Sony thinks quality will win out (for them)

[Penforhire]

They've never advertised well. How long was the PRS-500 then 505 ignored by the public and then along comes the Kindle to accolades?

I don't know who at Sony said they'll compete on quality but they have a bigger reputation for "spin control" than quality now. I just about snortled when I read the OP's link. How is it that a new Kindle with a better screen has any proven lower quality than Sony devices? Sony's statement is drivel. If they were all about quality then why do they stick us with such crude software?

I've been a fan of Sony through the years and I still use a Sony reader. But you know what? I'm an Amazon fan too and there just might be a Kindle in my future...

[Bremen Cole]

Originally Posted by kjk

Oh, I was talking about Apple

Even I didn't see that one coming

[OrcaBlue]

They've never advertised well. How long was the PRS-500 then 505 ignored by the public and then along comes the Kindle to accolades?

I don't know who at Sony said they'll compete on quality but they have a bigger reputation for "spin control" than quality now.

You're contradicting yourself. If you SONY never advertised well, how does that give them a bigger reputation for "spin control"?

[davidspitzer]

Originally Posted by Hellmark

They're within $10 of their cheapest competition. Just because they aren't going to try and be the absolute cheapest does not mean they are committing suicide. And heck, some places sell the PRS300 for $139.99, matching the kindle price.

a 300 does not match the features of the new kindle. I think I will go with the higher contrast screen with wifi and the huge book library for the lower price. (I am being silly but that is what the consumers will see)

[Hellmark]

Originally Posted by davidspitzer

a 300 does not match the features of the new kindle. I think I will go with the higher contrast screen with wifi and the huge book library for the lower price. (I am being silly but that is what the consumers will see)

Yeah, no wifi, but it really is a minor feature. Plus I'd say the use of epub is better, since you can buy from so many more places than with the kindle. Kindle, you're pretty much stuck with Amazon. Epub is all over the place.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by Hellmark

Yeah, no wifi, but it really is a minor feature. Plus I'd say the use of epub is better, since you can buy from so many more places than with the kindle. Kindle, you're pretty much stuck with Amazon. Epub is all over the place.

ePub may be "all over the place", but does it really matter anymore? Thanks to the price fix five a huge number of books are the same price no matter where you shop so the only advantage is you can switch stores if you get crappy customer service or something. Anyplace I can think of that sells DRM free ePub also offers DRM free Mobi.

Is WiFi and big deal? I don't know, I guess it'll depend on what buyers think. The new screen is probably a bigger deal at least as far as perceptions go.

Amazon still has a larger selection of books I think, plus they allow books to be returned. I don't think others do, but maybe I'm wrong.


I think we'll see Sony have one basic reader that can compete with Kindle, Nook, etc. (the 300 for now) on price and the rest of their devices will be more expensive. I don't know about anyone else, but price isn't the only thing I consider when buying.



I think Amazon's biggest advantage right now is the Kindle's "just work". No software to download and deal with issues on that end and Kindle is dead easy for anyone to use. Not a huge thing for early adopter types maybe, but huge for folks who can barely manage to program their VCR (or DVD recorder ). Nook is probably the next closest or even on par at least if you don't throw sideloading with ADE into the mix.

[LDBoblo]

I'd like to see the page turn speed with the new Kindle in PDFs. I shudder at the thought of using any reader with ePub or Kindle's format, and will probably have to continue building my own PDFs. The Kindle is almost cheap enough to chalk up as a casual expense for me, and supporting PDF without being too sluggish would be sufficient.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by Hellmark

Yeah, no wifi

Sony may think so but consumers seem to think different. (No apologies to Apple. )

PRS-300 vs Kindle?
Let's see:
4GB of storage, vs, 384MB or so?
6in screen vs 5in. (I prefer 5in myself but most people seem to prefer 6in)
Newer screen vs older tech
Longer battery life
Faster processor, faster pageturns
MP3 and audiobook support
TTS support
Ambidextrous paging buttons

Uhh, even without WiFi, I'm still not seeing the equivalence.
Kindle may not be the most feature-rich reader on the market but it is hardly the barebones loss-leader the PRS-300 is.

Unless you value the Sony name, the PRS-300 doesn't even match up to the Jetbook lite at $99.

If the PRS-300 stays on the market it'd better run to $99. Better yet, $79.
(And I don't see either happening.)

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by davidspitzer

Well goodbye Sony - I enjoyed your efforts in the ebook market. Sony ebook in my opinion are no more and in some ways are less in terms of quality then the a Nook or a Kindle. Oh, Sony what is up with your marketing department?


http://www.engadget.com/2010/07/30/s...kindle-intend/

Quality?!? Sorry Sony, but I got suckered into buying a PRS-500. I soon found out that *heavy* does *NOT* translate into 'quality'.

Derek

[Fly_Hyer]

Forget price for a minute with Sony, I wanted to buy a "quality" 6 inch screen from Sony without the haze glare and muck of a touch screen (as much as I like the navigation features) because for me it's about the reading experience, that's my #1 "quality" priority for a reader. Sony currently does not have a 6 inch screen that fits that description for sale in the U.S. Where's the quality in that?

[Penforhire]

Orca, defending against negative press (CD root kits, PS3 issues, battery failures,...) isn't what I call advertising. That's spin control.

[davidspitzer]

everyone threw stones at me when I said Irex did not have a sustainable market plan and were doomed.


I am making a another prediction - I believe that Sony has missed the boat - B&N, Amazon (and maybe Apple - talking about Books) have complete ecosystems for books on multiple platforms and mobile devices. I buy a sony ereader and I either use their reader or a PC. (fail). Dont even get me started about the touch layer on the 600, 700 and 900. The average consumer is not going to pay a premium for these devices when better, faster, and cheaper models are sitting next to them in Target and in B&N stores.

I do not think of Sony as a quality brand anymore. Quality for me is more than shiny plastice and nice curves; its about form and function also. Sony can not seem to get past themsleves for some reason - the list is long and extensive - for example

Betamax
minidisks
Memory Stick
UMD
PSP
PSP to go (oh my god what the heck)
Atracs

and so forth

Even with the apparent win of Blu-Ray - Sony can give away PS3's and that brand is being killed by Xbox because... of the ecosystem. Microsoft has the Games people want to play and they even charge for online where PS3 is free and Sony still cant catch a break.

Sony may continue to sell ebook readers for a while but they have lost the market to others. They may be stubborn and continue or just bail out; either way they are done.

I do not know what, but there is something fundamentally wrong with Sony's approach that is not meshing with consumers.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by davidspitzer

Even with the apparent win of Blu-Ray

Apparent win is about right; the had to bribe Time-Warner US$200 million to get them onto BD. And the studios have been regretting it ever since; its been what, 4 years? And the spec *still* isn't finished.

Sony hasn't gotten too many things right this century.

[Hellmark]

Originally Posted by davidspitzer

Even with the apparent win of Blu-Ray - Sony can give away PS3's and that brand is being killed by Xbox because... of the ecosystem. Microsoft has the Games people want to play and they even charge for online where PS3 is free and Sony still cant catch a break.

Actually, the PS3 is doing fairly well. It currently is in third place for hardware sales world wide, but it is only 5 million units behind the 360. Considering the 360 was released a full year before the PS3, 5 million isn't really that much. Also when you consider with the recent redesign, the PS3 has cut costs enough to be profitable despite cutting so much off the price tag. 2010 has been a banner year for the PS3.

[GlennD]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

If the PRS-300 stays on the market it'd better run to $99. Better yet, $79.
(And I don't see either happening.)

If the PRS-300 stays on the market at all, I'll be surprised. Everyone is running around comparing last year's sonys with this years Kindle. Unsurprisingly, it's not much of a comparison.

I'm mighty curious to see if Sony makes an announcement of some sort in the next few weeks. If they stay with what they have, I'll start to agree with the aim of this thread....but I think it's kind of pointless to compare a year old model with a product that is a month away from shipping.