Entelligence: Of ebooks and suburban moms
By Michael Gartenberg 
posted November 1st 2009 6:10PM
posted November 1st 2009 6:10PM
Entelligence is a column by technology strategist and author Michael Gartenberg, a man whose desire for a delicious cup of coffee and a quality New York bagel is dwarfed only by his passion for tech. In these articles, he'll explore where our industry is and where it's going -- on both micro and macro levels -- with the unique wit and insight only he can provide.
There was a raging debate going on last week at Engadget HQ over the role of dedicated ebook readers that spilled over on to the Engadget Show. You can watch the show here, but essentially big boss Joshua Topolsky and Paul Miller feel that the new Barnes and Noble Nook is going to be a hit -- the one machine that gets suburban moms to buy. On the other hand, Nilay Patel, rationally (as he agrees with me) says it's not going to happen and there's no mass market for dedicated ebook readers. I'm going to weigh in and say Nilay is probably right.
Now don't get me wrong, this is not entirely an integration vs. convergence story. I believe there's a market for dedicated devices: cameras have not been displaced by music phones, media players have not been displaced by music phones and ebook readers could serve bibliophiles, especially those who travel a lot. However, mobile reader apps like those from Amazon and Barnes & Noble can easily tap into more casual markets, allowing users to leverage the investment in screens they already own instead of buying a dedicated device. That's one reason why I think it has been important for Amazon and B&N to get their ebook platform onto as many devices with screens as possible, and why Sony's making a mistake by ignoring the opportunity.
Now don't get me wrong, this is not entirely an integration vs. convergence story. I believe there's a market for dedicated devices: cameras have not been displaced by music phones, media players have not been displaced by music phones and ebook readers could serve bibliophiles, especially those who travel a lot. However, mobile reader apps like those from Amazon and Barnes & Noble can easily tap into more casual markets, allowing users to leverage the investment in screens they already own instead of buying a dedicated device. That's one reason why I think it has been important for Amazon and B&N to get their ebook platform onto as many devices with screens as possible, and why Sony's making a mistake by ignoring the opportunity.
There's a lot that's right with dedicated ereaders like the Nook and the Kindle, however. Yes, there could be more content available, but retailers are making sure there is enough important content -- bestsellers make a difference. It doesn't matter how good hardware is, if there's nothing to read.
There's also no PC required to use a dedicated ereader, thanks to the integrated wireless, which comes at an invisible cost to the consumers. A user has the ability to get content anywhere. Of course, this is also true on other mobile devices.
Finally, price. I love ebooks and have been reading on the go for years, but ebook pricing has been way too high until recently -- what's the difference between a "hardcover" ebook or a "paperback" one? Amazon understands this and sets prices accordingly low, but neither B&N or Sony seem to get it looking at the prices in their stores.
But fact is, none of these things are going to drive Nook sales or any other sales to the suburban mom. There's still far too much missing before ereaders become mainstream.
1. First, ereaders need to be cheaper. The current ereader price points are just way too high for devices that fundamentally only do one thing. Who on earth is going to use a Nook as an MP3 player? Sure, the Nook is great for users who travel a lot, buy a lot of books, hate carrying paper, and have a lot of discretionary income. So is the Kindle. For the mass market, however, prices have got to come way down. Suburban moms are on a budget these days.
Reading is a function that's going to get subsumed into more general purpose devices. |
2. Backlighting. Yes, I know electronic ink tech doesn't lend itself well to backlighting. One of the big advantages of epaper is not needing ambient light for reading, but backlighting is important in places like bedrooms and airplanes. One more reason why I'll more likely read an ebook on an iPhone or PC than a Kindle or Nook.
3. Higher refresh rates. Electronic ink has gotten a lot faster since my first Sony Librie, but it's still not good enough and I continue to find the pageturn flash distracting. So will most mainstream users.
The Kindle and the Nook are cool. They fill a need, and if ebooks help encourage people to read more, even better. But there's difference between functionality and something that's deserving of a dedicated device, and ebook reading is a function that's going to get subsumed into other more general purpose devices. If you think your current laptop or phone isn't up to the experience, well, the next generation is around the corner. How would you feel about reading on the mythical Apple Tablet or Microsoft Courier? In the long run, that's where the mass market will be captured. Sorry, Joshua, mom's going to go to Barnes & Noble, perhaps smile at the Nook, and then buy her paperback book and get back in the minivan... at least for now.
Michael Gartenberg is vice president of strategy and analysis at Interpret, LLC. His weblog can be found at gartenblog.net, and he can be emailed at gartenberg AT gmail DOT com. Views expressed here are his own.
I don't get why the man wants backlighting, it takes away the main advantage of reading on a e-reader. Just get an attachable light like Mightybright. Read on your iPhone and have your red eyes.
Let me explain this as simply as possible for you, with a question: How many pages of a book do you want to read on your iPaidalot? or your Crackberry?
Great, now your mom has another thing to be distracted by while driving that SUV? And that's how we measure if something is a success? Great. Just great.
I sent SpringDesign.com, http://www.springdesign.com/resource/jsp/, an email making the following suggestion:
" A suggestion would be to build a e-book reader with a color
display on one side and e-ink on the other. With Android and a good
processor you could game, browse, or read at night and use the e-ink
when light is available. Depending on how the devices cover is flipped
would trigger the appropriate display. Put a transfer toggle button
on each side so the user can switch between readable content that they
were reading on the previous side or the last readable content prior
to hitting the button."
I also suggested VLC, HTML5 compliant browser, Flash, and Audible client also be included.
If you don't light the idea of backlit eink you can turn it off---but at least provide the option! How many of you have actually seen a backlit eink display before making your judgements? Check out the samsung alias 2 review videos on youtube. It got backlit eink keyboard and that looks awesome.
No one has, because it's impossible! EInk is a reflective display technology, as opposed to a transmissive one (eg. LCD). Thus the Alias 2 uses sidelighting. Sony tried something similar with the PRS700, but it degraded the display quality.
At $250+ an ebook reader might not be worth it, but in a year and a half when there are $100 devices and more steeply discounted electronic versions of content, it could be different. The real lynchpin for this market? College textbooks. I WANT to save money and trees, but I can't. Once ebook readers get decent annotation abilities, file format reaing, and the ability to send and receive emails, I could see colleges really benefiting. Roll an RFID chip in them and you can have your ID, books, notes, email, calendar, etc. all in one small device that costs less than books for a term. It could be a great learning and organization tool, (unfortunately) get rid of some college excuses, and usurp the entire practical realm of the OLPC.
I think that dedicated readers are targeted at students. I know as a student living in New York City that I tend to do my work during my commute to school. But i hate carrying and taking out my textbooks and school reading books on the subway. I have decided to buy the nook because of this reason...im not sure if suburban mom's will buy it though. BN has to market it right.
why do people feel the need to tell us that they read books on their iPhone? of course you can read but I don't want to get a headache and ruin my eyes from focusing on a 3-inch screen with low resolution backlit screen.
backlighting is not even an issue if you've used one. the e-ink is so high contrast that you can read in dim light.
if you think e-readers are expensive then you aren't the target audience. these things will be popular with students
I'll keep it simple, I have never seen any book light that didn't cause me eye strain. I have an older ebookwise reader that is back lit. It DOESN'T give me eye strain. I read a LOT more in bed than I do in full sun. So back lighting is important to me. So current e-ink devices are not attractive at all. The only shortcoming with what I have for a reader is it uses a dead media type. Smartmedia is no longer made. I say when someone markets a back lit device of decent size that you can put a SD chip in that has color for a low price they will rule the market. I am hopeful that ASUS will get it right. I can read 12 hours between charges with the ebookwise. I find that quite long enough. I don't NEED 3G or any of the new bells and whistles that are driving up ebook reader prices. It would be extremely helpful if this wished for device would allow me to put the MANY 1000's of ebooks I can download off the net in html format on the reader directly too but if it comes with a decent converter program that will suffice.
Does anyone notice the badge on the guy holding the Nook in the pic? Is that Doug Gotlieb from ESPN?????
When e-book prices drop drastically, and China is using more paper in a year than the rest of the world combined, you'll be proven wrong.
I think you might not be giving the "suburban moms" enough credit. At least here in Southern California, I know plenty of moms that are more tech savvy than you might think. One or two of them are already regular Kindle users!
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You apparently already have an iPhone that can download ebooks wherever you go, and you don't mind reading those ebooks on its tiny screen. still to try this product.... keep posting. Will be visiting back soon.
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