The Interfolio Blog

The Kindle, released by Amazon in 2007, was initially introduced as a new generation of portable electronic reading devices. With its initial release and exciting features, many predicted the Kindle would see a large part of its success in academic and higher ed circles, given its ability to hold over 200 books at a time, to provide more flexibility than libraries, and to encourage students to read more with the small, easy-to-transport machine. In addition, many noted that books and other documents downloaded to the Kindle would be more cost-effective than traditional text books, providing a much-needed alternative to book-buying for those with financial restrictions. Plus, what student wouldn't prefer the lightweight Kindle to the weight of four textbooks on their shoulders?

Yet, while the Kindle does have impressive qualities, it has struggled to make much of an impact.

In theory, the benefits of the Kindle could have made it a huge success, but it hasn't gained the kind of fan base among colleges and universities as expected. An article in BusinessWeek indicates many of the weaknesses of the Kindle, the most notable being that the electronic book is too expensive for students, the screen is too small and basic for important diagrams that appear in many textbooks, and many prominent education publishers have not released titles in a format compatible with the Kindle.

With a desired consumer base that already uses laptops or tablet PCs, and a college student user-group that often needs more capabilities than just a readable screen, it is no wonder that the Kindle has not been found to be cost effective or convenient enough to trigger mainstream use. If the Kindle is to be as successful as many hope it will, a few changes in functionality must be implemented.

For one, the device must be able to demonstrate illustrations found in paper textbooks. It will severely limit the benefits of visual learning if the Kindle can only present text. In addition, the price must come down. At around $300, it's far too expensive for the student community given the limitations in features. However, we do think that with a couple of tweaks, the Kindle could gather a surge of support in academia.

Ultimately, Amazon has room for improvement when it comes to the Kindle. We may see a string of newer and improved Kindles before it finds its place in the academic community. Other companies such as Apple, Plastic Logic, and Hearst are rumored to be releasing various versions of e-book readers next year, and might find more success than Amazon has to date. It will be interesting to see how this technology improves!