I should have checked the group before posting my link. The convenience factor is likely to play a big part in sales on iPhone.
Does the synch feature you mention mean that you can't read at all when out of network range, or just that you can't synch? In other words, are the books stored on the iPhone? On Wed, Mar 4, 2009 at 10:21 AM, Jonathan Sherwood < [email protected]> wrote: > Okay, not to add to the Kindle debate... er... but I guess I'm going to add > to it: > Amazon just released Kindle for iPhone. Essentially it's a free program for > the iPhone that lets you read Kindle books. So I've checked it out. > > *Pros*: Even the obscure books I found on Amazon had Kindle versions. I > found Jefferson's Bible, which I couldn't find at eReader or Fictionwise > (the two ebook stores I use on the iPhone). > > The iPhone application syncs with your Kindle, if you have one. That means > if you read your Kindle in bed, but then the next day find yourself early > for a meeting, you can pick up your iPhone and start reading right where you > left off on the Kindle. > > You can also download the first chapter of (I guess any) book for free. If > you like it, you can buy the book. > > I've heard the Kindle's pages turn frustratingly slowly. The iPhone Kindle > turns immediately. > > *Cons*: You have to synchronize everything, which means if you're > somewhere without cellular reception, you miss out on some features. > > The interface is rather plain and ugly. > > To buy a book, you have to go to the Amazon web site, rather than browse > within the program like eReader lets you do. > > The Jefferson Bible is in the public domain, and so exists in full on > Google Books. I can even download it and put it into eReader for free, > rather than pay $10 to Amazon. > > > I don't know how much I'll use it over eReader, but it might happen. But I > think there is one thing that will have a much bigger impact on authors and > book sales in the long run - the free chapters. I will probably use this > feature before I buy a book every time now. I no longer have to rely on what > reviewers or the book jacket say. If I could read the first chapter of Dan > Simmons' Ilium, I would have learned that I should not have wasted twenty > cents on the rest of the book. If we do move more toward ebooks, that free > chapter is going to change the sales of books, making truly good books sell > (a little) better, and truly awful books sell (a little) worse. > > And as for authors: We already know how important that first chapter can > be, but now that first chapter can mean the difference between a sale and no > sale. If this is the way of ebooks, that first chapter is going to have to > become a marketing pitch for the whole book. > > > -- Dave Henn [email protected] --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "R-SPEC: The Rochester Speculative Literature Association" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/r-spec?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
