This week Amazon released Kindle Cloud Reader, an HTML5-based app that works with Safari and Chrome web browsers. This new reader, optimized for the iPad, allows Amazon to circumvent Apple’s recent restrictions on their native iOS apps, preventing companies from linking directly to their online stores. Users can now login to read.amazon.com to access their Kindle library and purchase new books. They have the option of reading eBooks in the cloud or downloading volumes to read offline. Along with iPads, the web-based app will also work with Safari and Chrome on Macs and PCs, however the Firefox web browser is not yet supported. According to an article on TechCrunch, the iPhone platform is not supported either. But, an iPhone friendly version is presumed to be in the works. Read more…

Yesterday, News Corp. launched The Daily, the very first newspaper exclusive to the iPad. The media company helmed by Rupert Murdoch, spent $30m developing the app, which users can subscribe to for 99 cents per week or $39.99 per year. Verizon has partnered with News Corp. to sponsor the newspaper’s launch, so right now readers will get the first two weeks free. A team of reporters from New York and Los Angeles, supported by freelance writers, will produce the digital newspaper. Each issue will have about 100 iPad pages that offer articles on news, entertainment, culture, opinion, gossip, sports and tech. Every page can be viewed vertically or horizontally and features interactive elements like video or 360-degree panoramic photos that readers can scroll around. Read more…

Mashable names "PopOut! The Tale of Peter Rabbit" as one of the top interactive children's books for the iPad.

In previous posts, In the Stax has discussed the merits of the iPad as an eReader and as an educational tool for young children. This engaging device also offers a unique platform for app developers to combine these two functions and produce stand-out interactive interpretations of classic children’s stories. Mashable recently posted a list of their Top 5 classic children’s books designed for the iPad. Each selection was chosen for the eBook’s ability to engage young readers and provide a variety of interactive experiences through out the story. Read more…

Screenshots from "Dracula: The Official Stoker Family Edition" interactive eBook app for the iPad.

A thoroughly modern approach to Bram Stoker’s classic spooky tale, Dracula, makes its debut on Apple’s App Store today, just in time for Halloween. Dracula: The Official Stoker Family Edition, a fully interactive eBook, blends nearly 300 pages of text with 600 illustrations and implements the iPad’s touch screen functionality to create a user experience similar to video game play. Readers can use a lantern to light up words on a page, reveal information on tombstones by blowing away leaves and use their virtual blood to uncover hidden messages. The interactive book was developed by Padworx Digital Media using the company’s proprietary game engine. “It really is a different kind of reading experience,” Jeffrey Schechter of Padworx Digital Media tells USA TODAY. “…Not only can we do everything other interactive books can do, but we can also bring in 3-D graphics and game-play elements.” Read more…

Yesterday, Amazon sent out a press release announcing that eBook sales have now outpaced hardcover sales and touting the increased sales of lower priced Kindle units. Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO, stated, “Amazon.com customers now purchase more Kindle books than hardcover books – astonishing when you consider that we’ve been selling hardcover books for 15 years, and Kindle books for 33 months.” In the past three months Amazon has sold 143 Kindle books for every 100 hardcover books it has sold in the U.S. In the past month, Amazon has increased that ratio by selling 180 Kindle books for every 100 hardcover books it’s sold. The number of eBooks sales in the first half of 2010 is more than triple the number sold in the first half of 2009. Amazon also applauds a group of five authors that have sold more than 500,000 Kindle books. Charlaine Harris, Stieg Larsson, Stephenie Meyer, James Patterson, and Nora Roberts have all passed the half million mark.
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The virtues of the iBooks app and the iPad’s function as an eReader have been the subject of several previous posts here at In the Stax, and while most early adopters utilize the device for entertainment and productivity purposes, it is also emerging as an educational tool for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) that have communication difficulties. In a recent post for BlogHer Shannon Des Roches Rosa proclaims the family iPad, won in a raffle, to be a “near miracle” for her son Leo, who has autism. With several autism-focused AAC (augmentative and alternative communication) apps available, such as TapToTalk, Proloquo2Go, and iCommunicate, children with speech or communication difficulties can improve their skills and gain confidence. “We maintain a list of social questions for Leo to work on; with iCommunicate, we were able to create a list of answers to those questions for him to access and tap on any time — and (bonus) he even did some of the icons’ voiceovers.”
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The battle between eReaders got heated on Monday as Barnes & Noble and Amazon slashed the prices for the Nook and Kindle respectively. The first shot across the bow came from Barnes & Noble, which announced that the price of the 3G Nook would be trimmed down to $199, and that a new WiFi-only version of the eReader would be available for just $149. Amazon fired back later in the day when it cut the price of the Kindle to $189. All versions of the Kindle have 3G capabilities built-in, and this new low price slyly undercuts the 3G Nook by $10. Amazon’s press release also emphasized the more than 600,000 titles in the Kindle Store, which has a larger selection of books, including New York Times Bestsellers, than either the Nook or the iPad.
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Steve Jobs’ presentation at the Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday revealed some interesting facts about the iPad’s eBook sales and the new features planned for the iBooks app. Engadget reported on Job’s impressive announcement that in the few short months since the iPad’s release, Apple has won 22 percent of the eBook market. In the first 65 days that the “magical” device was available to the public, five million eBooks were downloaded by iPad users. To capitalize on this success, Jobs also announced some great new features set to be added to the iBooks app later in the month. Users will be able to read PDF documents with iBooks, as well as utilize new note-taking and bookmarking functions.
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Borders Group Inc. is now accepting pre-orders for Kobo, its new offering in the eReader area. Priced at just $149.99, it sells for a little more than half the price of Amazon’s Kindle, and some technophiles believe this new device will give other eReaders some stiff competition. “It looks like a huge threat to the Kindle, and Kobo seems to have trimmed just the right features to get to this low price,” writes Charlie Sorrel on Wired.com. Its form factor is very similar to the Kindle, with measurements of 4.7 x 7.2 x 0.4 inches and a 6-inch E-ink display. The controls underneath the screen are more minimal, with just a blue D-pad. The back surface is rubber with a quilted texture for comfort, and the battery can hold a charge for up to two weeks, ensuring numerous hours of reading enjoyment.
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Yesterday, AppAdvice.com reported that the iBooks App for Apple’s new iPad will feature the entire Gutenberg Project catalog free of charge. An incredible digital resource, the Gutenberg Project is maintained with the help of thousands of volunteers, and offers more than 30,000 digitized books for free. The books are available in a variety of digital formats (ePub, HTML, etc.) and can be viewed on PCs, smart phones, eReaders, and soon the iPad. All of their titles are in the public domain, and AppleInsider.com speculates that Apple pursued this partnership in order to head off the propagation of inferior apps created to make a profit on books already free to the public. We’re big supporters of reading for free at In the Stax, and applaud Apple for providing these valuable resources to their consumers at no charge.
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