Choosing the Small Screen of a Smartphone for E-Reading →
Motoko Rich and Brad Stone, in the NYTimes:
“These e-readers that cost a lot of money only do one thing,” said Keishon Tutt, a 37-year-old pharmacist in Texas who buys 10 to 12 books a month to read on her iPhone, from Apple. “I like to have a multifunctional device. I watch movies and listen to my songs.”
I can clearly see Steve Jobs devilish smile while reading this. The convenience of having everything one device: iPod, phone, Internet communicator, has been the main benefit Apple pushed since the day one of the iPhone. However, the iPhone can do those things superbly, but for reading it doesn’t really provide the best experience:
… she used the iPhone to read while on a coffee or lunch break, she still used her Kindle during her one-hour commute from New Jersey.
Indeed, the iPhone screen is not the best for just reading. But what if reading is just part of the experience on new books? As I wrote recently, the whole concept of a book is about to be remixed. Which is why I love the following quote in the article:
When Nick Cave, the rock musician, wrote his second novel, “The Death of Bunny Munro,” he and his British publisher, Canongate, worked with a multimedia company to develop an app for the iPhone that incorporated not just the text but also videos, music composed by Mr. Cave and audio of the author reading the book.
