Mistaken Identity

[ScalyFreak]

Originally Posted by elemenoP

Actually I have had to use the word Kindle myself, to explain what it is: "It's an ereader." "A what?" "Like a Kindle, but made by Sony."

That's my situation. People see my 950, notice the very un-Kindleish shiny silvery finish and ask, "er, is that a Kindle?" while looking confused, since it doesn't look like a Kindle at all. And my standard reply is, "It's the Sony version. It has a bigger screen, more features, and it can get books from anywhere, not just from Amazon. So of course it cost a lot more."

[Jaede]

Originally Posted by Rob Lister

Withstanding the 'ignorant noob' characterization, I'll agree it happens frequently. I answer in reply, "Kinda like a Kindle. It's a Nook actually. Here, have a look!" and I hand it to them for closer inspection.

I suppose I can let go of the characterization. I think I ranted only because there have been times when I've been approached about my Reader by a person who actually owns a Kindle.

Some would actually hold the Kindle in their hands, look at the STR in mine, and still ask if I'm enjoying my Kindle. Maybe it's like someone eating apple pie which is clearly apple pie, and being asked if I'm enjoying the taste of cherry pie. Cherry pie is not the only pie in the world.

[tubemonkey]

I've had people say "is that an iPad" when referring to my Nook Color and HP TouchPad.

[khalleron]

Oh, yeah, to which I reply, 'no, it's a Sony, but yes, it is an ereader. Wanna look?'

So I show them what it can do and everyone's impressed. Until they ask, 'so, you buy your books from Amazon, then?'

[SmokeAndMirrors]

Originally Posted by Jaede

My rant, or question to the masses is this: How often have you been reading on an E-Reader that is not a Kindle, and had some ignorant noob look at it and ask if it was a Kindle? And then when you explain what it is they give you a blank look, a nod, and walk away still convinced what you held in your hands is a Kindle. Maybe it's just me, but each device is shaped so differently that it's relatively easy to tell them apart. I don't know about the rest of the readers out there who have given up paperbacks for E-Ink, but this bothers me every time it happens.

Any thoughts?

I've had people ask about my "Kindle" before. It doesn't really bother me, though. To me it's a good opportunity to talk about alternative choices and more open products.

It's the same deal when someone looks at my computer and doesn't recognize the OS. They don't recognize it because it's Linux. And that presents an opportunity for me to tell them about it, why it's awesome (continued gaming disadvantages not withstanding) and that it's actually pretty easy to use now. I've converted a lot of friends to Linux that way. Most of them absolutely love it.

Well for me when local people ask me about my Sony 900 I would say about 50% assume it is a Kindle and ask me how I like it, maybe 20% think it is some sort of tablet computer, and the other 30% just ask: "What's that?"

[RDaneel54]

Twice I've had people see my Kindle and ask, "Is that one of those e-readers?" Doh!

When I carried a PDA, I was invariably asked if it was a "Palm Pilot." No, it's a Psion. Then, when I had a Palm PDA, I told them, "It's a Palm, but not a Pilot." That usually got a blank stare. Then, everybody started carrying smartphones and the world changed, again. I have a box of historical electronic devices, none of which are Palm Pilots.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by RDaneel54

I have a box of historical electronic devices, none of which are Palm Pilots.

I still have a palm pilot

Spoiler:

[Jack Tingle]

Originally Posted by RDaneel54

Twice I've had people see my Kindle and ask, "Is that one of those e-readers?" Doh!

When I carried a PDA, I was invariably asked if it was a "Palm Pilot." No, it's a Psion. Then, when I had a Palm PDA, I told them, "It's a Palm, but not a Pilot." That usually got a blank stare. Then, everybody started carrying smartphones and the world changed, again. I have a box of historical electronic devices, none of which are Palm Pilots.

My wife split the difference between Palm Pilot and my Pocket PC and called them all "Pound Puppies". Only an idiot argues with his wife over something not life-and-death. Besides which MS eventually changed the name to "Windows Mobile" which was even less accurate than "Pound Puppy".

Regards,
Jack Tingle

[Jaede]

Looking at the replies to this rant, I think, might have changed my perspective a bit. I mean, you can't expect a people who have no interest in E-Readers, to know the difference between them right away. And most first-timers are apparently Kindle owners, anyway. To them them Kindles are all there is.

So to this I vow. I will not embrace the urge to be irritated at another person who asked me about my "Kindle". Even if they own one already. I can be a better person, even if I'm hopelessly addicted to all things E-Ink.

[Torwan]

Originally Posted by Billi

Torwan, maybe this is because you live in Germany and here Kindle isn't a synonym for eReaders yet (if any brand is connected to eReaders at all then I would think it's Sony).

That is a possibility. However, I have encountered three kinds of people when it comes to new technology:

Class 1: Doesn't know that this even exists. That happens to me a lot when I start talking about Digital Radio (since I bought one recently).

Class 2: Has heard of this technology, but not much/doesn't care/doesn't own one. Usual question: "Is that like (!) an iPad/Kindle/whatever-this-person-has-heard?" or "Is that one of those <technology>-things?"

Class 3: Knows a lot, uses one to many devices of that class and starts a technical discussion.


It also happens once or twice that a device is mistaken for another, but not on a permanent basis. But maybe the advertising industry works differently here and doesn't "plant" certain brands into people's heads...

[elemenoP]

I think Palm made a mistake when they changed the name from Palm Pilot to Palm. The name Palm Pilot had stuck so well, everybody kept calling it that anyway. Why mess with that?

eP

[sakura-panda]

Originally Posted by Jack Tingle

My wife split the difference between Palm Pilot and my Pocket PC and called them all "Pound Puppies". Only an idiot argues with his wife over something not life-and-death. Besides which MS eventually changed the name to "Windows Mobile" which was even less accurate than "Pound Puppy".

Regards,
Jack Tingle

My husband once asked me to remember the name of band for him so he could look for their CD when we were in the store. I remembered it as "Mud Puppies" and surprisingly, they didn't have it. (We've been together long enough that it didn't take much effort for him to convert "Mud Puppies" to "Puddle of Mudd" and they really didn't have it. )

On topic, I have been asked if my Sony is a Kindle, but I figure it's like Kleenex and I don't fuss. I simply say that it is not actually a Kindle, but is the same type of device. I don't think anyone has ever continued to think of it as a Kindle, although I've noticed that people who have Kindles themselves, will still call mine a Kindle, because they forget my reader is a different brand from theirs.

[Rich_D]

When someone asks, I quickly put it away, flash a gun and whisper to them to forget what they saw and that I was never here. Then I quickly walk away.

Mostly I just smile and nod and hope they quickly walk away.

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Jaede

My rant, or question to the masses is this: How often have you been reading on an E-Reader that is not a Kindle, and had some ignorant noob look at it and ask if it was a Kindle? And then when you explain what it is they give you a blank look, a nod, and walk away still convinced what you held in your hands is a Kindle. Maybe it's just me, but each device is shaped so differently that it's relatively easy to tell them apart. I don't know about the rest of the readers out there who have given up paperbacks for E-Ink, but this bothers me every time it happens.

The only question I have is why you didn't just say; "yes it's a Kindle" and go back to enjoying your book? It certainly would have been easier... and the person who had to ask didn't really care anyway. It's no sweat off my nose if someone thinks my Kindle's an iPad.