Electronic Book Readers: Microwave or Home Control System?
Are electronic book readers the next microwave or computer controlled home control system? Simply put, are electronic books really an "information appliance" that every consumer will want and more importantly use daily or are electronic book readers the "next new thing" like the devices used by only users who are early technology adopters. An example are the users who installed a control system in their home so that their personal computer could turn on their coffee machine and lights at designated times. Most of the users were "early technology adopters" but the concept has not caught on with the mainstream computer user. Many of these home control systems can now be purchased at surplus outlets for pennies on the dollar, which attests to the lack of wide acceptance by consumers.
I remember buying my mother a microwave oven for Christmas around eight years ago and she said she would rather have a toaster oven, which to her, was a more familiar appliance and mimicked an oven, an even more familiar appliance. But for Christmas last year, she wanted a new microwave to replace the old one as the microwave had become indispensable as any everyday appliance. The toaster oven, while still used occasionally, has become secondary to the microwave. Furthermore, the microwave has even been used in place of the oven; so what was once an unfamiliar appliance has become an indispensable appliance.
Will electronic book readers become the next indispensable appliance? Will consumers prefer their electronic book over paper books? Or will they demand an appliance that does more than read a book but yet provides the portability of a dedicated electronic book. Stay tuned as the competition between dedicated electronic book readers, like Rocket eBook (now called the REB) and PocketPC heats up.