After Apple's Tablet, Will Any Of These eReaders Last? (PHOTOS, POLL)

eReaders were out in force at the Consumer Electronics Show just two weeks ago, but with Apple's announcement looming on Wednesday it seems like the new Apple product is poised to make eReaders obsolete. Scramble as they might to add apps for color and video, the old eBook already seems one dimensional when compared with the rumored capacity of the new Apple tablet.

How long do you think eReaders will last? And which ones do you think are done? Vote in the slideshow below.

Amazon Kindle 2

Perhaps the most popular eReader currently on the market, Amazon's Kindle 2 (an update of its original Kindle) has a lot going for it. "The well-established Whisper Sync technology lets people keep track of a single book across multiple devices, there's a physical keyboard right up front, and the device can even browse the web," says Engadget. Drawbacks include the lack of support for ePub formats, and the inability to share eBooks with other devices.

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Comments

[MsJoanne]

04:18 PM on 03/19/2010

By the headline, you'd think the iPad was the 2nd coming.

[Mike Abrahams]

02:06 AM on 01/28/2010

After using an e-reader for a while what I've found is that surprisingly I read less books on it and more web content and long docs (http://www.drivelry.com/expect-not-to-read-books-on-your-e-book/560/). After all anyone can do down to the local bookstore or purchase hardcopy books online for not much. You can't do get blogs or the Huffington Post in hardcopy for that matter.

Yet most 6 inch readers seem to be designed for conventional (no picture) A5 size publications, and devices like the iPad with WiFi, colour etc have a relatively short battery life (Apple claims 10 hours). What gives ...?

[ScutFarkas]

02:04 AM on 01/27/2010

What will Apple's new device be called?

I-slate?
I-pad?

How about the I-strain, which anyone will surely suffer if they attempt to read a novel on this thing.

E-readers are successful because of their extraordinary battery life and their paper-like screen. I'm sure that this I-thing will be fantastic for applications, games, multimedia and even magazines. When it comes to success in the book market, it's the E-ink stupid.

Ereaders and tablets are very different devices that are good at different things, apples and oranges.

I really do not thing that this Apple will effect the orange market in any major way (pun intended).

[MrVinegar]

05:11 PM on 01/26/2010

As a comic book nerd I look forward to a device that will make it convenient to read digital comics. Trying to read digital comics on a monitor or laptop is a strain on the eyes, much like reading too much print on monitors.

The tablet could essentially save the comic book industry that is quickly dying. There is already an iTunes like program for buying/storing/reading digital comics called Longbox.

[Michael Pastore]

09:25 PM on 01/25/2010

Thanks for the excellent overview of the current ebook reading devices.

Apple's "iTablet" will be in a class by itself; of course, it won't cheap to travel first class.

EnTourage eDGe may offer the best of both worlds: half ebook reader (easy on the eyes) and half does-it-all computer. (Perfect for students and business persons).

From a pure hardware perspective, Sony's line of readers seem to be the highest rated by the tech blogs.

Amazon's Kindle scored lots of points with me recently, when Amazon announced that they were changing to a new royalty structure, and that they would allow publishers to offer ebooks without DRM.

Look for quantum-leap improvements to the Barnes & Noble "nook" after its debut with too many unflattering reviews.

One thing to keep in mind is that you don't need a special device to read ebooks. A personal computer or a smartphone -- with the right software -- does the job adequately..

Michael Pastore
50 Benefits of Ebooks

[joeyfoto]

08:30 PM on 01/25/2010

Good management starts at the top. I've been around Silicon Valley for a long time, in fact, I was born here on a cattle ranch in 1944. I remember when HP, Ampex and Wang were Silicon Valley. If that perspective means anything, I'd say that the most money lost here — rated by opportunity-cost — has been lost betting against Steve Jobs.

If history is any guide: buy on the hype; sell just before the release, then buy back on the dip and hold. Steve demands designs that are a joy to use; then, because he has the control, he manages to prevent pencil-pushers from destroying elegant designs pre-production. That's how Apple consistently out-innovates; then makes products that work better than the competition. Apple's high rate of success is a function of two factors: taste and courage. In the gray corporate sky, Steve Jobs shines like a Bright Giant Star.

[CaseyAKO]

08:07 PM on 01/25/2010

Gotta love that the non-existent Apple Tablet is being voted the #2 most popular eReader. Just imagine what will happen when it actually exists.

[DaveC19]

01:19 PM on 01/25/2010

The thing I don't like about Apple things like the iPhone etc are that they are pretty closed. You can't really do much with them without Apple's permission.

[dogboy]

12:04 PM on 01/25/2010

Why isn't the cost of the Apple tablet ($700-$1000, plus wireless data plan) not considered "cost prohibited"?
True, you probably could just use WiFi but you know you won't.

[Cucaracha]

11:41 AM on 01/25/2010

Knowing Apple, they found a way to combine the fact that we want color when surfing the net, watch movies, read a mag, etc., but we want B&W when reading a book to save battery. My guess is they screen auto-corrects when viewing a mag or a book, changing its color palette automatically.

[crayola 08b]

01:35 PM on 01/25/2010

i was just thinking the same thing. a regular brightness that we have for the LCD or OLED screens in our laptops would be pretty detrimental to marketing the iPad as an eReader unless it has some sort of auto correct feature for book or magazine reading, which would not only save battery energy but save eye energy as well.

[anshumanmishra]

11:22 AM on 01/25/2010

Good grief. These things will take over the world.

[Fabini]

10:41 AM on 01/25/2010

An eReader and an iTablet are two different things. If there is a wide price differential, both will survive.

An eReader coasting less than $39.95, only displays B&W text, stores 50 books, and needs a hard wire to a computer for input, will be a viable consumer product.

[NancyPeske]

11:52 AM on 01/26/2010

I definitely agree. As the prices come down on simple eReaders, they will suffice for many people who are perfectly without being plugged into every blog, magazine, and social networking site every waking minute (and if it breaks or gets lost or stolen, no problem replacing it--and a wise user will back up the book stored on it).

www.nancypeske.com

[elicourey]

09:13 AM on 01/25/2010

I don't think Apple's tablet will be a competitor with these ebook readers. ebook readers, like the nook and kindle, aren't supposed to be a do everything device, they are meant to display text like a real book. E Ink is much easier on the eyes for most people. These ebook readers are targeted at book readers. Book readers want something that reads like a book, and that's something that these ebook readers do and Apple's tablet most likely won't. I believe Apple's tablet will be a success, but not at the expense of these ebook readers.