Quote:
Originally Posted by RWJ
What this has to do with the "tipping point" and ubiquity of e-readers is how people prioritize the ability to do the things that you can do with a dedicated reader.
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And that's also where the multi function thing comes in. Increase the "things you can do" with a device and it becomes a better value at a given price.
Someone may not be willing to pay $350, or $200 or even $100 for a dedicated reader. But have a multifunction device that's just as good at reading but also does other things they do more like web, email, video or whatever an you'll sell more and even non-avid reader will start buying some ebooks since it's so easy to do on their device that the mainly use for web or whatever.
You hit a tipping point where the functions and price appeal to more people. That's the future 5, 10, 15 years down the road. I think there will be some multifunction tablet device that most people have and use in place of laptops, ereaders, portable video players, pdas etc. Likely will even be used by students in lieu of text books etc.
Right now the only tipping point is price. For each person who reads enough to even think about an ereader, there's a tipping point where the price is right for them. The market will expand as prices drop due to that.
But to expand beyond added readers on a large scale, it will take more than price drops. It will take integrated devices that do more than just books.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moejoe
It's a 'niche' item. It serves a particular need, a very singular item that does one thing well. I was, and am still arguing, that the dedicated e-reader will not become a truly mass market item, and instead the function it performs now will be folded into a more convergent device in the future. I further, and am still arguing, that once it does become merged, e-book sales will take off far more than they will when they're predicated on the owning of a single device to facilitate their use.
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Exactly. Dedicated ereaders will make lot of money and keep expanding among the avid reader base. But they can't become mass market until their folded into something else.
Hopefully that something will have screens as good for reading as these, so both us current ebook enthusiasts are pleased, as well as people who buy them mainly for the other functions.