A lot of the best iPhone apps have been ported to Android, right, well the Kindle platform has some issues that may prevent it from getting the best apps. 1) 3G data allowance for apps is extremely limited, so if your app uses more than just a few KB of data per day you have to start charging a subscription fee. 2) The e-ink display makes it impossible to have smooth scrolling & almost any kind of animation, and has no touch sensor. So I think some of the best apps from other mobile platforms could be ported to Kindle but may require subscription fees & completely new UI to be designed. So it wouldn't be worth it.
That's the thing, an eBook Reader really is JUST an eBook Reader, even though it may be able to touch on a few other capabilities. Nothing wrong with that, particularly with the next-best-thing-to-a-text-book reading experience. However, being limited to black and white, and with the high relative cost, its value proposition diminishes significantly in the face of something like a tablet, be it an iPad or some type of other such device, like an Android-based one. For an eReader to be long term competitive with tablets, I argue that it needs to support color and be at a $150 or lower price point. If not, better reading experience or not, if people will be doing digital reading, it will be on a fuller function tablet type device.
*************************** Bill Loguidice, Managing Director
Armchair Arcade, Inc.
A lot of the best iPhone apps have been ported to Android, right, well the Kindle platform has some issues that may prevent it from getting the best apps. 1) 3G data allowance for apps is extremely limited, so if your app uses more than just a few KB of data per day you have to start charging a subscription fee. 2) The e-ink display makes it impossible to have smooth scrolling & almost any kind of animation, and has no touch sensor. So I think some of the best apps from other mobile platforms could be ported to Kindle but may require subscription fees & completely new UI to be designed. So it wouldn't be worth it.
That's the thing, an eBook Reader really is JUST an eBook Reader, even though it may be able to touch on a few other capabilities. Nothing wrong with that, particularly with the next-best-thing-to-a-text-book reading experience. However, being limited to black and white, and with the high relative cost, its value proposition diminishes significantly in the face of something like a tablet, be it an iPad or some type of other such device, like an Android-based one. For an eReader to be long term competitive with tablets, I argue that it needs to support color and be at a $150 or lower price point. If not, better reading experience or not, if people will be doing digital reading, it will be on a fuller function tablet type device.
***************************
Bill Loguidice, Managing Director
Armchair Arcade, Inc.