Jetbook's View of e-Ink

[LuBiB]

Originally Posted by Lemurion

The problem is not simply that the chart came out over a year ago and should now be updated; but that the chart was already almost six months out of date when it was released.

When released it compared the Jetbook to the Sony 500 which had been discontinued the previous year.

Matching your products strengths against your competitors' weaknesses is a tried and true practice. Had Ectaco compared the Jetbook to the 505 it would have been appropriate as that was the currently available competing device from Sony at the time the chart was released. However, comparing it to the 500 is different only in degree to comparing a 2009 Chevy to a Model T Ford.

It's not a valid comparison to compare your current product to a competitor's discontinued and unavailable product. Compare it to what's currently out there or leave it off. (That's why I'm not as concerned about the Kindle comparisons - the K1 was Amazon's competing device at the time.)

just to clear things up i don't know what's in the heads of Ectaco's marketing team as all i can do is comment on the jetBook along with my experience with Ectaco.

In terms of Marketing, as Marketing solely unless otherwise stated, what Ectaco did was a general comparison chart of their product against their competitors. This is called a Comparative Marketing Strategy with a slight twist of Competitive strategies built-in. It's a chart for the jetBook made by the jetBook guys. What did you expect? Of course there will always be a slight bias by marketers who are paid to market a certain product, but they are comparing their product to the 500 and the Kindle 1 - thats about it.

All it does is give information on the models in comparison to each other.

Comparing Chevy and Ford would be Competitive marketing since they are different brands going up against one another. Comparing a 500 to a 505 would be Comparative, since they are of the same company and just provide different functions.

You can't compare apples and oranges, but you can compare eBook readers which is what Ectaco was doing. Whether new or old, any comparison is a valid one when the criteria and variables are defined.

[LuBiB]

Originally Posted by ahi

Sorry... but I think you are missing the point.



Unless they wrote the page in question well before the JetBook was released, that page was born either out of ignorance/incompetence or out of malice.

- Ahi

definitely not missing the point since we are all on the same page here (not only the web page, but the topic lol)

ignorance/incompetence probably isn't the case. look at anyones comparison chart for any company in any industry and they will attempt to make their products stand out greater than the competitions. that's what Ectaco was probably going for, so if your not reading the chart as just a comparison to the models they clearly state, then i don't really know what you want to get out of it.

malice is too strong word since they don't really say anything negative about the companies themselves. they just point and weigh out the negatives and positives of each.

[LuBiB]

Originally Posted by Teyrnon

Well, when I first saw their marketing propaganda my first thought was that the bulk, if not all, of it was written while the thing was still in the late stages of development and well before an actual release.

i think that may have been the case too. the chart may have been made before the jetBook was even assembled.

it's just a comparison chart.

[Lemurion]

Originally Posted by LuBiB

just to clear things up i don't know what's in the heads of Ectaco's marketing team as all i can do is comment on the jetBook along with my experience with Ectaco.

In terms of Marketing, as Marketing solely unless otherwise stated, what Ectaco did was a general comparison chart of their product against their competitors. This is called a Comparative Marketing Strategy with a slight twist of Competitive strategies built-in. It's a chart for the jetBook made by the jetBook guys. What did you expect? Of course there will always be a slight bias by marketers who are paid to market a certain product, but they are comparing their product to the 500 and the Kindle 1 - thats about it.

All it does is give information on the models in comparison to each other.

Comparing Chevy and Ford would be Competitive marketing since they are different brands going up against one another. Comparing a 500 to a 505 would be Comparative, since they are of the same company and just provide different functions.

You can't compare apples and oranges, but you can compare eBook readers which is what Ectaco was doing. Whether new or old, any comparison is a valid one when the criteria and variables are defined.

I understand where you are coming from with the difference between competitive and comparative - and I agree you can't compare apples and oranges. My problem is that the Sony 500 (an ebook reader) was out of production at the time the chart was released and had been for months.

It's the same as comparing a 2009 Chevy Impala with a 1927 Ford Model T. They're both cars.

Yes the Impala is better by almost any metric you care to use - but the Ford Model T is not a valid comparison in this case because it's not a competitor since it is no longer available from Ford and doesn't represent what you would get if you chose Ford over Chevy.

[wodin]

Again:

Originally Posted by wodin

So why don't we just rename this thread to "The jetBook bashing thread"?

I agree that ECTACO's marketing department sux, but that doesn't detract from the quality hardware they sell. They could do themselves a favor and hire a crack Madison Ave advertising firm, begin supporting some sort of encryption (perhaps license Digital Editions) and make a ton of money.

It's the tho old saw, "It takes money to make money!" and it's hard to find deeper pockets that Sony and Amazon.

Anybody read Dilbert? ECTACO seems to be an archetypical example of a company with a crack engineering team and a marketing dept that really sux; and management that doesn't know the difference.

[LuBiB]

Originally Posted by Lemurion

I understand where you are coming from with the difference between competitive and comparative - and I agree you can't compare apples and oranges. My problem is that the Sony 500 (an ebook reader) was out of production at the time the chart was released and had been for months.

It's the same as comparing a 2009 Chevy Impala with a 1927 Ford Model T. They're both cars.

Yes the Impala is better by almost any metric you care to use - but the Ford Model T is not a valid comparison in this case because it's not a competitor since it is no longer available from Ford and doesn't represent what you would get if you chose Ford over Chevy.

May have been the case where the chart was made at the early stages of development before the jetBook was released and the 500/Kindle was already out. That's why they would have compared those models.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by LuBiB

i definitely agree that the info is fairly outdated as a comparison chart, but note that it came out over a year ago and im sure they should update it.

as far as ridicule goes, i am a pacifist and lover of all people and forums i just take things with a grain of salt and don't believe people should give such a strong opinion (on almost every jetBook forum) when they have never even picked up a jetBook or dealt with Ectaco.

No ridicule, just curiosity.

if Ectaco updated the chart and made it accurate, the Jetbook would not come out on top. That's why i think they won't update the chart.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by ahi

At which time it was already long outdated, which suggests bad faith.

Are we still agreeing?

This is how I see Ectaco subjecting non-customers to shady practices.

I did not and do not mean to be confrontational either... but the suggestion that this is simply a case of "outdated information on a webpage in need of updating" doesn't seem credible.

Having said that, a morally questionable company (and aren't they all, by the way?) can as easily create a great product as a more scrupulous one. Or perhaps even more easily. So none of this has any bearing on JetBook's quality or worth.

- Ahi

Another shady practice is selling the Jetbook in a mainstream store without mentioning the fact that is does not handle any eBooks with DRM. This means that people who purchase it thinking they can read some of the latest NYT bestsellers, they will find they cannot the hard way. Bed, Bath & Beyond is not a shop techies shop for electronics. So most likely it will be Mom & Pop shoppers who see the Jetbook and think it might be a nice thing to have. Boy will they be wrong.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by LuBiB

i think that may have been the case too. the chart may have been made before the jetBook was even assembled.

it's just a comparison chart.

With all kinds of misinformation about Sony and Amazon.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by wodin

Again:



Anybody read Dilbert? ECTACO seems to be an archetypical example of a company with a crack engineering team and a marketing dept that really sux; and management that doesn't know the difference.

So Dilbert works for Ectaco and the pointy haired boss is in charge of marketing.

[vsalvaggio]

Originally Posted by wodin

Anybody read Dilbert? ECTACO seems to be an archetypical example of a company with a crack engineering team and a marketing dept that really sux; and management that doesn't know the difference.

Thanks Wodin. I think this is a great summation of this issue.

Being a pretty informed consumer, when I first read the chart I laughed. Of course ECTACO is going to put themselves in the best light. Anyone relying on the seller for unbiased info, rather than a third-party like MobileRead, is going to be sadly disappointed. Before I plunked down ~$200 for a jetBook (and I did and I am VERY happy with it) I did my research here, not on the product's website.

If you base your opinion on a company and decide they are "shady" just on their marketing strategy you are only looking at one dimension. One of the things that drew me to the jetBook was the fact that ECTACO is actively developing and releasing firmware updates and seems to be VERY responsive to their customers (see jgray's interactions with the company).

Other than to add that I am so sick of reading about and discussing "the chart" in this and other threads, that's my 2 cents.

[vsalvaggio]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Another shady practice is selling the Jetbook in a mainstream store without mentioning the fact that is does not handle any eBooks with DRM. This means that people who purchase it thinking they can read some of the latest NYT bestsellers, they will find they cannot the hard way. Bed, Bath & Beyond is not a shop techies shop for electronics. So most likely it will be Mom & Pop shoppers who see the Jetbook and think it might be a nice thing to have. Boy will they be wrong.

Jon, I can't believe it took you this long to bring up the BBB/DRM issue.

Again I think it comes down to caveat emptor (Let the buyer beware). Before I plunk down almost $200 bucks for anything, I'm knowing exactly what I'm getting.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by vsalvaggio

Jon, I can't believe it took you this long to bring up the BBB/DRM issue.

Again I think it comes down to caveat emptor (Let the buyer beware). Before I plunk down almost $200 bucks for anything, I'm knowing exactly what I'm getting.

I can easily see the following happening....

Person is at BBB and sees the Jetbook. The info says it handles a number of formats and the person thinks, that sounds good. I'll be able to get eBooks from my friend who has a Sony and read his ePub eBooks on my new Jetbook. I'll also be able to get eBooks from my favorite authors. Purchase the Jetbook, and then find out that the ePub his friend has are all with DRm and won't work. Find out the eBooks from his favorite author have DRM and won't work. Take the Jetbook back to BBB disgusted at BBB for not mentioning the limitations of the Jetbook.

Now if someone goes to say Newegg.com to purchase a Jetbook, the chances are quite good that the person will know about DRM and that the Jetbook does not support any DRM and won't have an issue with that.

So really, BBB is not the right sort of place to sell the Jetbook.

[Kris777]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Another shady practice is selling the Jetbook in a mainstream store without mentioning the fact that is does not handle any eBooks with DRM. This means that people who purchase it thinking they can read some of the latest NYT bestsellers, they will find they cannot the hard way. Bed, Bath & Beyond is not a shop techies shop for electronics. So most likely it will be Mom & Pop shoppers who see the Jetbook and think it might be a nice thing to have. Boy will they be wrong.

broken record...

[vsalvaggio]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I can easily see the following happening....

Person is at BBB and sees the Jetbook. The info says it handles a number of formats and the person thinks, that sounds good. I'll be able to get eBooks from my friend who has a Sony and read his ePub eBooks on my new Jetbook. I'll also be able to get eBooks from my favorite authors. Purchase the Jetbook, and then find out that the ePub his friend has are all with DRm and won't work. Find out the eBooks from his favorite author have DRM and won't work. Take the Jetbook back to BBB disgusted at BBB for not mentioning the limitations of the Jetbook.

Now if someone goes to say Newegg.com to purchase a Jetbook, the chances are quite good that the person will know about DRM and that the Jetbook does not support any DRM and won't have an issue with that.

So really, BBB is not the right sort of place to sell the Jetbook.

And still I say shame on them for not doing due diligence on a $200 purchase.