Will Kobo, Nook and Amazon Touch kill Sony?

[MaxLV]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

The Kindle is sold in New Zealand. It is not sold in stores but can be ordered online. The Kobo is moving to a more international market this year. I am sure that it will spread pretty quickly. Nook is hurting itself by not going global. It is going to have a tough time breaking into the international market when Kindle, Kobo, and Sony are already there.

And yes, the Nook and Kobo touches are doing the same thing as the 650. The average user doesn't care that Sony was doing it a year before the othes. The average user cares that a comprable 6 inch screen Sony device is $80 more expensive then the Kobo or the Nook.

Order online? yeah right... Sony and Kobo readers are available now, no need to order online and WAIT [hope] for it to arrive safely.

And as far as I'm aware Amazon does NOT accept orders directly for the Kindle from NZ. You have to go through a third party or 'agent' who arranges your order, and takes their cut.

As to price if that is the ONLY factor then sure buy the cheapest you can.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Donnageddon

Kindle is the Kleenex of eReaders.

Are you saying Kindle's are good for blowing your nose on?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by jocampo

Means? ...

I am assuming your comment is against Kindle, not in favor. If I'm mistaken, apologies. But Kindle 3 is a great eink reader. It integrates very well with Amazon online bookstore, offering a total and unique experience.

For the records, I like Sony ereaders but I think their prices are absolutely and ridiculously high!

The nook integrates well with their bookstore. Plus the nook does one thing better then the Kindle ever has... The nook has ePub and the Kindle has the obsolete Mobipocket.

Now if Amazon does a touch with no physical keyboard and has ADE, then they have a good chance of being #1. But they would have to get rid of AZW/Topaz for ePub.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by MaxLV

And as far as I'm aware Amazon does NOT accept orders directly for the Kindle from NZ. You have to go through a third party or 'agent' who arranges your order, and takes their cut.

No, you can order directly from Amazon...

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003DZ1Y8Q?country=NZ

[Poppaea]

Originally Posted by Donnageddon

Kindle is the Kleenex of eReaders.

Originally Posted by Donnageddon

Not in any way a comment in favor or against the Kindle. It is a fine family of ereaders, and everyone who owns one should be very satisfied for a good purchase.

My comment was on the generacized trademark that the Kindle has become.

Everywhere I go with my Sony 650, the first thing people ask is "How do you like your Kindle?"

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Are you saying Kindle's are good for blowing your nose on?

No, Donnageddon said quite clearly Kindle has become a generic term for ereaders. Like one does not vacuum cleane ones house but Hoover it.

[ProfCrash]

In the US we vacuum. We also Xerox things and use Kleenex. Hoovering has a slightly more naughty connotation...

[Poppaea]

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

In the US we vacuum. We also Xerox things and use Kleenex. Hoovering has a slightly more naughty connotation...

Sorry, I never heard of the naughty connotation before, spent 10 years with an Englishman and my year in L.A. was 30 years ago. I just wanted to make a point. Now I have to worry JSWolf will misread that, too. OTOH maybe he will start to speak a wee bit more respectfull of the Kindle now that I said this

But thanks for letting me know anyway.

[jjw]

I might be in the minority here but I kind of hope that Sony continues with its current strategy. If i'm going to be spending weeks of my life staring at and using a single device then in the long term i don't really see the initial price as that much of a factor.

When i was choosing my first ebook reader i went with the PRS-650 just because it offered the best reading experience possible. If they didn't lower their prices with new models but kept improving the aesthetics and screen technology then i'd be happy. If racing to the bottom of the price point means cheaper quality readers then Sony kind of loses any advantage they might have had.

[elcreative]

Not the only one... I prefer Sony over others and could care less about the price... I spend a lot of time (probably minimum 2 hours/day) using my Sony and want something that feels good, is well built and is excellent for reading... Sony meets those needs and since it's worth a fraction of the value of my ebooks, it's higher cost is somewhat irrelevant...

Originally Posted by jjw

I might be in the minority here but I kind of hope that Sony continues with its current strategy. If i'm going to be spending weeks of my life staring at and using a single device then in the long term i don't really see the initial price as that much of a factor.

When i was choosing my first ebook reader i went with the PRS-650 just because it offered the best reading experience possible. If they didn't lower their prices with new models but kept improving the aesthetics and screen technology then i'd be happy. If racing to the bottom of the price point means cheaper quality readers then Sony kind of loses any advantage they might have had.

[Wordeater]

My take on this this particular topic is based only on my own opinion.
If I were to do it all over again, I'd still be buying my 650. If I were buying today, I'd certainly wait to see a new Kobo. No new Nook for me, nor a Kindle....nothing has changed there.
One thing that has changed is; I was planning to purchase 2 Sony 350s for my nieces. I'm guessing now they will get the new Kobos. That is simply due to $$$, and, going out on a limb here, I think it will be a winner.
When it comes to me, well, money is not much a factor in my decision making process. I always buy what I want. When it came to the 650 for myself, it was the one I wanted so I paid the price.

I really think that for the most part, (and using the general public as well as many folks on this site as examples) people are generally way more frugal than myself. They seem far more willing to forego features and quality in favour of saving $$$....and I can appreciate that. But, that just might hurt Sony, IMO. Most people will opt for the new Nook or Kobo despite whether or not it proves to measure up to the Sonys, because of the price difference. The majority of people don't do due diligence in their research. Price holds real sway here. (I can only imagine how many Kindle owners discovered the tie to the Amazon store after the fact)
I've always held the belief that pulling up at a traffic light in a VW next to a Porsche and wishing for the day that I too will finally have the Porsche, is no way to go through life. I buy what I want, and I pay the price. This way I never have any more than the one regret,.....maybe having paid too much. I rarely ever have any of the many regrets that come with compromise.
Not meeting expectations, lesser quality, having to repeat the whole process over, etc. Not for me; so I'm not the guy Sony is gonna be worried about, providing their product is up to snuff. It's the folks who will put price and practicality over quality. Sony will be their own worst enemy.

WE

[Latinandgreek]

I paid over $300 for my first ebook reader, the Sony PRS-505, and never regretted a penny of it. If a particular ebook reader offers me features that I find useful that other ebook readers don't offer, I will pay a premium to get the ebook reader that I want. I'm not a spendy person in general (my husband calls me cheap all the time), but I don't have a problem spending a premium on things that I use on a daily basis. I use my ebook reader every day, often for hours at a time, so it really doesn't bother me to pay a bit more for such an often used item.

[rhadin]

Originally Posted by Latinandgreek

I paid over $300 for my first ebook reader, the Sony PRS-505, and never regretted a penny of it. If a particular ebook reader offers me features that I find useful that other ebook readers don't offer, I will pay a premium to get the ebook reader that I want. I'm not a spendy person in general (my husband calls me cheap all the time), but I don't have a problem spending a premium on things that I use on a daily basis. I use my ebook reader every day, often for hours at a time, so it really doesn't bother me to pay a bit more for such an often used item.

That's 2 of us who think (and act) the same. Not only did I spend more than $300 on my first ereader, a Sony 505, but I spent more than $300 on my second ereader, a Sony 950. And 3.5 years after buying the 505, it is still going strong and is now my wife's daily companion. Both of my Sonys worked as they were supposed to right out of the box, and continue to do so.

Additionally, both Sonys got/get a lot of use by me. I tend to read on the 950 (and before that the 505) not less than 3-4 hours a day, every day, plus I take it with me whenever we go shopping, to the doctor, to any place where I'll have some time to sit and read while waiting.

I'm not suggesting that other devices wouldn't/couldn't/don't hold up as well, but with the Sonys I got the features I wanted, did not get the features I didn't want, and got quality build. Definitely worth the price.

[John F]

Originally Posted by rhadin

That's 2 of us who think (and act) the same. ...

Make that three of us.

And this is why Sony probably won't be my next reader purchase. Sony needs better reading software, and that doesn't seem to be their direction.

[jocampo]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The nook integrates well with their bookstore. Plus the nook does one thing better then the Kindle ever has... The nook has ePub and the Kindle has the obsolete Mobipocket.

Now if Amazon does a touch with no physical keyboard and has ADE, then they have a good chance of being #1. But they would have to get rid of AZW/Topaz for ePub.

azw is not an obsolete format. Something obsolete is no longer wanted or used. That's not the case with azw and Amazon books. Thousands of users have Kindle and read azw books. There is also no difference in layout or reading experience between both when using an eink device. Reading a pure text novel that is on ePub format instead of mobi or azw loooks basically the same. And popular titles are widely available online in mobi and ePub.

Now, I would like to say that Kindle 3 needs a hardware redesign soon, is due at this time after most recent Nook 1st gen and after Sony came out with touch screen. How many users would like to adopt the new touch screen experience? We will have to see. Some Kindle users do not like touchscreen at all others is ok. I have an iPad and I see the touchscreen advantage but it is much more than that. People won't sell their Sony ereaders or Kindle and get the new Nook just because the way it looks or features. Users of most popular devices (Sony, Nook, Kindle) are usually happy with the whole customer experience and not willing to change unless they find a major advantage when buying from the competitors online bookstore, like better titles or lower prices.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Poppaea

No, Donnageddon said quite clearly Kindle has become a generic term for ereaders. Like one does not vacuum cleane ones house but Hoover it.

Using Hoover to mean vacuum is actually a UK term. We don't say that in the US. I also see the usage of Kleenex to mean tissue dying out in the US. And Xerox for photocopy is also dying out.

I just hope that Kindle for reader (ereader is incorrect) dies out as people realize that there are more devices and better devices then the Kindle. If the K4 drops the keyboard for Touch and uses ADE, then maybe Amazon can take over. But without, no way.