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Originally Posted by dugbug
Im surprised by the lack of understanding of the display technology advantages being offered. Jeffrey Young only mentions the power savings. Armchair Arcade worries about people reading books on their iPod.. wtf? "Jared's Blog" complains that most people want "nice tablet PC screens".
I would expect tech writers to at least read a LITTLE bit more about a device.
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I think you have hit on a crucial aspect.
I've seen a lot of product introductions over the years (eg I saw the mouse and Windows before either Gates or Jobs).
It seems to me that the visual advantages of e-ink will be impossible to convey without handing someone a Reader. This is simlar to the way that HDTV cannot be judged by looking at one being shown on a regular SD TV.
And, in fact, HDTV has been one of the slowest ever product launches as a result.
There is also significant evidence that products based solely on quality fail to gain mass acceptance. Convenience and style rate far higher. Note that the audio quality of an iPod and other MP3 players is automatically significantly lower than that of the previous generation of portable devices, the portable CD players.
Intrestingly enough, the pricing of iPods has remained much higher than portable CD players, showing that cost is not a crucial factor, contrary to conventional wisdom. This is probably why Sony is pricing the Reader at an amount similar to an iPod.