Since eReaders emerged several years ago their popularity has been rapidly growing. According to Forrester Research, eBook sales in July 2009 were $16.2 MM – that’s a 213% increase over the previous year. And, eBook sales now are only 2% of traditional book sales. In short, the market is rapidly growing and soon going to explode.
The eReaders available today are much improved over earlier versions. This comparison focuses on the two products we expect to lead the market in the immediate future, Amazon’s KindleTM, and Barnes & Nobles’ nookTM. Although KindleTM currently enjoys about 60% market share, we expect that number to be decimated by the frontal assault launched by Barnes & Noble. Amazon already has taken defensive positions to better handle the attack by cutting price twice this year, providing native PDF support, adding the capability to rotate the screen, etc.
Barnes & Noble nook™ |
Amazon
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| Price | $259 | $259 |
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| Physical Size & Weight | ||
| Dimensions | 7.7″ x 4.9″ x 0.5″ | 8.0″ x 5.3″ x 0.36″ |
| Weight | 11.2 Oz | 10.2 Oz |
| Reading Screen | ||
| E Ink® Vizplex™ 16-Level Greyscale Electronic Paper Display | √ | √ |
| 6″ Diagonal Display | √ | √ |
| Adjustable Text Size | √ | √ |
| Color Touch Screen | ||
| Color Touch Screen – 3.5″ TFT Color LCD | √ | X |
| Touch Control & Navigation | √ | X |
| Quick Library View by Book Cover | √ | X |
| Connectivity | ||
| Wireless | √ AT&T 3G |
√ Sprint™ Wireless |
| Wi-Fi/802.11b/g | √ | X |
| Free Wi-Fi in Physical Stores | √ | X |
| Memory | ||
| 2 GB Internal Memory (up to 1500 eBooks) | √ | √ |
| Memory Expansion Slot | √ 16GB Micro SD (up to 17,500 more eBooks) |
X |
| Content | ||
| Browse & Shop Wirelessly | √ | √ |
| Content Availability | 750,000+ eBooks | 350,000+ eBooks |
| Over 500,000 Free eBooks | √ | X |
| Many $9.99 Bestsellers & New Releases | √ | √ |
| Newspapers & Magazines | √ | √ |
| Daily Free Content | √ | √ |
| Exclusive Content when in Physical Store | √ | X |
| Directly Load & Read PDFs | √ | √ |
| Word Doc Support (Fee for Wireless e-mailing) | X | √ |
| EPUB, eReader, & FictionWise Formats Supported | √ | X |
| Built in Dictionary | √ Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary |
√ The New Oxford American Dictionary |
| Sharing & Syncing | ||
| Ability to Read eBooks on Multiple Devices | √ iPhone™, iPod touch®, BlackBerry®, PC, Mac OS® |
√ iPhone™, iPod Touch® |
| Synchronized Last Page Read between Devices | √ | √ |
| LendMe™ Technology, 14 Day Electronic Lending | √ Digital Lending; between nook™, iPhone™, iPod touch®,BlackBerry®, PC, Mac OS® |
X |
| Other Features | ||
| Android™ Operating System | √ | X |
| Try Reader in Store Before Buying | √ | X |
| Quick Page Turn by Hard Key | √ | √ |
| Replaceable Colorful Back Cover, 4 Color Choices | √ | X |
| Ergonomic Back Cover Design | √ | X |
| Personalize Screensavers with Your Photos, Uses Standard JPG Images | √ | X |
| Over-the-Air Software Updates | √ | √ |
| Text-to-Speech | X | √ |
| Supports 3rd Party Applications | X | √ |
