Kindle Now Only $299 More Than iPhone Kindle App

July 8, 2009 at 3:10 pm PT

Amazon hasn’t said how many Kindles it has sold since launching the device in 2007, but it may soon be selling quite a few more of them. The company today dropped the price of the six-inch Kindle to $299, $60 off of its previous price. That’s certainly not a dramatic reduction, but it may be enough to drive consumers who’ve held off on purchasing the device to reconsider.

That said, even at this reduced price, the Amazon Kindle still costs $299 more than Kindle for Apple’s iPhone, which I’ve found to be a compelling way to read books. After six or so novels, I have no complaints about eye strain, screen size or glare. And honestly, I think I’m reading more now than I ever did before simply because I always have the book I’m currently reading in my pocket.

Anyway…

Today’s price cut makes you wonder if this presages a similar reduction for the Kindle DX, which at $489 could really use one. A bit too early, I suppose, since Amazon (AMZN) hasn’t yet announced pricing for subscriptions to the Washington Post (WPO) and New York Times (NYT). We’ll see, I guess.

Tagged with: Amazon, AMZN, Apple, book, consumers, digital, E-Reader Feature, eye strain, glare, hardware, Internet, iPhone, John Paczkowski, Kindle, Kindle DX, New York Times, novels, price, price cut, reading, reduction, screen size, software, Washington Post

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Bill Youngs

John, I agree that the iPhone is a fine book reader — and all the talk about screen size, glare, etc., being a problem is a bit like the stories a while back about scientists who proved that bees can’t fly. If it works, it works. That said, I like using both the iPhone and the Kindle for Kindle books. The text-to-speech function on the Kindle is useful when you can’t be watching either screen, and the fact that the two devices get together and figure out how far along you’ve come along on whichever you read last — well, that strikes me as magical. It’s a great time to be a reader!
terri boothe

Depending on the prices they set for subscriptions, the Kindle may be an appealing alternative, it’s portable, and saving money may make up for eye strain, etc.