Will We Ever See a Free Kindle?

I remember the very first day that Amazon announced what it had in store for us with Kindle. The device wasn’t a barn burner from the start, but it did improve significantly on what other e-book readers had to offer. While many e-book fans were excited about the device, there were people who complained about the device being too expensive. Since then, Amazon has dropped Kindle’s price significantly, making it much more affordable to more people. But one has to wonder when these price drops stop.

The emergence of Apple iPad will most likely result in yet another Kindle price drop. Of course, this time it’s Kindle DX that’s more likely to get a discount. I am sure we all want to pay less for our hardware and spend more on e-books. That’s perhaps why Amazon needs to think of new ways to bring more people on board. Amazon Kindle books are cheaper and by switching to Kindle you can save money in the long run. At the same time, there are many books that are selling for more than $9.99, often defeating the purpose of getting a Kindle. Once has to wonder whether e-books selling for $9.99 is actually a good deal for consumers in the first place. After all, you can’t sell an e-book or share it (Nook’s lend me feature doesn’t count as it’s clunky and far from perfect). Besides, current e-book readers are not exactly great in handling complex layouts, and there is still work to be done in this area.

e-book readers are certainly useful devices as they can save you money and grief on the road. At the same time, they are just tools. Without your e-books, there is no need to pick up an e-book reader. Sure. There are devices such as iPad that go beyond what an e-book has to offer. But if you are picking up an e-book reader, you are most likely doing it to read books.

I have always believed that Amazon needs to focus on introducing subscription services for Kindle. O’reilly has done a decent job with its Safari Books service. There is no reason Amazon can’t introduce a similar service. That would not only give e-book fans what they are looking for, but it makes it much easier for Amazon to subsidize Kindle and pass some of the saving to its customers. We may not get a free Kindle anytime soon. But let’s not forget that content is what matters here and not the tools you use to consume it.