4 ms·

How Amazon will win the tablet wars

6 points by iProject 14y ago

aroberge 14y ago
Wrong thinking: free eTextbooks are the way forward. It will take a while, but the younger generation of Ph.D. is more savyy in using technology as a means for communication and it is (I hope) only a matter of times until we have Creative Commons based textbooks in all disciplines. Amazon would do well to stay away from that ... and focus instead on expanding beyond the U.S.
tluyben2 14y ago
US Amazon 'product release 14 sept', EU/UK 25th of oct. As long as release dates are like that I would not buy for fun.I know a lot of people think the same; as long as non US is a second class citizen I don't see any company 'winning' anything. After a keynote you want to order. You don't want to wait and especially not when the product exists. This is even worse for virtual goods (music/software/movies etc), but for physical goods as well; if you cannot deliver it immediately then it doesn't exist for most people. And I know a lot non tech people who won't buy it; it seems that companies like this do not see that announcements are no longer local. When any company does an announcement it's in 'the papers' (virtual or real) immediately all across the planet, not only in the US. So people read, want to buy, cannot buy and go for your competitor who does have the capability to release worldwide. Newspaper articles mostly always mention the competitors. I personally know a lot of people who bought an iPad instead of a Fire in the first release because you simply couldn't get it here (the Amazon.com site doesn't allow you to order from EU for this item, so you need someone in the US). It's rancid and it needs to stop now. Edit: the iPad / Fire price difference doesn't matter for most people from the Netherlands, that is something you need to know before reading this. We are known as frugal but in real life most people make a lot of money and just buy what they want, regardless of price in the < E1000 range.
taylodl 14y ago
If the Kindle is just a portal for buying/consuming Amazon services then I don't see it setting the world on fire. Once more people realize tablets are the ultimate mobile general-purpose computing platform then interest in consumer portal tablets will wane.
mikeratcliffe 14y ago
Amazon are releasing the paperwhite in the USA and refuse to even say if, or even when it will be available in the UK. Even though it is an e-Reader this truly illustrates their attitude to non-US users. Whilst they consider non-US users second class citizens they have no chance of winning the tablet wars ... at least not outside the USA.

6 points by iProject 14y ago

Wrong thinking: free eTextbooks are the way forward. It will take a while, but the younger generation of Ph.D. is more savyy in using technology as a means for communication and it is (I hope) only a matter of times until we have Creative Commons based textbooks in all disciplines. Amazon would do well to stay away from that ... and focus instead on expanding beyond the U.S.

tluyben2 14y ago

US Amazon 'product release 14 sept', EU/UK 25th of oct. As long as release dates are like that I would not buy for fun.I know a lot of people think the same; as long as non US is a second class citizen I don't see any company 'winning' anything. After a keynote you want to order. You don't want to wait and especially not when the product exists. This is even worse for virtual goods (music/software/movies etc), but for physical goods as well; if you cannot deliver it immediately then it doesn't exist for most people. And I know a lot non tech people who won't buy it; it seems that companies like this do not see that announcements are no longer local. When any company does an announcement it's in 'the papers' (virtual or real) immediately all across the planet, not only in the US. So people read, want to buy, cannot buy and go for your competitor who does have the capability to release worldwide. Newspaper articles mostly always mention the competitors. I personally know a lot of people who bought an iPad instead of a Fire in the first release because you simply couldn't get it here (the Amazon.com site doesn't allow you to order from EU for this item, so you need someone in the US). It's rancid and it needs to stop now. Edit: the iPad / Fire price difference doesn't matter for most people from the Netherlands, that is something you need to know before reading this. We are known as frugal but in real life most people make a lot of money and just buy what they want, regardless of price in the < E1000 range.

taylodl 14y ago

If the Kindle is just a portal for buying/consuming Amazon services then I don't see it setting the world on fire. Once more people realize tablets are the ultimate mobile general-purpose computing platform then interest in consumer portal tablets will wane.

mikeratcliffe 14y ago

Amazon are releasing the paperwhite in the USA and refuse to even say if, or even when it will be available in the UK. Even though it is an e-Reader this truly illustrates their attitude to non-US users. Whilst they consider non-US users second class citizens they have no chance of winning the tablet wars ... at least not outside the USA.