In one camp are the book enthusiasts, who cited difficulty with screen back lighting, reading small text, and the smell and feel of real paper as the reasons why they prefer to stick to lugging around textbooks.
Among the opposition are several hanging on Apple's every word until tomorrow when they unveil their new tablet computer.
Personally, I get the whole lighting thing. To draw in a pertinent analogy, I live in a 4 ft. by 4 ft. cement box known as a dorm room, and not once have I turned on the fluorescent lighting. I prefer softer lamp light because it's easier on my eyes. And as far as the smell and feel of books go, I keep several copies of my favorite classic novels on bookshelves (among them, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald).
So I (yes, me, the tech-under enthusiast) propose a wonderfully harmonious common ground--the Amazon Kindle. Why?
- No lugging around textbooks. It serves up the small, compact portability of a paperback.
- The adeptly placed page turn buttons and lack of back light mock the feel of a book. Okay, so for the paper-sniffers this doesn't add much appeal, but closer to the real thing then the Apple tablet. And that whole "feeling" argument isn't working out too well for the newspaper industry, either.
- It's a book reader. Not a fancy tablet computer. The focus lies more so in the literature then the variety of things the tablet plans on doing (music, movies, Internet).
And for the kicker, read: Technologically illiterate person willingly operates e-reader. Shouldn't that be reason enough to believe?
Another great thing about Kindles are that they are eco-friendly - no paper wasting on books, magazines and newspapers! And I definitely agree that lugging heavy text books around campus sucks. I would love to be able to "love" a Kindle. The whole "computer screen reading" thing, however still makes it difficult for me to read on it.
ReplyDeleteMy mom got me a Kindle for Christmas because my idol Guiliana Rancic told me how she reads it every morning during her tredmill workouts. Well, great for her and all the users who can stand to read from it....For me I'll stick to my paper-wasting, old-school books!
I can see your point. I have personally never worked any type of e-reader, but I have heard about the "eye-friendlyness" of the Kindle. the iPad does not offer this with it's fancy, multi-touch LED screen, which is odd, since I thought they may have at least tried it from that angle. But I guess optometrists still need their jobs.
ReplyDeleteHowever, it is true that the iPad isn't merely targeting text, but ALL media, so that is something to take into consideration with the need for an LED screen, they want to make everything an amazing experience, and it will be at the cost of the eyes I guess - until some technological breakthrough
When I first heard about the Kindle I rolled my eyes. I figure this was going to be a bright computer screen that would hurt my eyes. But then I actually saw the Kindle and I was really impressed. Personally, I find reading on a Kindle to be very easy-- almost like reading a real book! And the convenience of not having to flip pages while you're working out is great. Yes, the smell of an old book is great, but the eco-friendly argument also helps the case of the Kindle. In addition, book prices will ultimately drop because with using the Kindle no longer will publishing companies have to spend money on paper. Thus, your $200 textbook will significantly drop in price (and yes, you can't sell it back but do you really think the bookstore's going to give you more than $50 for it. I wonder if there's a way to 'sell' Kindle books and transfer them from one Kindle to another.) The only negative side I can see if what is the fate of our libraries and bookstores? Will they continue strong or will the ease of online book shopping replace them?
ReplyDeleteI'm kind of surprised to see such a positive response to the Kindle in general. I kind of wrote off the whole "e-book" market as a whole a while ago. My impression was that, if anyone in this day and age still regularly reads books for pleasure, they read books. Not screens. I can't speak for how well the Kindle works, having never used one, but it sounds like a better buy than the iPad.
ReplyDeleteWhat Apple has done with the iPad is create a new market out of thin air. There were computers before the Mac, MP3 players before the iPod, and phones long before the iPhone. But there isn't really a parallel you can draw between the iPad and any other gadget. And as such, I think it will take a while to catch on, if at all.
Eventually, I think Apple is going to create iPad 2.0, like they did with the iPhone. iPad 2.0 will have multi-tasking capability, a camera, and probably a sleeker design. And it will probably cost much less. I believe that Apple will find a way to make money off this somehow, even if it doesn't seem like it just yet.
For me, things like the Amazon Kindle are killing the art. You get the colors and the pages in your fingers that the Kindle can't replace. I do realize that the newspaper is dying, even though it still has the appeal of having paper between your fingers.
ReplyDeleteThe iPad will be a threat to literature because it will change the focus from quality of writing to mass appeal. Similar to what has happened to the American newspaper. The United States newspaper industry is not good at selling news. To compete with the Internet, news is now comprised of celebrity gossip or salacious stories and actually has little to do with the hard hitting news of yesterday. Unfortunately, this is because the industry is focused on revenue instead of real news.
As much as I think I would enjoy ebooks they just aren't cheap enough and an ebook reader (Kindle, tamPod) is really expensive. As crazy as it sounds I like the feel of books and turning the pages, at least until ebooks figure out their logistical issues
ReplyDeleteiPad and Kindle have developed a great market. Just think about the poor kids in some of these schools now. Thinking back to my middle and high school days, we had countless textbooks and other reading material that we had to consume. So just to do homework, students had to bring home all to read—students looked like overgrown hermit crabs.
ReplyDeleteWith the advent of this new technology I think parents will see these items as money well spent. Either that or they’ll spend more money taking their kid to the doctor more often (or will invest in the roller bags).
Interesting debate going on here with some wonderful points. Lauren, you're right about the potential demise of libraries and bookstores (although the latter are already disappearing).
ReplyDeleteRegarding textbooks, it could have quite an impact on that industry. Part of the reason why textbooks can be so expensive is that they have resale value. When that value disappears, the price could well come down.
I must admit, this whole discussion has prompted me to start reading on my iPhone again. I quite enjoy it. And to Bobby's point, since I'm downloading public domain books, they're actually free, unlike their printed counterparts.
Ironically, the joy of reading the book on the iPhone makes me wonder if I'd enjoy it as much on an iPad.