Are smartphones the future?

[Terisa de morgan]

I only read in my iPhone when my purse is so small that my Prs-350 doesn't fit (very, very few nights)

[jocampo]

Originally Posted by MartinC

The UK telecoms regulator Ofcom says that one in three adults in Britain now uses a smartphone, according to a BBC news story today.

Amazon are tight-lipped about the actual number of Kindles in use, but doesn't this make smartphones the effective platform of choice for e-reading?

The future for what, reading? ... no, I don't think so.

We have had PDFs, monitors, computer, for a long time. That did not replace regular ebooks.

Smartphones are too small for reading. Take for example computer books. You need a 10" screen or landscape in order to be able to read code properly, same for poetry.

It's an ok alternative for some type of books or "on the road", but not a full replacement.

[booklover6]

They are not in my future. Not for $29.99 a month

[outlander78]

tablets might replace dedicated eReaders, but smart phones won't. No one wants a giant smart phone screen (imagine holding your iPad to your head for 5-10 minutes), or to read for long periods of time from a tiny screen.

edit: The people I know with iPhones pay around $50/month for theirs - in other words, they could buy a new Kindle or Kobo every two months for that price. Unless phone companies stop being greedy (no chance), then I don't see smart phones winning out over other devices anytime soon.

[Penforhire]

Mobile computing is certainly the future. And probably with hardware that looks suspiciously like today's smartphones. But the interface will be either heads-up, otherwise optically projected, or direct organic stimulation.

Today's screen size does not serve enough purposes but a tablet, covering most of the remaining needs, is too large to carry all the time.

I think the PC in a large box at home or at work is an endangered species. We may retain normal-size keyboards and even monitors for a while (as I use with a laptop at home).

[BoiseShan]

I use both my phone and my Kindle equally. Sometimes interchangeably with the Kindle app. I've never had a difficult time with the smaller screen. Of course, I still read "real" books, too! Whatever it takes to get my fix.

[BrowseTheStacks]

I think it skews by age. Younger, grew up with cellphones better vision for smaller screen. Older, used to books tireder eyes.

[toddos]

Originally Posted by outlander78

tablets might replace dedicated eReaders, but smart phones won't. No one wants a giant smart phone screen (imagine holding your iPad to your head for 5-10 minutes), or to read for long periods of time from a tiny screen.

I wouldn't say "no one", because that's exactly what I do. While I have a PRS-300 and Nook STR, 90% of my reading is done on smartphones (previously my iPhone 3GS using Stanza, now my HD7S using Freda). The 3.5" screen of the iPhone was perfectly fine, and the 4.3" screen and higher pixels per inch of the HD7S is even better. I've never had a headache or eye strain from reading on the LCD screens, but I read white-on-black.

[elcreative]

toddos, there's a big difference between the size of a smartphone screen and a tablet which is what outlander78 was saying... holding a smartphone to your ear is not holding an iPad to your ear...

Owning a smartphone is not an either/or situation either... but until my smartphone has a flexible eInk screen that will expand to 6 inches and has a 7-15 day battery life then the reading gets done on my eReader (which I have no trouble taking everywhere) and everything else gets done on my smartphone, everything but reading...

[jgaiser]

Originally Posted by BrowseTheStacks

I think it skews by age. Younger, grew up with cellphones better vision for smaller screen. Older, used to books tireder eyes.

This...

I'm 64. I need reading glasses to read the text messages on my iPhone. I *don't* do any serious reading on my phone.

[Dulin's Books]

Originally Posted by MartinC

Amazon are tight-lipped about the actual number of Kindles in use, but doesn't this make smartphones the effective platform of choice for e-reading?

thats quite a leap

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Dulin's Books

thats quite a leap

Reminds me of that goofy haired guy on the Ancient Aliens show on the Discovery Channel; "We don't really know, sooooooo... we're going with aliens here."

[sabredog]

Originally Posted by MartinC

Amazon are tight-lipped about the actual number of Kindles in use, but doesn't this make smartphones the effective platform of choice for e-reading?

That is a pretty big assumption. I find that reading an ebook on a smartphone is very tiring on the eyes due to the backlit LCD and small screen. Casual use perhaps, but NOT the effective platform of choice.

Originally Posted by Penforhire

I think the PC in a large box at home or at work is an endangered species. We may retain normal-size keyboards and even monitors for a while (as I use with a laptop at home).

I am a roads engineer by profession. At work I use twin 22" LCD screens because I need the real estate to be an effective designer. Anything smaller is unproductive and inefficient. Before the dual screens it was a 21" CRT display.

The smartphone has a place as a mobile communications device, but is not a replacement for a decent desktop. Even notebooks are not as efficient or as effective.

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by HarryT

It's a case of using the right device for the right job. For web browsing, a Smartphone is the right choice - I'm writing this on my iPhone. For reading novels, my Kindle is much better.

I think it is personal preference.

There is very little web browsing I do that would work for me on a phone. A phone would not place high on my list for reading a book, but it would be higher than web browsing.

There is no one "right device" for reading or web browsing. And devices that are right for one person could well be wrong for another, and vice versa.

[ucfgrad93]

I don't read books on my iPhone. The screen is too small for extended reading.