12-03-2007, 05:32 PM | #61 | |
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Personally, I hope they both do well. That way someone will eventually be able to put out a really good e-book device. Meanwhile, the Kindle really doesn't offer me anything I want over the Sony to make it worth an extra $100, so I seriously doubt I'll regret anything. |
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12-03-2007, 05:33 PM | #62 | |
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If what you're looking for is a service then by all means, go for the Kindle. If, on the other hand, what you're looking for is a reading device ... then I'd encourage you to weigh all the available devices on their individual advantages and drawbacks and decide which, if any, suits what you need/want to do. |
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12-03-2007, 05:54 PM | #63 | |
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I guess what I'm saying is that as an elite consumer electronics company, Sony will focus on unique high-margin products, not commoditized, low-margin ones. I would expect Sony to slowly leave this market over the next year or two if the profit continues to get sucked out of the market. Amazon is showing that the ebook biz is mostly going to be a battle of services and software and high-volume, low-margin sales. Sony will lose that battle any day and knows it. They can't compete on software or services. Look at how weak the ebook connect store is to this day - or the PS3 store - or whatever they try to do. They just aren't any good at it. What they are good at is building high-quality electronic gadgetry with state of the art functionality. Amazon is good with services and software. Amazon.com, like it or not, is probably the most successful ecommerce storefront in existence. Just like the Amazon.com web site, I think Amazon sees the Kindle as a platform for selling content and that is what they are really good at. They even subsidize the delivery costs on e-purchases, the same way they do with real products sold on amazon.com. Do you really think Sony would EVER consider something like that? Yes, they are a little weak on product design, but I think the software features and services offset that easily. Honestly Amazon should have contracted Sony to design and build their ereader. Amazon + Sony might be able to do what only Apple can do today. And I as well wish that they both do well, but unless Sony starts focusing on their store and the software of their reader, they are going to lose and lose badly. And this I believe based on hours and hours of using each company's products. Last edited by sfernald; 12-03-2007 at 05:59 PM. |
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12-03-2007, 06:00 PM | #64 |
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Oh the irony! Someone with a Kindle saying you'll regret your purchase.
Do you really think you won't be forced to buy your books again in the near future, like the poor suckers who bought DRM'd books from Amazon before the Kindle? Justify your extra expense over the Sony however you like but don't expect us to agree. No comparison? Thanks, you gave me a belly-laugh today. |
12-03-2007, 06:04 PM | #65 | |
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Last edited by sfernald; 12-03-2007 at 06:12 PM. |
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12-03-2007, 06:08 PM | #66 | |
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12-03-2007, 06:11 PM | #67 | |
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1) I really really want authors to get paid for their work, so I don't mind paying for their labor. They deserve it and I want to encourage great writers to continue to write and not change professions (to more profitable occupations) The hours of enjoyment I get from books easily makes it worth it to me, even if god-forbid I have to occasionally repurchase a novel or two because of dreaded DRM. 2) I spent so much time on #1 I just forgot #2. Oh well. |
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12-03-2007, 06:12 PM | #68 |
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When they will discount it at 50$ to clear the unsold inventory for the next generation I may get it like I did with the Sony. Until then I just do not see any reason. If I want eink I have the Sony, but I really love my 770 for text and the iTouch for pdf's. And I have wi-fi on both
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12-03-2007, 06:15 PM | #69 | |
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12-03-2007, 06:19 PM | #70 | |
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12-03-2007, 06:22 PM | #71 |
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I am not sure that Sony was relying on Connect "profit margins". I think the price may have gone down partly because Amazon leveraged many of the publishers to drop the price on their eBooks, to all eBook sellers. I hope they keep up the good work.
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12-03-2007, 06:58 PM | #72 | |
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Sony did not (does not) have the negotiation leverage nor the size (or gumption?) to make that happen. Amazon is vastly bigger than Sony's book entry. The scales are unimaginably in amazon's favor. So the prices you see are amazon making it happen, not really a lowering of prices by the publisher. -d |
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12-03-2007, 07:14 PM | #73 |
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The distraction factor
[EDIT: the inline image tag doesn't seem to be working, so I attached the images...]
I've been reading this thread with interest. I have owned a PRS-500 nearly since its release, and just upgraded to the 505 (after the Kindle announcement, so I knew what I was doing). For me, book reading is an immersive experience. I don't want any device to distract me from the altered state I achieve in a book. Paper books themselves can distract, if they are not printed well, or are improperly sized for the content, etc. While I loved the technical properties and the aesthetic of the PRS-500, I found a couple of things that made it a constant distraction. First was the contrast issue. It was just too hard to read unless I got the light just so. Of course, daylight was wonderful, but I don't usually read outdoors. (Nature being one of those unwanted distractions I mentioned.) The second issue was the PRS-500's tendency to leave ghost images when the page was turned. To me this was incredibly distracting and annoying. When I first got my hands on the PRS-505 I knew it was the solution for me. Contrast is now high enough that I can read in most places I could read a paper book. The 20% improvement figure does not give a fair representation of the magnitude of the difference between the two products. There is a threshold that was crossed, and that makes the 505 just work. Ghosting is gone too. I have attached comparisons between the 500 and the 505, showing both the contrast and ghosting problem. I do not have a Kindle, so I cannot do a side-by-side comparison. But, if the Kindle does not have the contrast and lack of ghosting of the 505, it is not for me. I've also puzzled over the complaint on this thread about a replaceable battery. The battery lasts so long on the Sony (either one) that it is just not a factor in its use. I eventually get back to a power supply, and can charge it. Of course, with the Kindle, power is much more of an issue. But for the Sony, the battery is one of those things that just doesn't distract. (I don't worry about termites with my paper books either. ) To the poster who said they needed the ability to make an impulse buy (citing impulses received in the bathroom, of all places) I just have to state that this doesn't seem like a practical limit in general use. As I said before, when I read, I want to be immersed. Impulses have no place there. The Kindle, with its plethora of options (browse the bookstore, Wikipedia, etc.), itself becomes a distraction. I don't even have to mention how distracting an undesirable page turn is to me. The Kindle loses on this front, if other reviews are true (I don't have one, I can't say for myself.) To each his own, but for me, I'll stick with the Sony. Last edited by chuck94022; 12-03-2007 at 07:25 PM. Reason: attach images that didn't appear inline |
12-03-2007, 07:49 PM | #74 |
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1. I have the Sony 500 and would prefer to upgrade to the 505, when I can because I have enjoyed my experience with my 500.
2. The look is more appealing to me. 3. I am a SONY lover 4. I want to read books. Keyboards and making notes has no bearing for me. 5. I like the ability to convert any text into the Reader format and read it. 6. Of the 90,000 titles that Amazon has, how many do they have of the books I read? Not many I can tell you. I also seek out books that are no longer in print or hard to find. Believe it or not, you can find these titles on the internet in a text form. For example, Martin Pipin in the Apple Orchard. 7. I dont want to download a book on the spot when I have almost 200 loaded and ready to read. 8. When I decided to buy the Reader, I wanted to touch and see it first. $399 for the Kindle is a lot to pay and wait to see later to find you're not happy with it. -Seth Williams San Francisco, CA Last edited by solitarywolf; 12-03-2007 at 07:53 PM. |
12-03-2007, 07:51 PM | #75 | |
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I have compared the two side by side, and I would say the contrast is about the same. It is still debatable in my mind. Usually when I start to think that one is better than the other, it is usually a result of the angle of the light on the display. |
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