Soon after the iPad was introduced, one of the earliest complaints was that readers don’t want apps and other accessories interfering with the words. Now comes a university study showing people need more than reading to fall in love with e-readers.
Indeed, the Univ. of Georgia study found younger consumers may prefer their phone to an e-reader. According to the research, young people view Amazon’s Kindle as “old” compared to smartphones with applications allowing them to do everything from listen to music to finding a restaurant, along with reading online.
At the other end of the spectrum, older readers said they missed the interaction they had with a physical newspaper, such as doing the daily crossword or reading the comics – features often missing from e-reader versions.
What both age groups agreed on was a lack of enthusiasm for the Kindle DX price: $489. Earlier this week Apple’s iPad was unveiled with a $499 price for a 16GB version.
A professor who conducted the research said the findings show e-readers need to be more than a different format for reading newspapers. “It should be seen as one of a constellation of services for the device including books, magazines, etc.,” Dean Krugman said in a statement.
In a hopeful sign that the iPad has an advantage in the e-reader market, the university study discovered color and a touch screen could sway readers to choose an e-reader. So far, Amazon’s Kindle is limited to a black-and-white screen and an array of buttons.
[Via Wall Street Journal and Univ. of Georgia]
