Thursday, April 14, 2011

Today's Headlines

Commentary:  Publishers Should Follow Amazon's Lead and Subsidize Tablets
Poynter.org
For publishers struggling to figure out how to make money on mobile platforms, Amazon may be on to something by selling a less expensive Kindle with ads built in. One of the challenges of selling content on smartphones and tablets is the cost of ownership. Assuming an iPhone or Android phone is a $200 purchase with a $70 – $80 monthly contract, it can be difficult to find any discretionary income left to spend on that New York Times subscription for $455 a year.

Mossberg Review of RIM's Tablet:  He Recommends Not Buying -- For Now 
The Wall Street Journal
The Journal's powerful tech columnist calls  the PlayBook a companion to a BlackBerry phone rather than a fully independent device. 

Pogue Review of RIM's Tablet:  Lack of Apps Mars Playbook
The New York Times
The Times' powerful tech columnist felt mostly positive about the device.  The pluses:  it  "looks and feels great: hard rubberized back, brilliant, super-responsive multitouch screen, (and) solid heft..."  However, only 3,000 apps have been submitted (while there are 300,000 apps now available for the iPad). 


Topolsky Review of RIM's Tablet:  One Big Outstanding Oversight
Thisismynext.com
The veteran tech reporter is annoyed by the lack of native email.  He's got other issues as well:  "The worst part, however, is that I can’t think of a single reason to recommend this tablet over the iPad 2, or for that matter… the Xoom"


PC Growth Stunted by Surging iPad Sales
Beta News
Reports from Gartner and IDC suggest that sales of PC's in the first quarter of 2011 decreased.  The likely culprint:  iPads. 

4 Android-Based Tablets to Be Shown by Elonex
eBooknewser
Elonex, an UK based gadget company, is showing off 4 new tablets at the UK-based Gadget Show this week. There will be a  seven-inch  tablet with a capacitive screen and three ten-inch tablets, also with capacitive screens.

Father of Next Issue Media Lands New Gig at Digital Bookstore
AllThingsD
Former Time Inc. executive John Squires -- who helped found digital newsstand Next Issue Media -- has landed a new job at Akademos, a comany that runs digital bookstores for small- and mid-sized colleges.  

No comments:

Post a Comment