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Monday, February 8, 2010

Books / Teh Internets Amazon and Google Prepare for the Future

Posted by Paul Constant on Mon, Feb 8, 2010 at 3:24 PM

Amazon quietly reinstated buy buttons for Macmillan titles over the weekend, meaning that the retailer has lost its battle to keep Kindle prices at $9.99.

Now Tele-Read has a larger post about the future of the Kindle.

For example, about a wi-fi-only Kindle that would be cheaper because it did not have to subsidize a life-long 3G connection, with LCD (or similar technology) for faster screen refresh and apps to use for more than just e-book reading?

The question here is whether Amazon wants to get into the computing game by broadening into tablet computers, or whether they're comfortable sticking with a primarily reading-centric device, with the Kindle app for the iPhone and iPad being their one foray into the tablet market.

Meanwhile, as more and more people talk about Facebook being the future of the internet (and The Economist just ran a great package on social networking that you should read, too,) The New York Times reports that Google is about to introduce some new attempt to get on the Social Media bandwagon.

Later this week, Google will unveil add-ons to Gmail that let people post and view messages about their day-to-day activities, according to a person at Google briefed on its plans. This simple tweak to Gmail will let Google mimic the status updates that have driven much of Facebook and Twitter’s success, as people return to the services again and again to check out what their friends and co-workers are doing.

Comments (6) RSS

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Apparently no e-books yet, though:

http://io9.com/5465734/sci+fi-writers-of…

I don't know how current that is, still I still won't buy a Kindle until it can play show tunes.

Posted by Joe Szilagyi

on February 8, 2010 at 3:40 PM

I really wish we had a had post-posting edit button so that we can clean up typos and grammatical abuse that I still I still leave in so often.

Posted by Joe Szilagyi

on February 8, 2010 at 3:41 PM

re: Google status updates - ugh. Yet another goddamned increase in the Signal to Noise ratio. I wish they'd just buy Twitter and get it over with.

Posted by yelahneb

on February 8, 2010 at 3:42 PM

Playing catch up with features and trying to compete on price against Apple is usually a losing game.

I'm sorry, but the iPad is where it's at.

Posted by Will in Seattle

on February 8, 2010 at 3:53 PM

Amazon has job postings up that indicate they're working staffing up to upgrade to color, LCD, WiFi, etc... Seems a little late to be looking for an LCD expert now, but they're feeling the heat:

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/08…

Posted by Anthony Hecht on February 8, 2010 at 4:14 PM

If Amazon tries to copy the iPad they will fail, since people who want a tablet will just buy an iPad. Ugh. What they really need is to be pioneering color electrophoretic displays (they're coming). The Kindle's using much more interesting technology than the iPad, and they're just going to alienate their customer base of avid readers. Why not let the casual readers buy their iPads and make sure the Kindle app for iPad/iPhone is really, really awesome so that people use it instead of the apple built-in stuff, hm?

I wouldn't have bought a Kindle if it had an LCD and no cellular connection (I don't care whether it's 3g or whatever, I just want it to work, preferably internationally) and the crappy battery life that accompanies an LCD device. (and anybody notice how thick the iPad looked? Fine for a computer, not for an ebook)

If they go the mimic-apple route they'll be digging their own graves. No sympathy here.

Posted by gember on February 9, 2010 at 7:38 AM