Fry's has Jetbooks for $179

[smithno]

Jetbook for $179 with free shipping..

http://shop1.frys.com/product/5777932

[Seabound]

I guess they're trying to move the units which do not have the latest update, i.e. more supported formats.

[SteveK]

They've offered this special several times, and each time I seriously contemplate buying it, but haven't done so yet. I'd very much like to see this reader "in action" before deciding to buy it, since it's not an e-ink reader. I went to my local Bed, Bath and Beyond to see if they now carry it, but unfortunately it's too small of a store (or perhaps they just don't have it yet - I can always hope!).

I'm sure I'll order it one of these days, but ONLY when they have a sale on, as I'm not about to pay their normal $299 price for this reader.

SteveK

[Lemurion]

I'm the same way as Steve I could see getting a Jetbook at $179-199 but the regular price is just too spendy for me. I can get an E-Ink reader for less than $299 with a larger screen and more battery life. It's just not worth that price to me.

[snipenekkid]

Originally Posted by SteveK

They've offered this special several times, and each time I seriously contemplate buying it, but haven't done so yet. I'd very much like to see this reader "in action" before deciding to buy it, since it's not an e-ink reader. I went to my local Bed, Bath and Beyond to see if they now carry it, but unfortunately it's too small of a store (or perhaps they just don't have it yet - I can always hope!).

I'm sure I'll order it one of these days, but ONLY when they have a sale on, as I'm not about to pay their normal $299 price for this reader.

SteveK

Wait a few months more. The price of these things is going to drop like a stone. Honestly is there are reason a simple dedicated reader device needs to be over $100? No...not when the engineers designing them are being paid $500/mo and the line worked less than 50% of that...the entire idea of the price of them is artificial. It is setup to provide the zillion bucks compensation packages to the folks at the top. The components are not that expensive and in fact are usually generations old. FYI, even adding something like wifi will probably cost around $1/unit as they could easily use the same mini-pci devices that have been around for a decade. But you will be told it is simply magic adding $100 to the cost of the reader. Same for the display cost. A 5"-6" transreflective LCD display is probably about $10 cost to the mfg, max. The cost of the eink is likely about 2-3x that now but it may be years until anyone will know those numbers for sure.

And a touch screen, remember when he Eee PC came out? A guy had a video up on YouTube showing how to mod it with a touch display for around $50 in total for parts, including the touch screen overlay. Adding other connectivity options was well under $35. And those were at consumer level prices.

So, wait a few months when there are display makers actually having to compete for our cash. There will be very rapid and dramatic drops in the basic readers and even the mid-level devices. Don't buy into the hype these marketing wonks are throwing around.

While I expect to see sub $100 readers next year some time, this year we will certainly see readers in the $150 range if one is patient enough. But, hey there is also nothing wrong with wanting one now even if it costs a not insubstantial amount, they are cool devices and if you read a lot, I could easily see it as a reasonable purchase. Still you won't see me taking the leap from my PDA's anytime before November at the soonest.

If you want something to get by with for now that won't break the bank, search out an older PDA with a transreflective display I know two of the Sony Clie's have them, the nx73 and nx80 and I am sure there are others as well as several models of Palm devices. Most all will run Mobipocket software so even DRM books are not an issue...you can easily find something to fit any budget from $35-$100ish. And for a few months to a year you can read all you want while waiting for the new models and competition to develop.

And before the whining about a TFT display I have used CRT's/LCD's and you name the display for going on 35yrs now and read on them just fine. But it is an INDIVIDUAL preference and I would never tell anyone that they were simply doing it all wrong if they did something differently than myself.

EDIT: Other than the DRM issue on the Jetbook, it is not a bad device for $179 (but not one penny more). I would prefer it at $129 but for now if I was to buy a dedicated reader and understood plaftform shifting of ebooks and how to use the tools to make it happen, I would likely grab on of these over any of the current e-ink based readers we can buy in the US.

[Andybaby]

I think you got the prices way wrong, I don't expect new readers to be released at less than 250 this year, and maybe break 200 the year after.