Sep 04
eWeek.com has a post about Toshiba Europe introducing a multimedia tablet, the Folio 100. This new kid to the iPad block has a 10.1-inch touch screen, runs on Android 2.2 and sells for $500.
It’s rumored to be available in the fourth quarter of 2010 so keep your eyes peeled for it.
Sep 02
Are you ready for your multi-sensory experience?
Thank Jorgen for a link to an Alive! eBook Networks press release at Newswire that you can consider your first word on it.
Alive! eBook Networks announced a ‘groundbreaking’ new format that “transforms reading into a stimulating experience unlike any eBook on the market today.”
Big talk, but it surrounds a new Multimedia eBook format that will offer the ‘multi-sensory’ experience with text, video and audio. The technology was developed by Yeh.
The tech doesn’t sound so new to me, but I’ll withhold judgment on it until writers, artists and content creators have had a chance to play. Read the full press release here.
Sep 01
PCMag says Borders is dropping the price of its Kobo eReader from $150 to $129 in response to the ongoing price war in the eBook Revolution.
They’ve also re-priced the smaller $119 Aluratek Libre eBook Reader Pro to $99. Borders said the changes make having a second eReader in the home an affordable option.Â
Then it’s all about selling the books, right?
Aug 31
I’m still waiting for sexier news than this (like a $119 Kobo eReader to replace its price-war starting $150 eReader…) but I’ll take what I can get.
Kobo eReader application for iPhone and iPad is now supporting ePub and PDF files. This gives the App abilities comparable to everybody’s chief rival the Amazon Kindle.
Read the full story at the Independent.
(Okay it’s slightly more exciting than Plugged In’s report on Oxford Dictionary abandoning a print version in favor of digital.)
…slightly!
Aug 30
Ok. I know I used to have an axe to grind with Kindle, but that was because it debuted with a $379 price tag. That was just a wicked cash grab that did more to hurt the eBook Revolution than help it.
Now that Amazon has released its third Kindle version I’m happy to promote the machine, its $139 to $189 price tag, and the vast interactive library it calls home: Amazon.com.
Having said that, the prices still need to come down, and will, once the rest of the market reacts to Amazon’s push for first place. I know Sony’s got two new eBook Readers coming soon, and we still haven’t heard anything more from upstart Kobo and the $150 eReader that started a price war.
Read GoodeReader’s story about Kindle’s smashing sales record.
Aug 29
A story over at Liliputing has Velocity Micro announcing plans to ship two Android tablets within the next couple months.
Velocity Micro’s $200 Cruz Reader boasts a touch-screen display on a platform designed for easy eBook reading. Its Android OS gives the option of running apps, video and web surfing–among other actions.
The $300 Cruz Tablet is the Cruz Reader on steroids offering the user a more powerful array of capabilities and options.
iPad is not alone.
Aug 28
An i-Newswire release announces netbook, tablet computer and media device developer, Skytex throwing its hat into the full-color multi-function ring dominated by iPad with its Primer 7-inch color eBook reader and portable media player that they’re selling for $99.
I know, it’s hard to imagine them offering a direct competitor to iPad when they’re only asking $99 at the checkout, but it’s interesting to see new machines on the market with the potential of redefining (and ultimately re-Pricing) a section of the market, much the way Kobo’s $150 E Ink eReader forced pricing down in Kindle’s neck of the woods.
Competition is a consumer’s best friend.
Aug 27
PCWorld has a must-read story updating the explosive trends in the expanding eBook Revolution. While I think they fail to acknowledge the important role that Amazon’s E Ink competitors played in Kindle’s drastic price cut, the article is chock full of tech savvy observations.
Like: According to the article 40% of people polled say they read more on their Kindles and iPads than they did with traditional paper books.
And: They say that Forrester Research predicts 11 million USÂ homes will have at least one eBook reading device by the end of September. (Imagine what Christmas is going to bring!)
Pop over to read the full story here.
Aug 26
It’s not surprising that mammoth online bookseller Amazon and offline (bricks and mortar) book giant Barnes and Noble would battle for top spot in the eBook Revolution.
MarketWatch reports here that Amazon’s new generation (WiFi $139 or 3G $189) sleeker Kindle is outselling all its previous versions.
And FastCompany reports on Barnes and Noble’s foray into digital publishing being a qualified success in the face of much industry doubt, as indicators suggest the storefront goliath is holding its own with innovative answers to digital challenges.
This in a market that many predicted would start to shift toward the more expensive iPad full-color, multi-function territory. The battle between Kindle and Nook tells us that there is a huge market for single-purpose eBook Readers. And that is market direction dictated by consumers.
