So the other shoe dropped with Amazon announcing a full-blown eBook reader and service called “Kindle.”
There’s two barriers, to my mind, in the adoption of eBooks — at least for me.
Technology: I need something that is as easy and portable and fast to use as a paperback book. The Kindle’s stats sound good, and, hey, it would be nice to have a bunch of books with me on an airplane or business trip. Still, is it actually as easy to use (and read from) as a paperback?
For that matter, if I lose a paperback, or misplace it around the house, I can grab another one off the shelf. If I lose my Kindle, I’m hosed until I replace it. Hrm. A single point of failure is not a good thing.
Ownership: Amazon lost me here when they started talking about a proprietary format. I don’t want a proprietary format — I want something that will read anything out there that I can download. It’s also not clear with the article what the level of “ownership” of the purchased books / magazines is. What do I really own for my $9.99? Does that ownership last only as long as Amazon decides to support the system? Could my purchased library vanish overnight? Will it be compatible with Kindle 2.0? Will it be compatible with another, better reader? Will my kids be able to inherit my collection? Can I give a book I’ve “bought” to someone else? Or loan it?
Paperbacks, even hardcovers, may wear out, or get lost, or get damaged. But, by God, you own that sucker, and can take it anywhere, and do anything you want with it. Until an eBook reader can do that, for the same price, and with advantages beyond saving luggage and shelf space, I’ll stick with analog, thankyouverymuch.
Kelson comments favorably.
Well, my favorable comments were conditional on the DRM question. For pretty much all the reasons you point out under “ownership,” I’m considerably less enthusiastic than when I first read the news.
Understood.
The other issue is the price point. $10 for a book? Okay, that’s less than a hardcover. But more than a paperback — which will last me several readings and at least a few years on the shelf. When folks have been holding onto Kindle downloads for that long, I’ll start considering it.