iPad Can the iPad replace ebook readers?

[jseay]

Below is the link to a very thorough article I read discussing the merits of the iPad as an ereader. The article has a link to many pics of iPad ereader applications.

http://bit.ly/9DcYbN

[scottjl]

It did mine. I wasn't sure it would until I had it in my hands, but it has easily replaced my Sony 600 in my backpack. No point in carrying two devices when the iPad does so much more in addition to eBooks. I like my 600, but I like my iPad a lot more.

[JSWolf]

Can we please have the full URL? I do not click on hidden links. No idea where they may end up. Thanks.

[jseay]

Here is the full link:

http://blogs.zdnet.com/mobile-gadget...g=wrapper;col1

[Bremen Cole]

Answer: Yes

[yvanleterrible]

Yes and no. At home it will replace my reader but when I go to some waiting room I'll still use the Sony.

BTW Carrying an iPad will be dangerous to its safety. A laptop folds up thus protecting its screen. The iPad leaves a sizeable screen realestate exposed to hits and dings. Throughout MR pages you get numerous stories of broken screens. The iPad being both bigger and heavier will bring its share of horror stories too.

[Bremen Cole]

Originally Posted by yvanleterrible

Yes and no. At home it will replace my reader but when I go to some waiting room I'll still use the Sony.

BTW Carrying an iPad will be dangerous to its safety. A laptop folds up thus protecting its screen. The iPad leaves a sizeable screen realestate exposed to hits and dings. Throughout MR pages you get numerous stories of broken screens. The iPad being both bigger and heavier will bring its share of horror stories too.

And that is why the gods made cases

[yvanleterrible]

Originally Posted by Bremen Cole

And that is why the gods made cases

Most cases are soft with no reinforcement and carry bags are the worst.
I'm planning on building my own as I've done for my Sony

[leebase]

Obviously, the ipad can replace eInk readers. For some people. Heck, my iPhone replaced my desire for an eInk reader.

Lee

CAN? Yes. WILL IT? Probably no in most cases. The iPad could have been a huge competitor against many readers had it been priced around $300-$350 USD with adequate accessories included. But at a starting price of $500 USD without many accessories included I seriously doubt you will see many eBook folks switching from their $150-$250 USD readers. It is just too expensive, especially for what you get. I think it will sell well, but not so well among folks wanting to use it primarily as a reader.

Apple does glitz and marketing better than almost all other companies combined. But Apple really doesn't do cutting edge technology as well as many perceive. I bought the iPod touch thinking it could do a lot more than it does. And it is a good little device. But after a short period of time I realized how limited it was and then I realized how little I actual used it. If you are into music and games, it is fine. If your into to eBooks and spreadsheets and transfering files to and from a PC, it is very limited. (Actually it does eBooks pretty well, but the battery won't last more than three hours and loading eBooks is too kluge.) And the fact that there is too much "big brother Apple" control over how you use it really hampers it. (I'm using Apple's own "big brother" Orwellian reference they used against IBM in the 1980's and turning it against Apple because Apple became more of a "big brother" control freak than IBM and Microsoft combined!)

So back to your question--Will the iPad replace dedicated eBook readers? It might replace some higher end models currently available, but it won't be able to replace the lower end models because there is too big of a price difference. I also think that the newer technologies being released this year will make the iPad even less of a viable eBook reading option. I also think the release of lots of Windows 7 tablets this year will make the iPad seem rather like the failed Palm Folio of a few years ago and will relegate it to the gamers and toy players more than to the serious computer users and more sophisticated folks who read actual books rather than just comic books.

[cmdahler]

Ultimately, the answer to this question lies not so much in how many people out there like to read e-books, but with how many of those people are die-hard e-ink fanatics. I'm guessing there probably aren't enough of those folks to make e-ink based ereaders viable. Look at the news stories swirling around Saturday's sale date. 300,000+ iPads in one day? How could Sony and Amazon possibly keep up with that pace? Of course, Apple isn't going to keep selling them at anywhere near that rate, but it's a near certainty that they will sell a few million of these things over the course of a year. They'll likely sell more iPads in a week than Amazon has sold of the Kindle in its entire lifetime. Those kind of swamping numbers mean that within a year or even less, Apple will completely dominate the ereader market. There may be enough people around who absolutely must have e-ink above all else to allow one or two large companies such as Sony and Amazon to keep selling a miniscule few units. The smaller players in the market, especially the higher-priced end (Que, Skiff, iRex) are going to have a pretty hard time. Skiff is backed by some big-time money (Hearst), so they may still attempt a go of it. My prediction is that Que is gone before it ever left the gate.

The problem any of these companies are going to have is that you put an iPad next to any e-ink based ereader, and the iPad has the ereader beat six ways from Sunday in almost all consumers' minds except for the die-hard e-ink fanatic. The iPad is a few hundred dollars more expensive, of course, but hell, it's an entire laptop replacement for a lot of people who are only interested in a computer for email and Facebook. If the iPad were $1500, the story would be different, but at the price points the iPad is selling at, the extra money isn't going to make any difference to most people.

[Gurvan]

Thanks for that analysis !

I fully agree with you and as said in another thread, another collateral damage might well be the smartphones as more and more people will realize that they don't need their phones to do what the iPad will do better with a bigger screen...

[Over]

I would say that it won't replace e-ink ereaders for medium-heavy readers.

Those who do light reading (0-1,5 hours máx reading time in a single day) won't bother to have a specific device just for reading, when they can have another one that allows reading and many other things that interest them.

Those who read more, eye strain/comfort is a bigger issue, e-ink is (today) the best option for them.

[Over]

Originally Posted by cmdahler

Ultimately, the answer to this question lies not so much in how many people out there like to read e-books, but with how many of those people are die-hard e-ink fanatics. I'm guessing there probably aren't enough of those folks to make e-ink based ereaders viable. Look at the news stories swirling around Saturday's sale date. 300,000+ iPads in one day? How could Sony and Amazon possibly keep up with that pace? Of course, Apple isn't going to keep selling them at anywhere near that rate, but it's a near certainty that they will sell a few million of these things over the course of a year. They'll likely sell more iPads in a week than Amazon has sold of the Kindle in its entire lifetime. Those kind of swamping numbers mean that within a year or even less, Apple will completely dominate the ereader market. There may be enough people around who absolutely must have e-ink above all else to allow one or two large companies such as Sony and Amazon to keep selling a miniscule few units. The smaller players in the market, especially the higher-priced end (Que, Skiff, iRex) are going to have a pretty hard time. Skiff is backed by some big-time money (Hearst), so they may still attempt a go of it. My prediction is that Que is gone before it ever left the gate.

The problem any of these companies are going to have is that you put an iPad next to any e-ink based ereader, and the iPad has the ereader beat six ways from Sunday in almost all consumers' minds except for the die-hard e-ink fanatic. The iPad is a few hundred dollars more expensive, of course, but hell, it's an entire laptop replacement for a lot of people who are only interested in a computer for email and Facebook. If the iPad were $1500, the story would be different, but at the price points the iPad is selling at, the extra money isn't going to make any difference to most people.

You can't compare that way. E-ink devices are just for reading, their market are ebook/doc readers.
iPad allows, besides reading, games, music, videos/movies, web-surfing, emailing, social networking, etc.

That means if Apple sold 300000 units of iPad in its first day, that doesn't mean 300000 people opted for this device instead of an e-ink ereader. Probably 299000 were people interested in videogaming, websurfing, etc. Anything but reading. So it's unfair to compare directly the sales figures to answer this topic's question.

[stustaff]

Originally Posted by Over

I would say that it won't replace e-ink ereaders for medium-heavy readers.

Those who do light reading (0-1,5 hours máx reading time in a single day) won't bother to have a specific device just for reading, when they can have another one that allows reading and many other things that interest them.

Those who read more, eye strain/comfort is a bigger issue, e-ink is (today) the best option for them.

You get no more eyestrain from reading LCD than e-ink! eye strain is caused by keeping the eyes focused at the same distance it doesn't matter what your looking at. regularly looking away at something in the middle to far distance will remove eye strain using either device.

Ima heavy reader 3 hours a day 3 or 4 days a week and when I pack my bag to go for the train if my iPad can display my ebooks why would I take my PRS 505 with me as well.

I dont think that many will buy the iPad just for reading but for those that are getting one it will in most cases i think replace their e-ink.