Telsyte research director Foad Fadaghi says a new survey reveals Australian consumers are using almost 1.5 million e-book readers now, making the country an electronic book pioneer.
Fadaghi says there are many reasons behind the technology's popularity, including a low price and a clear purpose.
"They are quite inexpensive and it's a well-defined device," Fadaghi says. "A lot of consumers look at tablets and ask, 'What am I going to use it for? Will it replace my computer?' while e-book readers are used for just one purpose, so it's easier to make the decision to buy."
Fadaghi says e-book readers - most of which use eye-friendly E Ink technology to replicate the look of paper - are also easy to use, lighter than a real book and, in many cases, offer in-device book downloads. Read more:
Amazon kicked off the e-book trend in 2007 when it launched the original Kindle, a device the company made available via mail order in Australia in late 2009.
While the technology took off slowly, research firm Gartner says the trend has now come into its own. It forecasts e-book reader sales to almost double this year to 21.9 million worldwide, rising to 26.8 million in 2013. Read more:More affordable tablets, not eBook readers, like the Kindle Fire are beginning to surface.
The tablet trend is here to stay, so we're glad this market is starting to open up. If you're looking for something that's available now, the Cruz by Velocity Micro is a good middle of the road tablet.
You may be asking, "Tablets and eBook readers: what's the diff?"
Typically, eBook readers are designed with just books in mind. That means no color touchscreen or apps, but they are very affordable. FYI, you can grab a basic Kindle for $US79 now.
If you're looking to cruise the web, check email or Facebook, however, you'll probably want a tablet. Until recently, they were really expensive. The iPad 2 and BlackBerry PlayBook both start at $499. And tablets usually require a data plan.
When we stumbled upon the Cruz, we breathed a sigh of relief at its moderate price tag of $199. It's got an 8-inch touchscreen and runs on Android. Its market position is on par with Amazon's Kindle Fire, which has a 7-inch touchscreen.
A lower-priced tablet is a great entry point for people who don't want to invest a lot of money on a new platform. They have all of the basic functions of fancier tablets, like Facebook, apps and web browsers.
Velocity Micro quietly launched the Cruz earlier this month and is available now. The Kindle Fire is currently taking pre-orders for a November 15 release date. Neither tablets require a data plan and both retail at $199.
Kobo today unveiled its new $200 Kobo Vox, the company's first color eReader that matches up nicely (on paper, at least) with Amazon's $200 Kindle Fire, which starts shipping next month.
Both the Kobo Vox and Kindle Fire also must battle Barnes & Noble's popular Nook Color, currently priced at $250 and rumored to be getting an upgrade very, very soon.
Android-Powered
Kobo Vox runs a full version of Android 2.3, and has access to more than 15,000 free apps, the company says. Like the Kindle Fire and Nook Color, Vox is a multi-use slate, allowing users to browse the Web, check email, listen to music, watch movies, play games, and store photos.Recent news:
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