20 readers in the check out line at Walmart. In the short term this will be bad for readers overall, people that get stung by a cheap on will assume that they are all poorly made. Eventually though the quality ones should emerge stronger.

Yeah, this is basically what happened before the iPod and other market dominators appeared in the MP3 market. Everyone started jumping in, and the smart businesses looked at what the market really needed (maybe not what they were asking for) and waded in.

The problem is that right now, the companies who have the best shot at being "the one to beat" are having problems getting the last puzzle pieces in place. It is still possible for a new guy to walk in, but so far I'm not seeing any device that really gets me excited that they hit the mark yet. A good selection of devices that are pretty close, but no true bullseye.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Not_A_Crook

They are more in-tune with traditionally sized novel pages.

Actually, the PRS-900 is more in line with the size of a standard paperback.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The question I have is...

Do any of the new 6" readers bring anything new?

There are actually several new display types.

Sipix (or something lie that)
Marisol
PixelQi
Plastic Logic

Many of the new devices support WiFi... some will question the need for that. But, for those that like to read newspapers on their device auto delivered having the reader auto sync with your PC or even some cloud service is nice for some people.

I also think a device like the Edge brings some new ideas... The Que actually sets a lower price point with the same features as the iRex DR1000 and also the plastic screen makes that device much more durable and less likley for you to break the screen.

So, while there is no revolution I do see new stuff in this generation of readers.

BOb

[Not_A_Crook]

Im just confused now.