Now, if you look at the Kindle as the paperback of eReaders, then it should logically be $99 and no more. This way you get it in the hands of the most people and it doesn't matter if its black and white and optimized for just reading text. Now, when the color eInk version hits - hopefully no later than late next year - that could release at the current $259 price, though that to would be best served by dropping in price sooner rather than later. So you'd have the black and white Kindle at $99 and the color Kindle at $199, give or take. That would likely be a more effective strategy. What these eReaders have going against them are the same services are or will be available on the coming tidal wave of tablet devices, some roughly the same price as the iPad, some far cheaper. It's quite possible that the sales that four years worth of eReaders have enjoyed will be surpassed by the tablet category in just a single year. That to me tells me what wins, ultimately. (and again, by "win" I just mean, which becomes the de facto device - eReaders will continue to stick around in their niche indefinitely)
Here's a link to the video I discussed before: The Book on Google. Pretty interesting if a bit long. One point raised there is that Amazon isn't a hardware company and is essentially "winging it," whereas Apple has strong hardware and Google (arguably) software and some hardware. I'd say Amazon has content and retail nailed, but the fact that the Kindle is so expensive speaks to their inefficiency. To really be a big hit, the Kindle should probably be even cheaper than $99, possibly as little as $25 or even free. If Amazon could literally give these things away (perhaps as a bonus on a minimum sized purchase at their store), people might be curious enough to buy a few ebooks to try out. Once you get them accustomed to the device, they could end up buying hundreds of dollars worth of ebooks.
As it stands, the Kindle hasn't seem to strike anybody as anywhere near as sexy and chic as the iPhone or iPad. That wouldn't be important if it was cheap, but it's not at all. My guess is that Amazon really flubbed it with the hardware, ending up with a very expensive to produce item, and is possibly even taking big losses selling them at the current price point. It would have been smarter just to team up with Apple or Google and not try to go its own way, at least not without a surefire device on its hands. They really need to be doing what they do best: retail. They'd be fine for selling ebooks, but they should have left the hardware and software part of it to someone else.
I mean, it'd be like if instead of selling mp3 files in its music store, Amazon had its own dedicated music player and some weirdo file format that only worked on that device. AND that device cost as much if not more than Apple's iPods or even generic mp3 players...At least they ported their kindle app to the iPhone and Blackberry. That was a smart move.
Now, if you look at the Kindle as the paperback of eReaders, then it should logically be $99 and no more. This way you get it in the hands of the most people and it doesn't matter if its black and white and optimized for just reading text. Now, when the color eInk version hits - hopefully no later than late next year - that could release at the current $259 price, though that to would be best served by dropping in price sooner rather than later. So you'd have the black and white Kindle at $99 and the color Kindle at $199, give or take. That would likely be a more effective strategy. What these eReaders have going against them are the same services are or will be available on the coming tidal wave of tablet devices, some roughly the same price as the iPad, some far cheaper. It's quite possible that the sales that four years worth of eReaders have enjoyed will be surpassed by the tablet category in just a single year. That to me tells me what wins, ultimately. (and again, by "win" I just mean, which becomes the de facto device - eReaders will continue to stick around in their niche indefinitely)
Here's a link to the video I discussed before: The Book on Google. Pretty interesting if a bit long. One point raised there is that Amazon isn't a hardware company and is essentially "winging it," whereas Apple has strong hardware and Google (arguably) software and some hardware. I'd say Amazon has content and retail nailed, but the fact that the Kindle is so expensive speaks to their inefficiency. To really be a big hit, the Kindle should probably be even cheaper than $99, possibly as little as $25 or even free. If Amazon could literally give these things away (perhaps as a bonus on a minimum sized purchase at their store), people might be curious enough to buy a few ebooks to try out. Once you get them accustomed to the device, they could end up buying hundreds of dollars worth of ebooks.
As it stands, the Kindle hasn't seem to strike anybody as anywhere near as sexy and chic as the iPhone or iPad. That wouldn't be important if it was cheap, but it's not at all. My guess is that Amazon really flubbed it with the hardware, ending up with a very expensive to produce item, and is possibly even taking big losses selling them at the current price point. It would have been smarter just to team up with Apple or Google and not try to go its own way, at least not without a surefire device on its hands. They really need to be doing what they do best: retail. They'd be fine for selling ebooks, but they should have left the hardware and software part of it to someone else.
I mean, it'd be like if instead of selling mp3 files in its music store, Amazon had its own dedicated music player and some weirdo file format that only worked on that device. AND that device cost as much if not more than Apple's iPods or even generic mp3 players...At least they ported their kindle app to the iPhone and Blackberry. That was a smart move.
Matt Barton, Managing Editor
Location: St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA
Email: matt@armchairarcade.com