Amazon has released a new version of its popular E-book reader the Kindle. The new Kindle DX does not offer a mass of new features. Instead, Amazon have kept things simple and introduced some sensible improvements such as a lower price and a 50% increase in contrast and a larger overall device.
The Kindle DX features a 9.7-inch screen, a new graphite enclosure and an improved, higher contrast, electronic ink display. As with the old Kindle users can enjoy free 3G Wi/Fi access but Amazon's main marketing focus is the quality of the screen. But just $120 shy of a low-level iPad it's hard to see how Amazon could compete with Apple.
Reading eBooks from the Kindle store on an iPad may seem a better option, especially now that the app features embedded audio and video. Amazon is convinced that people may not want to spend long periods of time reading eBooks using a device with a bright screen like the iPad. Steve Kessel, senior vice president, Amazon Kindle states: “With 50 percent better contrast and darker fonts, you’ll find it easier than ever to read wherever you happen to be, whether it’s outside in bright sunlight or under the low light of your living room.”
It's not very convincing. It seems that a standalone E-book reader is already obsolete now that touchpad devices can offer E-book reading as one of many features. Amazon have discussed its use as a reader for periodicals and textbooks which could mean Amazon breaking into the education market with more and more talk of technology in the class room E-book readers may be a safer alternative to a stack of iPads. There could be life left in the Kindle yet, yesterday Amazon today announced that some authors can now choose to receive a 70% royalty rate on all Kindle books sold. By working closely with authors and publishers Amazon could do some interesting things, especially being such a large seller of books.
It seems like price is going to be one of the main dictators in how E-readers sell (Amazon seem to realise this with their price slash.)
Here’s a look at the price tags of the big-players in the E-reader market. From left to right: Sony, Nook, Kindle, iPad.
3 thoughts on “Amazon Kindle DX Available to Buy: A Worthy Competitor for the iPad?”
The Kindle and iPad are both great products, but deciding on which one to get is really a matter of lifestyle. Personally, I like to use my PC to watch videos, check email, surf the web, etc. I would prefer to buy the Kindle if want a true ebook reader.
By the way, if anyone is looking for a good place to download free ebooks try ebookjunkie.com.
There’s room for both products, though I suspect the Kindle and its like will be more at home in the academic market. In contrast to Frank above, I’d actually prefer to be able to do the basic home entertainment stuff; emails, movies, web etc on a computer ‘lite’ machine like the iPad. I’m a portable kinda guy and I don’t need fancy bells and whistles when it comes to computer use on the move and especially the startup times and all that extra baggage of keyboard, etc. That’s reserved for my home machine.
I expected Amazon to lower the price a lot more than this. But, I guess they can now justify NOT lowering the price much by pointing to the new screen technology. 50% better contrast sounds cool, but hard to tell until we actually see it. I didn’t think the current Vizplex screens were bad at all, so I expect to be totally satisfied by this new screen as well.
Am still hoping they lower the price of this baby by the time Kindle 3 arrives. Thanks again for bringing the news. You can see more of my comments on this news on my new post: http://ebookreader-ben.com/amazons-latest-kindle-dx-has-50-better-contrast-than-nook/