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Tag: kobo

Touching Off eReader/Tablet Battle

June 3, 2011 /

Over the last few weeks, the battle front for eReaders vs tablets has gotten very interesting indeed. The news that Amazon may have a new Kindle in the works, promised that 2011 could be an interesting year for eReaders.

Kobo Touch eReader

Kobo Touch eReader

This was followed by Borders’ announcement of the new Kobo Touch eReader. An eReader with a touch sensitive E Ink screen? Just as it was looking like the back-lit LCD screen might push E Ink off the map thanks to the iPad primarily, a new twist is added to the mix. Shortly after the Kobo Touch news, Barnes & Noble announced its own new Nook Simple Touch Reader. And at $129 and $139 respectively, both of the new eReaders are competitively priced.

In addition to the infrared touch screens, both new readers tout advanced social media related functionality. It’ll be interesting to see just how usable this is given the slower refresh rate of E Ink displays relative to LCD. The new E Ink Pearl displays are reported to be faster, but will it be fast enough? I can’t wait to get my hands on one for some testing!

Nook Simple Touch Reader

Nook Simple Touch Reader

Anyway one looks at it, the Kindle just got some new competition. Amazon is not likely to take this lying down, so I hope we’ll see some news from them soon on the next Kindle. As for the iPad, these new readers are cheap enough that owning one of them plus an iPad is a viable option. Also, as touch screen devices, going from iPad to eReader won’t be as jarring an experience as it is now that we mostly expect tablet or tablet-like devices to have touch displays.

The new eReaders are scheduled to begin shipping next week, so I’ll be planning a trip to Borders and Barnes & Noble for some much anticipated hands on time.

Borders Cuts Kobo To $99.99 Permanently

February 8, 2011 /

Borders has cut the price of the Kobo eBook reader to $99.99 permanently. This may mean that the earlier promotional cuts spiked sales of the readers and eBooks enough to significantly help the bottom line of the embattled bookseller.

So anyone who’s been on the fence about eBook readers due to price should definitely take a look at the Kobo. If Borders can survive, this cut may have a ripple effect pushing the Kindle and the Nook to the magic sub $100 promised land as well.

eReaders and Tablets: Peaceful Coexistence?

January 18, 2011 /

Borders has extended its $99 Kobo eBook reader sale through Thursday. I wonder what this means. Does it mean that they received such a favorable bump in sales that the embattled bookseller wants to build on it? Or does it mean just the opposite, and they need to quickly clear inventory and raise cash to pay publishers?

I’d like to think that it is the former rather than the latter. Successful Kobo sales mean more eBook sales for Borders which hopefully offset any losses they take discounting the hardware. Not only that, I’d like to think that maybe they are establishing $99 as a permanent opening price point for a high quality eBook reader. This lower price would also further position eReaders versus tablets like the iPad.

Since the appearance of the iPad, I’ve wondered whether dedicated eReaders stood a chance of surviving in a market of more capable tablets. The falling prices of the Kindle, and Nook since that time will certainly help their survival. And the introduction and reported success of the Nook Color at $249 demonstrates that a middle ground between eBook readers and tablets may exist as well. Still, I think most consumers are thinking of getting one or the other. But if the impulse buy price point of $99 is established for eReaders, then I think buying both becomes an option for many.

So I hope that the $99 Kobo is not just a fleeting blip on my sensors.

Will Borders Troubles Lead To More eBook Manga?

January 15, 2011 /

I visited my neighborhood Borders yesterday for some hands on time with the Kobo eBook reader. I was impressed by its really slim design and its responsiveness, a good buy at $99. After that I did my usual perusal of the manga section, looking for new volumes in series I follow and any other new titles that might be promising.

In particular, I was looking for Neon Genesis Evangelion: Campus Apocalypse Volume 2. I’d bought volume 1 there a few weeks ago and saw online that volume 2 had actually been out a while. I was a bit annoyed to see that volume 2 was still not there. I resigned myself to the likelihood I would have to order it online and went home.

Later I learned that Diamond Book Distributors had put all shipments to Borders on hold.  I’d already heard that Borders was negotiating with publishers to delay payment to them while they seek new financing. But this was the first I’d heard of shipments being stopped. Diamond distributes books for a number of manga publishers, including Dark Horse, the U.S. publisher of the manga I was looking for.

This situation leaves me no other choice than the online option for new manga. There aren’t any other bookstores nearby that carry new manga. If Borders goes under, it’s going to be a lot harder to find manga at retail. Fewer bookstores will make it more difficult for all publishers to sell books profitably.

I think the shrinking number of bookstores is already a factor driving the adoption of eBooks. Graphic novels have been slower to come to the medium, in part due to their use of color. But manga are mostly black and white, they generally translate to eBook form very well. If shipments of most manga to Borders have already stopped, then perhaps we will see an accelerated move to the eBook format.

The situation for manga is further complicated by the very strong reluctance of Japanese publishers to embrace digital media. But the growth of iPad app versions of popular manga would indicate that they are changing their stance. And declining manga sales in Japan has increased the importance of sales outside of the country. A Borders collapse in the U.S. would be a big problem for Japanese manga publishers who are already facing the challenge of widely circulating illegal scans of their titles on the internet. Some of these scans have even been packaged up and sold in the Apple App Store!

In the end, the threat of piracy on one side and the collapse of a major bookseller on the other, will lead to more eBook manga. At this point, there’s no going back.

Kobo Wireless eBook Reader $99.99 For 4 Days

January 14, 2011 /

Anyone looking to get a decent eBook reader for less than $100 has just had their wish granted! Borders is selling the Kobo eBook reader for $99.99 for the next 4 days. I think this deep discount of the regular $139 price is a sign that Borders is serious about selling more eBooks as talk of bankruptcy continues to haunt the beleaguered book seller. The discount requires membership in Borders Rewards and this coupon to use in stores. Or it can be purchased from Borders.com directly.

The Kobo is a good eReader that will continue to be useful whether Borders remains open or not because it supports a variety of file formats. So if price is a big consideration, then it is well worth it. If Borders makes this a permanent price drop, then they may just have a shot at staying in the game a little longer.

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