4 ms·

I think Paul is missing the point. It doesn't have to be one or the other (e-Ink vs color LCD). You can't watch videos on e-Ink. While the market for e-books

I think Paul is missing the point. It doesn't have to be one or the other (e-Ink vs color LCD). You can't watch videos on e-Ink. While the market for e-books is large, the market for e-books + videos + color magazines + other content is of course, far larger.

PStamatiou 15y ago
I was just hoping for Amazon to bring something new to the table: "I was talking about the rumored Kindle Fire tablet with my cofounder the other day. My point was that for it to really work, Amazon would have to deliver on both the tablet/media aspect while simultaneously maintaining the solid reading experience — most likely through a hybrid screen that can easily switch to e-Ink when you are outside or wish to read in a glare-free, black and white mode. Such displays have been in the works since 2009 (search for Pixel Qi e-Ink / LCD hybrid), and it would be great to see Amazon pull a home-run with such tech in their latest device."
- ChrisLTD 15y ago
  A hybrid screen is a great idea, but the tech must just not be ready for mass production, especially in the sub-iPad price range.
- mechanical_fish 15y ago
  a hybrid screen that can easily switch to e-Ink when you are outside I'm just not buying the utility of this. e-Ink-based Kindles are now at the $80 price point, which for someone who can afford Kindle books is darned close to the "afterthought" level. They don't weigh a lot -- under six ounces! -- because they have an enormous battery life, so they don't need a big battery. So why not just buy an e-Ink Kindle and an iPad? Just toss them both in the bag. When the sun is out, pull out the one; when it's time for Angry Birds, pull out the other. When it's time to read a book while playing Angry Birds, use one in each hand. Or, when all I want to do is read, I get to save weight and theft risk and damage risk and distraction risk by just carrying the cheapo Kindle around. Are we going to save money with the e-Ink/LCD hybrid screen? I doubt it: Even if it is ready for prime time, I bet it would tend to add more than $80 to the final price of a Kindle Fire. It's odd, it's new, it's more complicated, and (ahem) it's got twice the IP licensing costs, at least, because e-Ink is still patented, is it not? And, worse, it would introduce a big layer of complication into the development of Kindle Fire apps. Isn't Android fragmented enough? Do you really want to force Android developers who want to target the Kindle Fire to have to decide which layer of the screen their graphics should address? All for no greater purpose than pleasing the five users who desperately want a tablet, and who desperately want an e-Ink Kindle, but who can't bear to own both at the same time, one for each hand?
  - ssp 15y ago
    This is spot on. All-in-one devices inevitably have to make compromises on features, price, quality, or battery life, which make them less good at any particular thing. This is also why I think Paul Graham is overestimating how much special-purpose devices will be replaced by tablets. People who actually care about photography won't be happy with a cellphone camera. Book readers probably won't. Mobile game consoles might, but it's not a given. Apple still sold 7.5 million iPods in Q3 2011.

PStamatiou 15y ago

I was just hoping for Amazon to bring something new to the table: "I was talking about the rumored Kindle Fire tablet with my cofounder the other day. My point was that for it to really work, Amazon would have to deliver on both the tablet/media aspect while simultaneously maintaining the solid reading experience — most likely through a hybrid screen that can easily switch to e-Ink when you are outside or wish to read in a glare-free, black and white mode. Such displays have been in the works since 2009 (search for Pixel Qi e-Ink / LCD hybrid), and it would be great to see Amazon pull a home-run with such tech in their latest device."

ChrisLTD 15y ago
A hybrid screen is a great idea, but the tech must just not be ready for mass production, especially in the sub-iPad price range.
mechanical_fish 15y ago
a hybrid screen that can easily switch to e-Ink when you are outside I'm just not buying the utility of this. e-Ink-based Kindles are now at the $80 price point, which for someone who can afford Kindle books is darned close to the "afterthought" level. They don't weigh a lot -- under six ounces! -- because they have an enormous battery life, so they don't need a big battery. So why not just buy an e-Ink Kindle and an iPad? Just toss them both in the bag. When the sun is out, pull out the one; when it's time for Angry Birds, pull out the other. When it's time to read a book while playing Angry Birds, use one in each hand. Or, when all I want to do is read, I get to save weight and theft risk and damage risk and distraction risk by just carrying the cheapo Kindle around. Are we going to save money with the e-Ink/LCD hybrid screen? I doubt it: Even if it is ready for prime time, I bet it would tend to add more than $80 to the final price of a Kindle Fire. It's odd, it's new, it's more complicated, and (ahem) it's got twice the IP licensing costs, at least, because e-Ink is still patented, is it not? And, worse, it would introduce a big layer of complication into the development of Kindle Fire apps. Isn't Android fragmented enough? Do you really want to force Android developers who want to target the Kindle Fire to have to decide which layer of the screen their graphics should address? All for no greater purpose than pleasing the five users who desperately want a tablet, and who desperately want an e-Ink Kindle, but who can't bear to own both at the same time, one for each hand?
- ssp 15y ago
  This is spot on. All-in-one devices inevitably have to make compromises on features, price, quality, or battery life, which make them less good at any particular thing. This is also why I think Paul Graham is overestimating how much special-purpose devices will be replaced by tablets. People who actually care about photography won't be happy with a cellphone camera. Book readers probably won't. Mobile game consoles might, but it's not a given. Apple still sold 7.5 million iPods in Q3 2011.