One of the hottest trends in electronics right now is digital readers, but no matter how many companies jump on the bandwagon -- and several of them have -- prices will have to come down before the public embraces them, according to Gartner.
"At the moment it appears that $199 will be the lowest price for fully featured e-reading devices for the 2009 shopping season, but prices will need to drop closer to $99 to gain significant traction," Gartner noted.
At the same time, Gartner predicts e-reader "mania" in 2010, though getting to that point won't be without a few hurdles. The market research firm says a wider variety of retail channels is needed, and more publishers need to be seen buying into e-readers.
"It's the perfect time for a trial and to establish relationships with others in the value-chain -- that is service providers and digital warehouses -- that can be positioned to assist in a rapid deployment if the market takes off earlier than anticipated," Gartner added.
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JohnP
November 11, 2009 at 11:51am
I think that the e-ink monopoly has something to do with it. Until someone can come up with a generic equivalent, the price is probably stuck there. BUT, using Book designer 4.0 and a huge selection of books on tor, err, on the web somewhere, the money does not really matter. I am reading a huge 8 volume scifi series on my SONY reader, and have read perhaps a hundred+ more books (at least). Paid for itself in just driving to the libraries to find the books by itself.
When magazines and letter sized books with photos can be read on the readers in color, that will be the defining moment, no matter what the cost. (And annotating the book- but its funny, I NEVER did that in college)
leo655
November 11, 2009 at 10:36am
I think it would help if there were some other apps included instead of just a dedicated reader, such as a calendar, reminder, etc.
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