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> That's one assumption. The other is that over the course of a 4 year high school or college run. The cost of a 499 iPad + 15 dollar books is significantly che
by streptomycin 15y ago
> That's one assumption. The other is that over the course of a 4 year high school or college run. The cost of a 499 iPad + 15 dollar books is significantly cheaper than say 6-7 60+ dollar books per semester.
Only if you assume that iPads never break, all textbooks will be published with iPad versions (otherwise you'd need an iPad and some normal textbooks), you can't buy used textbooks, and you can't sell your textbooks when you're done with them.
- omfg 15y agoI'm not sure the need to re-sell a 15 dollar eBook. Damaging the iPad is a concern, so is theft. But there are too many scenarios there to analyze the economics of each. For instance, say an iPad + eBooks replaces a laptop with textbooks, the iPad is cheaper to replace than a laptop. What if you lose your book bag full of 5 new 80 dollar text books, then it's a wash. The cost of 8 semesters worth of textbooks might be more expensive than the cost of 3 499 iPads + eBooks. So forth. Textbooks + iPad versions. More of a problem in college than high school where the schools often have long term contracts with the publishers. All in all, it seems like a step in the right direction. Also, one can imagine that Apple is going to keep the iPad 2 on the market at a reduced cost when the iPad 3 comes out, similarly to what they've done with the iPhone. So over time it'll become even more cost effective.