NYT: Kindle vs. iPad

Posted on August 11, 2010 by David Forbes

Nothing terribly new here, but it is interesting to note Amazon’s continued refusal to release any sales numbers for its Kindle hardware.

ANALYSTS have wondered what profit margins Amazon makes on its Kindle hardware business. “It is difficult to say Amazon is making much money at its new device prices of $139,” writes Marianne Wolk, an analyst at the Susquehanna International Group, in a report to clients at the end of June.

I still think the days of dedicated ereaders are numbered. They may remain as niche products (and even then, only if the price continues to drop until it’s almost a throwaway item, in the $20 to $50 range), but mass market penetration is simply not going to happen.

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  • http://andrewliptak.wordpress.com Andrew Liptak

    I’m not sure that I agree – Amazon has already gained a considerable edge in the market already, and they can make a good case for a cheap, dedicated e-reader. I would suspect that they’re beginning to make more money from the eBooks than the readers.

  • David Forbes

    I’m talking just the hardware. I think the Kindle has a nice future as a software reader on multiple platforms (iPad and iPhone, Android phones, etc.) But the hardware? It’s niche and going to stay niche.

    It’s tough to say “Amazon has already gained a considerable edge in the market already” when they won’t release sales numbers. If they’d outsold the iPad, I’m sure Bezos would let us know, so I doubt the numbers are that high. I think this is going to be close to the high water mark for ereader hardware.

    Plus, ebooks are growing rapidly but they’re still a very tiny slice of the overall market, so enormous growth is to be expected as a percentage since it has nowhere to go but up.

  • Rich Miller

    My wife has a Kindle and I have an iPad. I think reading is much more comfortable and pleasant on the Kindle. For me, the iPad is not balanced well and is a bit heavy (for extended reading, that is). I understand the appeal of multi-tasking devices such as the iPad but reading is one of my favorite activities and I refuse to compromise that experience. Actually, I still prefer real books, but then again, I am a well known curmudgeon.

    Perhaps the whole issue will become less relevant as publishers jack up the price of ebooks to the level of paper books.