Delta Electronic's 13" e-Magazine (color ereader)!

[GeoffC]

Originally Posted by Logseman

It sounds promising, but the screen size is outrageous... It would be only fitting for graphic novels and really big graphs.

Surely the screen size is the selling point for this ? It's the same as an ordinary(ish) colour magazine ....

[athlonkmf]

What I'm wondering... would the current 9.7" readers, especially the ipad, be enough to convince mag-publishers to produce mags which can fit in 9.7"?

I see that cosmopolitan, national geographic, readers digest are now also in pocket format. It definately would cut cost for the publishers, maybe others would do so too. Esp now that ipad is being such a huge market pusher.

By the time this thing gets out, there might be no need for 13" readers anymore.

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by athlonkmf

What I'm wondering... would the current 9.7" readers, especially the ipad, be enough to convince mag-publishers to produce mags which can fit in 9.7"?

I see that cosmopolitan, national geographic, readers digest are now also in pocket format. It definately would cut cost for the publishers, maybe others would do so too. Esp now that ipad is being such a huge market pusher.

By the time this thing gets out, there might be no need for 13" readers anymore.

They could do that -- but everything would just look better on a bigger screen. To fit the smaller screen pictures would have to be made smaller, etc. Will the whole world change, just for the ipad? Besides, we will have foldable, or rollable screens, a few years down the road. Then a bigger size won't be a bad thing.

[athlonkmf]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

They could do that -- but everything would just look better on a bigger screen.

can't agree with you on this one. something which is designed for a small format looks kinda bad blown up... (manga, comics)

To fit the smaller screen pictures would have to be made smaller, etc. Will the whole world change, just for the ipad?

the ipad doesn't have to change the world. Just changing the publishers would be enough.
And look what the publishers are gushing about nowadays. Creating apps just for the ipad, making their content looking good on the ipad.

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by athlonkmf

can't agree with you on this one. something which is designed for a small format looks kinda bad blown up... (manga, comics)



the ipad doesn't have to change the world. Just changing the publishers would be enough.
And look what the publishers are gushing about nowadays. Creating apps just for the ipad, making their content looking good on the ipad.

I read the ipad apps for newspapers and magazines are extremely expensive. Any data out yet, has the ipad really turned out to be such a bonanza for publishers of books, papers, and magazines?

You are right about the comics, I was referring to the magazines you named. My guess is that National Geographics would look a lot better on a 13" screen.

[GeoffC]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

I read the ipad apps for newspapers and magazines are extremely expensive. Any data out yet, has the ipad really turned out to be such a bonanza for publishers of books, papers, and magazines?

You are right about the comics, I was referring to the magazines you named. My guess is that National Geographics would look a lot better on a 13" screen.

That and a few art magazines too ... It has great potential; the behaviour of the publishers is what can make or break the transition from paper to electronic.


The Times (UK) has made a start, but although new, I doubt their commercial model. Buy an iPad, pay per month for the app, then a weekly subscription (although the latter is cheaper, by far, than the paper issues).

[dmikov]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

They could do that -- but everything would just look better on a bigger screen.

You might be right about look, but then monitor on pc is 20" to 24". Even better? The 13" tablet is probably as portable as 14" laptop.
At least I can roll magazine in the tube and stick it in my bag or even carry it in my hand if I want to read on the go, I have 12" motion tablet and it's not something I will take with me due to the size. .
BTW we talking about op device not mythical foldablle paper thin displays of the future. When they come we'll see for now even this 13" device is only a prototype.

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by athlonkmf

What I'm wondering... would the current 9.7" readers, especially the ipad, be enough to convince mag-publishers to produce mags which can fit in 9.7"?...

There shouldn't really be a "fit" issue at all. The mags should be completely scalable, so they'll be consumable on any device. That's the point of being non-proprietary: Don't optimize it for one device, because users of all the other devices will suffer. Make it good for everyone, and you can't go wrong.

And BTW: Any e-magazine design that forces users to scroll around to see it all is a bad one.

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by dmikov

You might be right about look, but then monitor on pc is 20" to 24". Even better? The 13" tablet is probably as portable as 14" laptop.
At least I can roll magazine in the tube and stick it in my bag or even carry it in my hand if I want to read on the go, I have 12" motion tablet and it's not something I will take with me due to the size. .
BTW we talking about op device not mythical foldablle paper thin displays of the future. When they come we'll see for now even this 13" device is only a prototype.

For me both 9.7" and 13" both are not really very portable. At least the ipad's 9.7. A 9.7" device with virtually no bezel and significantly lighter than the ipad might be borderline. But the report said the device weighed only half of what the ipad weighs. I could imagine it as a device used around the house, for web browsing, magazines, and newspapers. Very low weight, super thin, but big screen so that I wouldn't have to scroll around. Definitely not for carrying it with me.

But most likely I will wait for some new screen technology.

[Logseman]

I can understand that charts will need a big colorful screen, but I adhere to Steve Jordan's POV: a magazine can't be just a scanned version of the paper one: it must have its own dynamics and allow yourself to interact with its content differently, regardless of the reader device you use.

[GeoffC]

Originally Posted by Steve Jordan

There shouldn't really be a "fit" issue at all. The mags should be completely scalable, so they'll be consumable on any device. That's the point of being non-proprietary: Don't optimize it for one device, because users of all the other devices will suffer. Make it good for everyone, and you can't go wrong.

And BTW: Any e-magazine design that forces users to scroll around to see it all is a bad one.

Apple !
Amazon !

You noting/listening ... ?

[Logseman]

No, they aren't. They don't care about users of other devices, but they want to lure everyone into theirs.

[athlonkmf]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

I read the ipad apps for newspapers and magazines are extremely expensive. Any data out yet, has the ipad really turned out to be such a bonanza for publishers of books, papers, and magazines?

Well, it got them moving. But steve jobs had already said (yesterday) that the publishers needs to go for volume instead of premium price to be succesful. (at least wired's app is sold very well, but I wonder what the next edition would result to)

Now, if only the publishers could get that through their skull. At least the first dent had been made by apple.

"7:03PM Steve: I can tell you as one of the largest sellers of content on the internet to date -- price it aggressively and go for volume. That has worked for us. I'm trying to get the press to do the same thing. They need to do it differently than they do it for print."

I know I've subscribed to some (zinio) mags I'd never have done myself if it wasn't for the killer deal (less than 1 dollar for one mag!)

You are right about the comics, I was referring to the magazines you named. My guess is that National Geographics would look a lot better on a 13" screen.

Meh, I have the larger paper version of NG, and when I got the same version on a smaller screen, I was more blown away:

[GeoffC]

"7:03PM Steve: I can tell you as one of the largest sellers of content on the internet to date -- price it aggressively and go for volume. That has worked for us. I'm trying to get the press to do the same thing. They need to do it differently than they do it for print."

except the price of the cheapest iPad is rather steep !

[GeoffC]

btw it's a shame that picture you posted wasn't scalable, it's wider than the norm for the forum !