eBooks and the iTouch

I finally broke down.  Gave in.  Sold out. It was an offer too good to refuse and within minutes I was the proud owner of an iTouch (for about 1/2 the retail price). 

Like most techy geeks, I have been fascinated by the iPhone/iTouch since it first appeared.  This is a little strange because I may be the only person in America who hated my iPod.  I never could make the thing work right. . . Evidently click wheels and I were not made to co-exist on the same planet.  But I digress.

I have held out for months.  After all, I need another gadget like I need another hole in my head.  My Verizon family plan is cheap.  AT&T doesn't work well in my area anyway.  So as fascinated as I have been, I've managed to remain strong.  Although I have played with any iPhone/iTouch I could get my hands on.  But in a moment of weakness, and with an offer too good to refuse, I caved.

This is an amazing piece of technology.  I have used PDAs of all descriptions for years and years and this is hands down the easiest to use.  My biggest general complaint is that my fingers are a little big for the keyboard.  I spend a lot of time backspacing and starting over.

It didn't take long to sign in to the iTunes store and find the iTunes Aps.  From there it was a short search to find the eReader eBook software and get it downloaded to my iTouch.  Talk about easy!  It was the easiest installation ever.  I think it was even easier than getting it on my PC the first time.

Once it was loaded I went looking for the eBooks About Everything store.  Aside from the fact it was the first time I had typed it; it was easy.  My problem was the fat finger thing. 

The store opened right up;  I used my thumb and fore finger to enlarge it enough to see; went to my wish list and hit the Buy this item Now button.  Picked the version of the book in "Palm Pilot" format and added it to my cart.  Hit the Process Order button.  At that point I had to put in my user name and password and added my card's CID number.  And then waited a few seconds to be told the transaction had completed and that the book was on my bookshelf.

Went over to my Bookshelf.  The book was at the top of the list.  Hit the Download button and the book began downloading.  Within seconds I was opening the book, adding my name and password info (credit card number).  And I was able to start reading my new book.

Wow!  That was the most painless eBook transaction to a PDA ever!!!  And I mean EVERY!!

The reading experience can be customized in many different ways -- font, font size, screen appearance etc.  All very easy and intuitive.  The screen is small, but crisp and easy to read. 

The big difference in reading on this and any other PDA is that instead of pressing a button to turn the pages you flick the right corner with your finger and the page "turns".  The turning is more of a scooting motion; as if you were sliding the old page back to revel a new one.  I find this VERY annoying!  Not sure if it is because it is new or because it is really truly irritating -- time will tell.  For someone who reads very fast, and needs "largish" font size you spend an inordinate amount of time flicking and adjusting your eyes to the new page.  The annoyance is certainly worth it to have a book handy all the time with minimal weight and hassle. 

For long immersive reading my Cybook is hands down a better solution.  But it is one more electronic device to worry about and by comparison it is big a bulky.  I certainly won't be giving it up any time soon, but the iTouch is a nice addition. . .

All of this has left me, however,  with a bigger dilemma then ever.  Can I really live a happy life without an iPhone?

del.icio.us Tags: ebook,ebooks,e-book,iPhone for books,iTouch,eReader,ebook hardware

A real eReader -- What This Woman Wants.

I have spent five (long) years looking for a really good eBook reader. Not perfect; just good. And yet I keep looking.

Lately I have become convinced that that eReaders are pretty much irrelevant given current technology.

I have lot of gadgets! Why do I want one more?

What it comes down to it, I don't want a new eReader no matter now fancy. What I want is a robust device that I can use for a variety of things including, reading eBooks.

The new devices needs to have these characteristics:

A logical hardware package:

• Light (5-8 oz.) ergonomic design. The ability to EASILY hold the device in one hand. AND to be able to comfortably do basic navigation with the same hand. Doesn't matter if it uses buttons, flip bar, finger or pointer.
• Enough processor speed and RAM to make it snappy -- this changes so fast I won't bother with specification.
• A 6-8 inch TOUCH screen with internal lighting.
• High resolution screen for text, graphics, and video.
• Clear audio capabilities for both listening and recording.
• Always-on connectivity -- WiFi works great
• Generous storage 40-80GB; I personally like the solid state hard drives.
• Long battery life and easy battery replacement.
• All the standard hardware things you would expect like SD card slot(s) and USB ports.

A robust operating environment:

• A full operating system (Palm, Windows Mobil or Linux come to mind)
• Basic functional software -- Internet browser, email, contacts, calendar, notes, photo gallery etc.
• A full compliment of readily available productivity software, GPS capabilities, and games.
• Easy writing/note taking ability with real annotation ability -- handwriting recognition and on screen keyboard plus the ability to use a keyboard and mouse if desired.

eBook-specific software included:

• The ability to read least 2 of the common protected eBook formats: PDF, MS Lit, Palm and Mobipocket
• The ability to buy books "over the air" from any source, anytime, anywhere.
• Great search capability that includes not only searching of the eBook text but all annotations as well.
• The ability to share my annotations with others.
• All the obvious software features you would expect: changing font type, font size, highlighting and bookmarking, dictionary lookup.

And I want it all for a decent price -- less than $500.

OK, that might be a little optimistic but certainly the capability can be had for close to $800. And as far as add-on capability (more RAM, larger hard drive, more slot); that can be as pricey as the manufacturer can get away with.

The most intriguing possibilities on the horizon are the tablet and ultra-mobile devices. Here are a couple of possibilities shown by Engadget in the last month.

The iriver prototype tablet

or the Inventec UMPC 7A

 

I keep wondering why Sony and Amazon have just introduced single purpose brain-dead devices. Presumably they studied the market before creating their readers.

The the only conclusion I can draw is that they are invested in protecting a divided marketplace -- keeping listening device, video device, eBook device and GPS system device users in separate little ghettos for their marketing convenience.

A universal device is inevitable. So the real question is this: Are they going to start listening to the consumer or will some Chinese company come along and eat their markets?

Technorati Tags: ebook,e-book,tablet computers,iriver,inventec UMPC 7A,eBook Reader,eReader

eBook Odds and Ends

eBooks are a dynamic and ever evolving market.  Everyday I find new and interesting items, ideas and information.  These are my favorite for this week.

Publisher's Weekly 2008 Trends

Mike Shatzkin has been around the publishing industry for a long time. There are even those who refer to him as a guru.  Guru or not, he is a savvy guy and knows publishing.  When Mike makes predictions about industry trends, I pay attention. 

This week he wrote up his 2008 predictions for Publisher's weekly piece: 15 Trends to Watch.  Some of them are really only interesting to "industry insiders" but not all.  This year he had a lot to say about the Internet and digital publishing.  In fact, one third (five for the math adverse) of his predictions have something to do with eBooks:

• The popularity of e-books will increase
• Sales of books in electronic form to public libraries will continue to grow
• Christmas 2008 will be the first year in which there will be sales of customized books as eBooks and POD titles
• Apple will move to turn the iPhone and iPod into e-book readers
• “Read and listen” bundles of e-books will become available as digital downloads

eBook Reader Comparisons

Seems like every month there is a new eBook reader on the market.  My friends keep asking me to recommend one.  Always a dicey proposition. 

I have now found a way to dodge that particular bullet.  I simply refer them to this excellent synopsis:  Book Readers At a Glance from the Wired Blog.  Unfortunately, I may have to change tactics soon since this piece is only three months old and there are new readers to consider.

Geek Toys

And finally, one I just can't resist.

This is for those of you worried about reading eBooks anywhere.  The Myvu goggles may be just the ticket.  They are sold as "a personal media viewer."  Put them on, kick back and prepare for total immersion.

 

Technorati Tags: ebooks,e-books,myvu,ebook comparisions,Shatzkin

eBooks in the New York Times

The New York Times had a great piec about eBooks: An Entire Bookshelf, in Your Hands. Really worth a look!

Shocking news -- eBooks are going mainstream. Of course, we’ve known that for awhile which is why we started eBooks About. After all we like a market that is doubling annually: The International Digital Publishing Forum, estimates that retail sales of e-books in the 2nd quarter of 2007 was $8.1 million compared to $4 million in the same time period last year.

The author talks a lot about hardware and software and their impact on eBook reading. Certainly better reading software and hardware devices are major factors in this growth, but I believe that the greatest single factor is content. Major publishers are creating eBook versions of titles along with the hard cover release. And Harlequin who announced last week that it has started (August, 2007) to create an e-book edition of every new book it releases,

Yes, we have had content In the past. Thanks to Project Gutenberg there have always been titles available. I, however, have trouble getting excited over the idea that I can read Middlemarch on my phone. I suspect I am not alone.

New variety in title choices and major author’s books generate eBook sales. And the market is changing! Our store sales reflect the trends talked about in the article – we sell more romance and ‘chick lit’ (women’s fiction for the more politically correct) than any thing else. But we also sell a great number of non fiction and reference titles. You’d be amazed at how many manuals we sell.

As an eBook reader I got a real kick out of the article . . . it was more or less a case of preaching to the choir. Of course I would have liked to have seen eBooks About Everything mentioned, but I have to remember that we are still the new kid on the block and it all takes time.

But the best part for me was that the writer talked about my two personal favorite reasons for reading an eBook: the backlighting so I can read in bed in the dark and the fact I never feel the need to tear off an embarrassing cover.