Quote:
Originally Posted by Richwood
After one attempt Sony dropped integral screen illumination, did not have a 6" reader with integral wi-fi until the T1 and always sold at a premium price compared to many Kindle models. They had touch screens earlier but the first generations had very poor contrast. I do not say Amazon was perfect but from the customer standpoint had a more user friendly interface IMO. That seems to have made a huge difference in their success.
BTW I have never had a failed Kindle battery either. Have models back to the K1.
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Amazon certainly did make it simple. And Sony didn't subsidize their devices in the hopes of bringing in book sales. But this was a bad time for Sony. It's about the time they closed down whole Consumer Electronic divisions, including their PC and Laptop divisions. So they weren't really in a good position to compete heavily (or innovate heavily) with a niche market like their Sony Readers. Shame, I think, because their Readers (in my opinion) had (have) the highest build quality.
Of all the eReaders I've bought, I've had three bad batteries. One on a Nook Simple Touch (incredibly easy to replace) and two Kindle Keyboards (more difficult to open cleanly). The one Kindle's battery was so swollen that (I believe) the pressure broke the substrate of the screen so – currently – I have one Kindle Keyboard without a battery or a good screen. I'll probably fix it, but it probably doesn't make much sense with a billion Kindle Keyboards constantly available on Shop Goodwill for about $20 with shipping. The other I was able to replace the battery and it kicked right in and started working. So far I haven't had single bad battery on a Sony. (I'm not running down Kindle's build quality either, I just think Sony's was better, at least until the T1.)