Hasta La Gadget!

We’re sure there are still scores of lifelong book lovers whose paper tomes we can pry from their cold, dead fingers, but the evidence strongly suggests that plenty of others are rapidly warming to their shiny new e-readers. US sales of e-books generated about $90.3 million in revenue in February — roughly triple the sales reported in the same month last year. To boot, they were the dominant format for trade titles, a category that includes adult and children’s works. Meanwhile, printed books declined 34 percent and 16 percent in those respective areas, with gentler, single-digit drops for education and religious titles. That follows strong January sales and echoes what Amazon said about e-books outselling print versions two to one. To be fair, of course, February is a time of year when people who received e-readers during the holidays load ’em up with bestsellers — you know, to keep them entertained during spring break.

Continue reading E-book sales triple year-over-year, paper books decline in every category

E-book sales triple year-over-year, paper books decline in every category originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 15 Apr 2011 16:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here’s a scenario: what if we told you that your next Kindle could be had for $25 less than retail? What if we told you it came from the rear of a nondescript white van? Or what if we told you that you’d first need to sign up for 842 email marketing scams? Thankfully, none of those scenarios are ones we’re looking to tell you about. Instead, we’re here to introduce you to the world’s first ad-supported Kindle, going on sale within Target and Best Buy locations for $114. That represents a gentle $25 savings compared to the price of today’s cheapest Kindle, but those 2500 pennies don’t come free — you’ll be asked to endure “advertisements on the bottom of the device’s home page and on its screen savers.” Furthermore, it sets a new precedent in the gadget arena that could very well carry over to ad-discounted tablets, netbooks, PMPs, and who knows what else. At this point, Buick, Olay and Visa will be advertising, and we get the impression that said list will bloom in due time. It’s hard to say just how intrusive they’ll be, but Kindle director Jay Marine seems to think that “customers are going to love it.”

We aren’t so sure. While it’s crystal clear that the general populace adores coupon cutting, it seems problematic to us to ship a pair of identical products that cost within $25 of one another and expect Joe Sixpack to grok the difference. In fact, we’re guessing that this will inevitably lead to consumer complaints from those who can’t figure out why their “on sale Kindle” isn’t nearly as enjoyable to read as “Bob’s Kindle… that he found during a sale.” At any rate, a demo of the new device displayed a screen saver deal “where customers would pay $10 for a $20 gift card to Amazon,” and while no ads will appear in e-books, there’s still “a clear advertisement” along the bottom of the home screen. All that said, here’s the key feature that Amazon’s seemingly overlooking: an option in the software to pay back the $25 a customer skimped on to do away with the ads on their ad-supported e-reader. Solves the buyer’s remorse problem, at least.

Update: And it’s official — PR’s after the break!

Continue reading Ad-supported Kindle to ship May 3rd: saves $25, includes lot of enticement

Ad-supported Kindle to ship May 3rd: saves $25, includes lot of enticement originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 11 Apr 2011 17:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As you might recall, we weren’t exactly head over heels for eFun’s new line of tablets when we got our hands on the things at CES. Well, we’ve yet to see much of the sluggish Next4, but both the Next5 and Next6 have quietly made their way to market. Like we said before, the Next6 is more of an e-reader than a tablet, and the same goes for its sibling. Both sport Android 2.1, 7-inch LCD touchscreens, 800 x 480 displays, and WiFi connectivity — the Next6 sports 4GB of memory, while the Next5 offers 2GB and a 600MHz dual-core processor, based on the ARM926EJ. We’ve said it once, and we’ll say it again, the best thing about these slabs is probably the price: the Next5 rings in at $200 and the Next6 at $230. But feel free to judge for yourself — both are currently in stock at the source link below.

[Thanks, Nathan]

eFun’s Nextbook Next5, Next6 now available, likely not the next big tablets originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 11:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Can’t get enough New York Times over your Whispernet? Worry not, dear Kindle reader, for Amazon’s on a roll with its announcements today, the latest of which is that a subscription to the NYT on its world-conquering e-reader will also grant users access to the paywall-protected NYTimes.com online portal. No complex rules or conditions, you’ll just be one of the insiders who get unfettered access to all the fine old school journalism practiced at Times towers. See Amazon’s press release after the break or hit the source link to learn more about the $28-a-month (for international users) subscription.

Update: The sub price is $20 in the USA, the $28 cost we first saw relates to those signing up from the UK and other international markets. Thanks, russke!

Continue reading Kindle subscription to the New York Times will net you free web access as well

Kindle subscription to the New York Times will net you free web access as well originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Mar 2011 07:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The little e-reader that could is about to do even more — according to a listing on the Home Shopping Network, the Nook Color will get an update next month that brings Flash support and additional apps to the platform. That suggests that we’ll finally be seeing Android 2.2 and perhaps an app store of some sort, though HSN isn’t spilling the beans right now — the cable station wants you to tune in at 12AM, 5AM or 9AM (or 12PM, 5PM or 9PM) ET this Saturday to get an exclusive sneak peek at the goods. Yours for just four easy payments of $74.97… which must seem like a tremendous deal compared to HSN’s “retail value” of $504.

Update: Barnes & Noble has now made this completely official itself, and confirmed that the update will include email support among other “exciting new applications.” Press release is after the break.

Continue reading Nook Color getting Flash and apps in April update, according to Home Shopping Network (update: official)

Nook Color getting Flash and apps in April update, according to Home Shopping Network (update: official) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Mar 2011 23:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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