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In terms of the occasional reader, the converged device is already here. People, who use ereader, Stanza, Mobi, etc. on their smart phones (and PDAs) to read while waiting for a meeting to start, or for the bus/train, are unlikely to upgrade to a larger format device. The reason they choose converged devices in the first place was the convenience of a pocket sized device that could do so much.
In contrast, I still remain a skeptic about the near term evolution of the dedicated ebook reader into a converged device. UMPCs and tablets have been around for years now, both types of device were capable of running ebook software. Neither has taken either the ebook world nor the computing world by storm. Devices with 5-7" screens are simply too large to be super convenient for those who are used to the 2.3-3.5" screens of smart phones and they are too small to replace the more fully featured computers that users already have. Even in Netbooks, the trend has been to move to 9, 10 and even 11" displays.
To date, the one function where the 5-7" screen seems to be optimal is as a book reader. Its small and light enough to be easily held for long periods of time, but large enough to allow immersive reading. Combine that with the advantages (for reading) of eInk technology, and well it easy to see why dedicated ebook readers remain the one area that is still dominated by devices of that size.
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Bill
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