The long awaited Apple tablet computer has been revealed to the public at last. It’s called the “iPad” and has had a fairly mixed reception so far. That’s no big surprise – Apple always seem to generate polarisation, and there’s plenty of that in evidence right now.
It seems to be the opinion of a fair number of reviewers that the iPad is no more than an outsize iPod Touch. An approximately equal number are very much more in favor of the device and are forecasting that it will sound the death knell for notebooks, netbooks and, of course, the Amazon Kindle reader. The true test will come in March, when the iPad starts shipping. On the face of it, it looks like another huge success for Apple seems the most probable outcome.
Drawing comparisons between the iPad and the Kindle seems to be pretty much par for the course right now. The devices are very different, so comparing them doesn’t make a lot of sense on the face of it. On the other hand, the Kindle has been the absolute “must have” gadget for months now – and has often been suggested to be the “iPod of books” – so perhaps the comparison makes more sense than it appears to. Perhaps we shall find that the iPod of books is actually the iPad before much longer?
The Kindle is a specialist. It concentrates on performing its main role – letting people read e-books – and it does this very well. It possesses a few additional functions – a basic browser and a dictionary for example – and these are somewhat less effective. The iPad is a very versatile device which has the capability to perform a wide range of different tasks. Its color screen, which incorporates touch screen controls and an accelerometer, means that it is a great browser, is able to playback video, can be used as an e-book reader and can run any of the numerous “apps” already developed for the iPod Touch. If you want, you can even play music on it.
So – are Amazon concerned that Apple is about to “eat their lunch” and kill off the Kindle reader (which is now their best selling product don’t forget)? Probably not. Once all the dust settles, and the launch excitement dies down a little, it should become obvious that there is a fairly big difference in pricing. The base model iPad is only $10 higher than the Kindle DX price of $ 489. However, it doesn’t incorporate 3G connectivity. Also there is a different pricing model in operation. The iPad has a charge of $ 15 per month for connection. Depending upon the amount of downloads you perform each month this could be as high as $ 30. The Kindle has 3G included in the price and there’s no monthly fee. Certainly, it’s possible that the appearance of the iPad could drive the Kindle DX price down – but that was always going to happen anyway. The only question was when.
One of the apps that many will use on the iPad will be the “Kindle app”, which basically allows users to read Kindle books on their Pod or Pad. It may be an opportunity for Amazon to increase the size of their potential market in this area. Apple will also have its own book store for iPad users – so there could be some price competition in future. If so, it will be the consumers who benefit.
When the iPad starts shipping in March, it’s a fair bet that a lot of enthusiastic customers will be making their purchases via the Amazon website. It will probably be a very nice sales spike for them.
Amazon have the possibility of growing the Kindle book market quite significantly. It will also sell the iPad as a merchant, and probably do very well. The Kindle DX ticket price will probably be reduced somewhat – which would have happened at some point in time anyway – but will continue to sell well. It just emphasises how robust the Amazon way of doing business is.
Check out the Amazon Kindle and cast your eye over the wide range of Kindle accessories available to help you personalise, protect and enhance your reader.
Tags: Amazon Kindle, Apple iPad, e-book readers, ebooks, electronics, gadgets, Internet marketing, netbooks, notebooks, personal electronics, product reviews, technology
