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Obituaries are already being written for the Amazon Kindle with today’s Apple announcement of iPad and iBooks. (At least Steve Jobs gave Amazon and the Kindle some props today.) Despite the iPad’s large color touch screen, I think the reports of the Kindle’s death are premature. The Kindle will still offer major cost savings and some significant advantages for serious readers of text:

• Price: A Kindle at $259 is a great deal cheaper than an iPad at $499-$829. Granted, the iPad does much, much more than the Kindle, but far more people can spend $259 on something than can spend $499+ on something.
• 3G Cost: The Kindle at $259 comes with free 3G connectivity and that 3G works internationally. An iPad with 3G costs $629-$829, you have to spend $14.99-$29.99 a month for 3G connectivity, and international support/pricing is unannounced.
• Screen: As my geeky friend Chris Fox just pointed out to me, the Kindle’s screen has more pixels per inch (167 ppi) than the iPad (132 ppi). The Kindle’s lack of backlighting, lower screen reflectivity, and higher ppi will likely make for a better long-form textual reading experience than the iPad.
• Battery Life: Apple is claiming 10 hours of battery life for the iPad using wifi. Amazon claims a Kindle can go up to a week with 3G on. The Kindle’s battery advantage grows even greater when wireless is turned off. Not having to take a charger on trips is awesome.
• Size: The Kindle is smaller, thinner, and lighter weight than the iPad.
• Selection: At this point, Amazon probably offers more eBook titles than Apple. (That could change.) Amazon may also be able to use its market power in the book/eBook space to undercut Apple on eBook prices. (Time will tell.)
• Flexibility: Kindle eBooks can also be read on the iPhone, on the BlackBerry, on a Windows PC, and soon on the Mac and the iPad (via the existing iPhone app). It is unclear if Apple iBooks can be read outside of the iPad. Also, an iPad requires a computer for many things while a Kindle doesn’t except for audiobook downloads.
• Text-to-Speech: The Kindle offers text-to-speech reading of books. It does not appear the iPad does.

Finally, I can’t wait to see what Amazon’s next moves are. Is a Kindle 3 announcement coming soon? Will we see Kindle for iPad in addition to Kindle for iPhone? Don’t count Amazon and the Kindle out yet.

Lots of people are questioning whether the burgeoning eBook reader market is viable. They wonder whether the iPhone, Android phones, the rumored Apple tablet, and other multi-function “Swiss Army” devices will make dedicated eBook readers irrelevant. The answer is: yes, but not for awhile.

A Kindle 2 from Amazon or a Barnes & Noble Nook can be had for $259 and prices are falling pretty fast. They come with free cellular networking. They can get 10-14 days worth of non-network use on a single charge. They aren’t backlit or reflective, making them easy on the eyes. Their screens are larger than phone screens and thus easier to read on. That’s a pretty impressive feature list for someone who’s an avid reader.

To quote the mantra, the best camera is the one you have with you. Well, the best eBook reader is the one you have with you too. (I enjoy Kindle for iPhone on the go as much as anyone.) But, many people can easily have dedicated eBook readers with them at home, school, work, vacation, etc. And, the reasons listed above make a dedicated device better for some people at this point in time than an iPhone or the rumored tablet.

Those devices already have color screens for future eComics and glossy eMagazines going for them (along with their multi-functionality). Over time, they will likely improve regarding cost, battery life, and reading comfort. But, that may take years and dedicated eBook readers will be useful to many consumers until then.

In the meantime, eBook reader manufacturers won’t be standing still. Their dedicated devices will get cheaper and may gain 256 shades of gray or even some level of color. That could extend the usefulness of eBook readers further. Time will tell.

With the Barnes & Noble Nook eBook Reader the Amazon Kindle finally has a worthy challenger. If you haven’t seen it, there’s some b-roll footage that shows more detail about the Nook than the general marketing materials do. The device looks extremely well done. With the possible exception of Jeff Bezos, no one loves the Kindle 2 more than I do and yet I’m extremely interested in the Nook. These are my initial thoughts.

The Meh

I don’t see how Wi-Fi will be very useful in a device that already has an always-on 3G wireless connection and primarily downloads fairly small chunks of text. (Yeah, yeah, I know AT&T sucks. But, even its network can handle downloading eBooks. Besides newer Kindles are on AT&T too.) If the Nook does web browsing or Wikipedia viewing like the Kindle does, B&N hasn’t mentioned it. So, Wi-Fi in the Nook is nice but hardly a game-changer at this stage.

I’m not sure if this eBook lending thing will take off on the Nook or not. A part of me feels like Barnes and Noble is saying “Welcome to the Social.” But, perhaps eLending will be a way to encourage friends to get Nooks. It could also spark more book purchases since many of us take more than 14 days to finish a book. Time will tell.

Who needs expandable storage in a device that can hold 1,500 books at a time and supports free downloading of previously-purchased books? This is a total non-issue for 95 percent of consumers. My guess is that Amazon dropped expandable storage after the first Kindle because so few people were using it. I’m unclear why B&N feels the need for this and it probably makes the device thicker than needed.

Apple has proven that replaceable batteries in portable devices don’t matter for most consumers. iPods, iPhones, and even the new entry-level MacBook don’t have user-replaceable batteries, The Kindle 2 and the Kindle DX also don’t. (Amazon dropped replaceable batteries after the first Kindle.) Again, I’m unclear why B&N feels the need for this and again it probably makes the device thicker than needed. Perhaps the color touch screen and Wi-Fi are factors?

The Wow

The CoverFlow-esque color touch screen interface on the Nook is very slick. It’s certainly a differentiator in a device that sells for the same cost as a Kindle 2. With the Nook, the eBook reader interface bar has been raised. Though, to be fair, Amazon had set that bar about an inch off the ground. I’ll be fascinated to see how Amazon responds here. The Kindle 2 will be almost 10 months old by the time the Nook ships. I don’t think Jeff Bezos has spent all that time ordering shoes from Zappos. I would expect a Kindle 3 in Q1 of 2010 and I hope it has significant interface enhancements.

Amazon is currently listing a little over 365,000 eBooks in its catalog. B&N says it has more than 1 million eBooks, though 500,000 of those are low-demand free books that are out of copyright. That still means that B&N is claiming a lead of around 135,000 copyrighted titles. If that’s accurate, it’s very impressive. I’m not sure how B&N leapfrogged Amazon here, but kudos.

Personalized screen savers, direct loading/viewing of PDFs, and support for the EPUB and eReader formats are all great features to have that the Kindle 2 lacks. (No Word support on the Nook though, and it’s unclear if documents can be emailed to the Nook.)

In my mind, the killer feature of the Nook has nothing to do with the device at all. It has to do with location, location, location. You’ll be able to try a Nook in a local B&N store, buy one in a store, get support for one in a store, and return one in a store. That’s huge when people are trying to decide whether to spend $259 for something. I keep saying that Amazon needs to get the Kindle into Best Buy, Wal-Mart, and Target. Maybe the Nook will make that happen.

Overall

Overall the Nook looks like a great device and it will ship in time for the holidays. B&N is a little late to eBook reader the party, but it has arrived very well dressed. Competition for the Kindle is good for all of us eConsumers and I can’t wait to try the Nook soon.

My early thoughts on the announcements from Barnes & Noble regarding its eBook software for iPhone, BlackBerry, and Mac/Windows and its partnership with Plastic Logic on a future eReader:

• Who releases software products on a Sunday when media aren’t paying attention? Who follows that up with a hardware announcement that doesn’t have hardware specs, a true ship date, a battery life estimate, or even a price estimate? I hope Fake Steve Jobs tears B&N marketing a new one next.
• I personally have no desire to read eBooks on a Mac or Windows computer. But, perhaps others do. At least it’s a point of differentiation in B&N’s favor.
• It doesn’t appear that B&N is offering electronic versions of magazines, newspapers, or blogs or that B&N is offering document conversion for its eReader software. Perhaps that will change with time. For now, those are points of differentiation in Amazon’s favor. (The magazines are a huge differentiator for me.)
• Amazon has more commercial eBooks than B&N, but I suspect that B&N has the commercial eBooks most readers care about. And, B&N can probably scale up its eOfferings quickly as Amazon has. I don’t view this as a big deal either way.
• I personally like the small size of the Kindle 2 versus the Kindle DX. It sounds like the 8.5 x 11-inch Plastic Logic device will be DX-sized. That means customers looking for a smaller device (and perhaps also those looking for a cheaper device) may opt for a Kindle 2 over Plastic Logic.
• Amazon will have over a two-year head start when Plastic Logic ships in early 2010. A great product that is well marketed could overcome that lead. But, with no product details and no real marketing effort yet, it is too early to know how the Plastic Logic product will go over. But, B&N has tried eBooks before.
• Barnes & Noble has almost 800 stores in the U.S., which could be a huge advantage for Plastic Logic over Amazon. Potential Plastic Logic buyers will be able to take test drives in stores, buy the product there, get training there, and return unwanted or defective product there. As I have said before, I think Amazon should sell Kindles at Best Buy and other electronics stores. Anytime I show my Kindle 2 to someone who hasn’t used one, they are amazed by it.
• Overall, I don’t think Amazon shouldn’t be too worried by B&N and Plastic Logic. The existing Kindle userbase, existing Kindle mindshare, powerful Amazon brand, the multiple Kindle size offerings, and the Kindle’s support for publications and files will be a lot for B&N to overcome anytime soon. And, who knows what Amazon may do with Kindle by early of 2010?

I do something strange (and lazy) when I read physical books. Very often, I’ll flip pages ahead to see if a paragraph break / scene change is coming up or if a chapter is ending soon. If I have one of those easy, achievable goals in my sights then I keep reading until at least that point. If not, I will often stop where I am in the book until another time. Am I the only weirdo who does this?

Anyway, I have discovered an unexpected benefit (at least for me) to reading e-books on the Amazon Kindle. On a Kindle, you can only see one page of text at a time. So, the next psychological goal is always just one page away. I see a new page and think, “Oh, that’s so short, I can read that.” Then, when I click to the next page, I think, “Oh, that’s so short, I can read that.” Before you know it, I’ve read a ton. And, I don’t even try to page ahead to find a break or chapter ending because, let’s face it, changing pages on an e-book reader is just too damn slow for that sorta thing.

I think the Kindle is actually making me a better reader. Thank you Jeff Bezos!

I’m in love with the Kindle. For what I want in an e-book reader, it’s pretty ideal. But, your mileage may vary depending on your needs. I don’t care about reading newspapers, magazines or blogs on the Kindle. And, I certainly have no desire to web browse in grayscale on the Kindle or use it to listen to randomized MP3s. I have computers and an iPhone for all of that.

I just want a fast, easy way to buy e-books that is at least a little cheaper than buying them physically. Thus far, the Kindle seems to fit that bill. One day in, here are my initial thoughts.

Good

• Finding, buying, and downloading a book from the Amazon Kindle Store is amazingly easy and fast. I can go from wanting a book to having a book within two minutes.
• While the prices could be cheaper, they still beat the price of physical books by a good bit. The most expensive books I’ve seen are $9.99 and many books are just $6 or $7. You also save the gas you would likely burn going to and from a physical store. which is nice for consumers and the environment.
• I like that if you delete a book from your Kindle, you can download it again later for free. Very cool. Apple iTunes could learn a lesson here.
• I also like that I can buy an e-book either via the web or via the Kindle and the Kindle downloads it immediately either way.
• Being able to download free samples of books to the Kindle is nice.
• The Kindle’s display is crisp, easy to read, and doesn’t seem to tire my eyes.
• The Kindle is thin, lightweight and easy to hold.
• I know it’s a small thing, but I love the random images the Kindle displays when it’s in sleep mode.
• The battery life, especially with wireless off, is amazing.
• I had read that many are frustrated by the time it takes e-book readers to turn pages. It hasn’t bothered me at all.

• Being able to sort and filter content on the Kindle is nice, but you can’t assign your own categories as far as I can tell That’s a big oversight. The Kindle can hold 200 average-sized books. I can think of several categories I want to have. Read and Unread. Fiction and Non-Fiction. Work and Personal. Biography, Mystery, Suspense, Humor, etc.
• I wish the Kindle was designed so that most of keyboard was hidden when not in use. There’s a core set of five or so keys on the bottom row that I use often (Home, Text Size, the two keys for Sleep and Wake). The rest of the keyboard I never use unless I’m shopping for a book. But, I’m constantly pressing other keys accidentally while reading because they’re in the way. Granted, most of the keys don’t actually do anything when I’m reading, but it’s distracting to constantly feel keys depressing and wondering if they’re going to do anything. I hope a third party vendor makes a shell that can pop on/off or hinge up/down to hide and reveal the keyboard but always leave the core keys on the bottom row available.
• Small thing, but I also hope a third party makes a rubberized port protector to cover the USB, power, and headphone ports to keep dust, sand, dirt, etc. from going into the ports.
• The click-wheel needs to be just a little bit bigger. It’s a little hard to grab and manipulate.
• There are seven books I want now (or at least in the near future), but only five of them are available on the Amazon Kindle Store. In Amazon’s defense, the Kindle is a new product and they are adding more e-books everyday. So, this should improve.

• While the vertical buttons on the side of the Kindle make it very easy to page forward and backward, they also make it very easy to *accidentally* page forward and backward. I can understand wanting to translate some of the physical experience of a book to an e-book reader. But, this was just a poor design decision.
• $400 is a hefty price tag, even for a device this impressive, If Amazon can get it to $249, they’d have a much larger market and could reap the rewards of selling more content.
• The carrying case kinda sucks. It’s attractive enough, but having to stretch an elastic strap on and off the case every time I want to use the Kindle feels inelegant. And, without the elastic strap in place, the Kindle flops around in the case. Perfect opportunity here for a third-party to do a kick-ass case.
• Amazon charging to subscribe to blogs that are free on the web is just stupid. Ugh. If you need to charge customers for more extensive data network use, just offer that as a freakin’ option.