Gemstar Ebook Crashes, Burns

Robotech_Master writes "In a lengthy announcement on its ebook catalog page, Gemstar, owner of TV Guide and the Rocket/Gemstar eBook, has announced it is going out of the ebook business. Gemstar will not be selling any new devices or ebook content after July 16th. Of particular interest to those who purchased the newer Gemstar eBook models that eliminated the ability to install free content directly on the devices: 'We will also continue to provide the newly released Personal Content feature available through the web bookstore at least through July 16, 2006.' It's too bad, really; I've heard that the Gemstar has one of the most legible displays of any of the ebook alternatives available. They could have done quite well as general-purpose reading devices, if Gemstar had not locked them directly to its own overpriced content in a stunning demonstration of self-proctology."

Comments

eBooks

[CaptainZapp]

In theory it could be a marvelous idea, especially for technical publications. For novels they somewhat lack the sexyness of the good ol' paper book (this goes especially for hardcovers and imo of course).

The publishers themselves seem to kill the goldeneggslayinggoose themselves due to absurd copy restrictions and non-compatible standards. Hell: Do you really want to buy three e-book readers at 500Euros a pop for the really meager catalogue out there.

I don't get their paranoia, though. What stops anybody of scanning a book in plain, good ol' ascii text and releasing it on the internet (else that this is illegal, of course)?

Ebooks

[rf0]

I've always had trouble finding a nice way of reading books on LCD screen. If outside the sun destoryed the contrast or if inside you had to be just right so there was enough light. Nightmare. This is why I just went back to normal books. If the sun is to bright, put on some sunglasses. If to dark, turn on the light or use a torch.

Now I understand the size concept but somehow it just feels better. Similar story with me and PDA's. Best PDA I found was a diary + pen

Rus

Re:awkward evolutionary spur in the handheld world

[Vengeance_au]

I'm not a fan of the DVD players you refer to, however the primary reason they are successful is due to battery life. A slimline standalone DVD player has enough juice for 8+ hrs of watching, compared to a laptops 3 hrs tops. For international flights I have a few colleagues who use and swear by portable DVD players, and carry them in in their laptop bags on all international trips.

An analogy is a screwdriver vs a swiss army knife - dedicated tools tend to do their job better, but lack flexibility.

HTML and PDF display are the only things

[Jeremi]

If I ever decide to buy an eBook, I will need it to do two things: (1) cache and display any HTML I choose, and (2) cache and display any PDF I choose. Without these two features, no amount of other features is sufficient; with these two features, no other features are necessary.

The point..

[fmaxwell]

An AC asked:

What's the point... of ebooks when you've got handhelds?

Although I use a Handspring Visor for reading "ebooks", the dedicated readers are far superior from standpoint of their display quality. The Gemstar GEB-2150 has an 8.2" diagonal display. The resolution on the Gemstar models is typically (always?) over 100dpi. That's a lot of pixels and screen real-estate compared to the average handheld.