Aug 18
My Sony reader glass is still half full
Sony has had some really great deals on their readers the past month. On the 4th of July Tiger Direct had 1000 units on sale at $99. Needless to say they went quickly. Then I read on Mobileread about the Sony reader for only $49. Somewhat envious that I had missed the TD deal. I went for this one. Also the MSNBC store was selling the readers for $149. To sweeten the deal Sony also had a free book promotion of $50 your choice and $100 worth of classic literature to choose from (that ends up being 50 classic books). The only caveat reference the $49 deal was that you had to apply for and be approved for a Sony credit card. The total cost ended up being about $60.00. The were some quirks when ordering this from Sony Rewards, but the great people on the Mobileread forum posted the steps they went through, so I was able to get my order through quickly. So having foregone the accidental damage protection that cost approx $45, I was now in possesses of a true warranty: An extra reader. A few days after I got my spare, I got terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. That’s went it hit me as I look at my other spare readers. I got them because the reader was going away and I wanted a back up so that I could still read my books. So was this Gemstar all over again? There are many possibilities, but these are the ones I came up with:
1. Sony is just trying to increase popularity of their reader by making it more affordable.
2. Sony is trying to exhaust current supply because a new reader is on the way.
3. Sony is trying to boost e-book sales through cheaper devices and free book promotions to get customers hooked.
4. Sony is trying to gracefully get out of the e-book business.
While a new reader would be nice, I am hoping that the answer is either number 1 or 3. If a new reader is on the horizon that would probably mean no more updates to the current device. Also I think those who have just bought a Sony reader will feel turned off. At least I’ve had a reader since their availability, so I guess from an early adopter point of view I can’t wait to see what’s next. But late adopters would be rather put off, thinking that as soon as they get something, a newer improved model goes on the market. I know that this is the way of technology, but for new folks, it just creates a tendency not to buy, but instead keep waiting for the next generation reader. I really want e-books to catch on, and while I am not a big fan of e-ink, I want Sony to be successful. If they are not, I feel that e-books will be set further back on its road to acceptance and diffusion.
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