BusinessWeek talked to some analysts about the Kindle for iPhone and we all know where that leads: disappointment and discouragement. The Kindle for iPhone will cut into sales of the $359 Kindle, allowing cheapskates to pay $9.99 for books they can read on their iPhones using free software.
BWAAAAP – Sorry. This is essentially Gillette giving out a really cheap razor body – Kindle for iPhone is far inferior to the large-screened Kindle – and hoping people pay $9.99 and up for the razors and, eventually, $359 for the super special razor. This is a marketing ploy to get the eBook concept firmly ensconced in connected consumers minds as a valuable good only available from Amazon.
Only Citigroup is really bullish on the device, but we know how well they’re doing right now:
Citigroup (C) analyst Mark Mahaney isn’t concerned about cannibalization. Amazon does not release sales figures for its Kindle or Kindle 2 readers. But in February, Mahaney estimated that sales of the device could top $1.2 billion in 2010. Mahaney says the launch of a Kindle app for the iPhone and iPod doesn’t change his projection. If anything, he’s more confident in his forecast after the positive reviews the Kindle 2 received upon its release. “They’ve got a hit on their hands,” Mahaney says. “My guess is that they want to make money selling both books and the device itself.”
But he’s right: the books cost nothing to produce and make a nice profit. The devices are hard to make and expensive. So why not pop the profits for now and once epaper gets less costly produce an almost disposable Kindle.
I was on the fence about buying a Kindle. One one hand I want it, but on the other it’s expensive and I didn’t see myself carrying it around with me everywhere.
For me the iPhone app made me decide not to buy a Kindle because now I can read books anywhere I go. I’m sure the Kindle is far superior for reading books, but I think the iPhone app is good and I’m used to reading on a small screen already.
However, now I’m buying books from Amazon where I was not before so I think the iPhone app is a good thing.
I returned mine because I don’t like features becoming options after my check is cashed.
I wouldn’t say we’re cheapskates, I just don’t prefer to carry around a Kindle, a phone, and an iPod all at once when I can use my iPhone for all those things. Can I get a witness?
No. No you can not get a witness.
For on-the-go reading, I may be okay with using iPod, but Kindle 2 is designed to be much easier to read than most backlit LCD screens so for serious and at-length reading, I would take Kindle 2 in general.
However, while I am very interested in Kindle, I am still waiting for these books to be DRM free. It’s just so much easier and “thought-free” when I don’t have to worry about DRM and how I use something.
Speaking of DRM-free, Amazon does have an awesome MP3 store that is DRM-free with a large selection and often good prices. It would be nice if they had the same thing with books.
On the note about Amazon, I recently came across an interesting table that details the discounts on Amazon.
It is at http://www.uberi.com
Maybe someone will find it useful too.
My biggest concern about the Kindle, aside from it’s weird, book-buring-esque name, is that it compromises the integrity of the written word. A printed book may be unwieldy, but you know that once it’s on your shelf, not one letter is going to change. Can’t say the same for the Kindle: http://urbzen.com/2009/02/09/amazon-kindle-privacy-fail/
Also, when I spill coffee all over a book, I’ve only ruined that particular book :)