Quote:
Originally Posted by John Bailey
Agreed. Next time, ask two further questions.
1) Have they used an e-reader with an e-ink display for more than five minutes?
2) Do they read anything other than manuals and text books?
Of the people who think a netbook is just as good, I'd bet most will answer no to both questions.
|
Again, question 2 is the real key, and you're right that most (especially younger folks) would say know.
People are increasingly busy in today's society and people are just more likely to throw on the TV for an hour or watch a movie etc. than devote several hours to reading a book. Plus after a long, hard day at work and coming home exhausted it's just hard to get motivated to read anything.
Again, the point is that avid readers--which you have to be to bother even considering buying a dedicated e-reader--are a niche.
If e-books are ever going to sell to more than that niche, it will be through having ebook stores accessible on multifunction devices (like the Kindle store already is with the iPhone and iPod touch) so the casual readers who just read a few books a year can start buying some ebooks on devices they already own for other, non-reading purposes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ilovejedd
I have a feeling you have it the other way around. Avid readers would likely prefer dedicated e-ink devices, maybe even 100% of them (at least the ones who read ebooks and are not married to paperbooks), but I seriously don't think that's equivalent to 90% of the general populace. Just in case it's escaped your attention, avid readers are not the mainstream.
|
Exactly. I think many here, as they love reading (and skew older), just don't realize how much it continues to decline with each successive generation as interest wanes and free time shrinks.
Hell, I have a Kindle and I pretty much will never choose to read if I could be watching a movie, TV show or sporting event that I really want to see. And most of my friends (and it's a highly educated set with master's and Ph Ds as a result of working in academia) read way less than I do.