Hey Apple – Why Don’t You Make Us an Ebook Reader?
[I originally posted this in October 2004, and interestingly, it wasn't Apple who did this, but Amazon with the new Kindle, though it took three years to get there. I have yet to see the Kindle, but I'm certainly interested; it looks much better than the Sony device I discuss below. Any readers have one yet? ]
I came across an interesting review today of Sony’s new e-book reader, the Librié, that uses e-ink technology to provide an exceptional reading experience. Unfortunately, the review points out that there are so many drawbacks to this device – a Draconian DRM system, where you “rent” books; little content; little memory, and many other problems – that it is not at all worth looking into.
However, this raises the long-standing question of e-books and what their future is. It’s time for Apple to step in and do for e-books what they’ve done for portable music players.I’ve been directly and indirectly involved with e-books for many years, and have long seen the potential of offering a portable reading device for books, magazines, newspapers and other content. Yet the failure of the technology industry to come up with a practical, usable device is startling. With too much focus on DRM (digital rights management), no company has yet to create a device that is attractive, affordable, and, above all, usable.
In fact, e-book readers are so flawed that most people who are really interested in reading books and other texts on portable devices end up using PDAs, such as Palms or Pocket PCs, which have small screens with low resolution, making reading relatively tiring and difficult. Apple could easily develop a device that would allow for simple, portable reading of digital documents, and, at the same time, create a whole new market.
I have long been surprised that the main focus of e-book readers has been books. I’m a big reader; I read several books a week, and I have eclectic tastes, as you can see from some of the book reviews on this site. But I’m not that interested in reading books on a portable device (with the exception of public domain literature, which is freely accessible from many web sites, such as Gutenberg). In most cases, I want to keep the books that I read, or give them away, or even sell them used.
What I want an e-book reader for is magazines, newspapers, and technical documentation. An e-book reader designed not for novels but for periodicals would have several advantages: not only would it resolve the DRM problems (is it really worth it to pirate last month’s Time magazine?), but it would provide readers with a truly valuable device. Reading magazines, which you then toss in the trash, makes sense on an e-book reader. You could download magazines purchased by subscription, or even buy single copies from a source similar to the iTunes Music Store. When you’re finished, just delete them and make room for more.
Or what about a newsapaper? I really don’t like reading much on a computer screen. I’d be happy to pay for a downloadable edition of a newspaper that I could sync every morning to an e-book reader.
Think of the convenience, the paper that would be saved, the oil and gas that would be saved, since the hard copies wouldn’t have to be transported… Think of the flexibility of reading your favorite magazines and newspapers all on one device, rather than having several paper magazines. Or think of the convenience of one on-line service managing your subscriptions, automatically syncing your new periodicals to your e-book reader as soon as they become available.
So why haven’t e-book manufacturers looked at periodicals? It seems obvious that this is where e-book devices could make an inroad. And Apple, with its design ability, its presence in the consumer electronics market with the iPod, and its know-how in selling digital media, is the perfect company to create a device that will change the way we read the press, just as the iPod has changed the way we listen to music.
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Have you tried Zino reader. It supposedly comes on new macs. I have it and have subscribed to Macworld magazine. I know you are more interested in a dedicated device tho.
Yes, I have. The problem is that it miniaturizes pages, making them hard to
read. (I know you can zoom, but it’s still a hassle to zoom in and out all the
time.) Magazines will have to be laid out for portable devices for them to
become popular in that way.
And, yes, I’d like a dedicated device that I can read in bed, not something on
my laptop.
I believe you are right on with both points, periodicals would be a great place
to start and Apple would be the natural to deliver a superior product. I think
what would be most economically feasible would be for Apple to add the
larger high resolution color screen and the appropriate software support to
the iPod.
A multipurpose device that would act as a music player and an eBook reader
(in addition to the current calendar and contact functionality it
provides) would push the iPod into yet another market. Today news
papers…tomorrow
text books. Apple synchronization software would be the final touch that
would allow you to keep up to date with the latest newspaper or Blog entry.
I think the possibilities are endless….An I think Apple has what it takes to
make it happen.
Not the iPod! Part of the iPod’s great draw is its form factor. Make it larger
and it loses its appeal. A seperate device with a screen the size of a standard
magazine, i.e. Scientific American, People, etc., page, with a high enough
resolution to be comfortably readable, and foldable for easy portability. If it
could be done, Apple would be the ones to do it right. Unfortunately, the
technology is still a few years away.:-( Modifying the iPod form-factor to
shoehorn in this capability would be a disaster. Either the device would be too
big or the text too small. The device to big for easy portability; the text too
small for comfortable reading.
A second issue is that the young adult/teen demographic, the primary early
adopters, is more and more reading adverse. They have grown up with TV
feeding them their information. Therefore, the market may not be big enough
to make it worthwhile.
I, too, read a lot and would LOVE this kind of reader. I’m not too concerned
with periodicals–I think you would want a color screen–I want books and
the ability to keep at least the few that are actually worth re-reading. But the
drm issues and the lack of content and the cost of that content are issues
that Apple could help solve.
I think what is interesting about periodicals is that they could create the
market, and bring these devices to the critical mass necessary to make them
commonplace. I, too, would love to be able to read all the great 19th century
literature that is available from Gutenberg, and have an entire library on a
portable device. But I’d also like to have less paper to recycle from magazines
and newspapers.
Apple can’t do it. Unfortunately, no one can with today’s technology.
The iPod doesn’t significantly change the experience of listening to music. It changes the way you *manage* your music, but the listening experience is still the same (some would argue it has a little less quality). You’re still putting your headphones on and hearing the song, same as with your walkman 20 years ago. Users do not have to adjust to this paradigm, it is the norm.
An ebook reader changes the experience of reading. This is the number one reason no ebook reader has ever caught on. The Sony product has gotten close to a real reading experience, but it will still be some time before reading a screen is anything like reading a book or magazine. Users have had a very hard time adjusting from a "page" paradigm to a "screen" paradigm.
I would love to see Apple create a centralized site to purchase mags,
newspapers, books and comics. As far as a reader is concerned why not start
out with the software first. Make iread (or whatever they want to call it) part
of OS X similar to itunes. If it is as well thought out as itunes it will get people
used to digital reading material. Of course, the DRM and pricing must be
reasonable like itunes. Then why not offer powerbooks and ibooks with
detachable touchscreens that communicate with the CPU through bluetooth
or another wireless protocal. Then you would have a 17" page. If it is a
touchscreen you can simply tap the image of the page to turn forward or
backward. This would have the added advantage of helping to sell laptops.