This Week In Ed Tech

Last month, I polled my readers to find out what e-reader they prefer. After all, if you're in the market for an e-reader, it's a big decision. Below are the results, and some commentary on matter:

Sony e-reader: 0%

I prefer paper: 10%

Other: 10%

Barnes & Noble Nook: 20%

Amazon Kindle: 30%

Apple iPad: 30%

In dead last, with 0%, was the Sony e-reader. (Coincidentally, I just sold my Sony PRS-500 on e-Bay last month). When it first came out, I was impressed, mainly because it was the first device of its kind. But in this competitive market, e-readers that require PC connectivity to receive content are not what people want- especially with the availability of WiFi and 3G wireless connectivity. The Sony line has yet to deliver in this category. Equally disappointing to me has been Sony's lack of Mac support. 10% of my readers actually prefer paper; it's not like paper will ever go away any time soon. The Barnes and Noble Nook received 20%. Tied for first place was the Apple iPad and the Amazon Kindle, splitting 60% between them. My two cents? If you are a serious bookworm and you don't care about apps, video, or other computer-like features, (for twice the price) then the Kindle 2 is for you; however, pay double, and you get an e-book reader, and then some-- like apps, multimedia-- you know the rest.

One final note: there is a lot of talk about readability (e-ink on the Kindle vs. the iPad's LED back-lit display). I have experience with both, and to me, it's a matter of personal preference. The Kindle has a sort of "screen flash" when you turn the page due to the e-ink reordering itself and can be annoying at times. Of course, since that's the only energy drain, battery life is significantly higher than the iPad, so it's a trade off. Readability on the iPad can also be a concern to some people for other reasons. If you don't like reading on a computer screen, you won't like reading on the iPad either. Though, keep in mind, the brightness can be adjusted, which may help if you are sensitive to bright whites on a computer screen. My advice: try before you buy. What do you prefer? Feel free to leave your comments on how you prefer to read content.

According to a February, 2010 post by vatornews, an Online news source for emerging tech, major textbook publishers have turned to ScrollMotion Inc. to bring their textbooks to Apple's iPad. Which publishers? How about heavy weights like Houghon Mifflin, Kaplan, McGraw-Hill, and Pearson? Features included in the proposed app will include the ability for students to color-categorize while highlighting words on the page. In addition, students will be able to write text notes or record audio notes directly onto the device. They'll even be able to search the text for a key phrase! How many times did you wish you could do that when you were in school?

Is this how easy it's going to be to get e-textbooks in the hands of students? I thought there'd be shady deals in smokey back rooms between Steve Jobs, state politicians, school district head mucky mucks, and gray-haired publishers resisting new ways, much the same way music publishers resisted the paradigm shift from phycial CDs to Online distribution. But instead, it looks like it's the publishers are the ones doing the pushing. It could actually come down to a single app; granted, a single expensive app.

How much will it cost? Will school districts be able to give special promo codes to students who own iPads so they can download textbooks straight to their devices? Won't school districts save a ton of money purchasing a device like this instead of physical textbooks? Many schools in our district purchase two copies of each textbook for each student: one for the classroom, and one to stay at home. It'll be interesting to see the textbook landscape this time next year. What do you think?

Even before its release, the iPad (Apple's long-awaited tablet-style, e-book reading, web-surfing, content serving, most wanted gadget) has begun to define a new category of devices that will blend together the power and portability of a netbook with the form and function of an e-reader. In 2010 and beyond, competitors will race to design devices similar to the iPad, which in turn, will both improve the platform and drive the overall price in this cateogry down. Combine this with an online content distribution method, such as the forthcoming iBook store (Apple's online e-bookstore) and you've just described a beginning-to-end content distribution pipeline. One day, in the not-too-distant future, the price and convenience of this distribution chain will compel many school districts to finally abandon the paper-based text book model and embrace the digital distribution of e-text books.

How will the iPad impact education? Remember in chemistry class, when we learned the term, catalyst? A catalyst is substance that initiates or accelerates a chemical reaction. Think of the iPad as a catalyst that will cause a ripple-effect, felt not only in education, but will also be felt across the entire publishing industry.

Apple already transformed the way we buy and listen to music; now, they're going to do it with books. Most people are already used to the iTunes experience of buying music and listening to it on their iPod, so the transition to a similar experience with books and reading them on an iPad will be a natural one. I'm not suggesting it will ultimately be the iPad itself that will absolutely find its way into mainstream classrooms across the country - it could be a similar product by a yet-to-be-known start up company- or possibly a next-generation Kindle, who knows? But one day, I think people will attribute the iPad as being the device that unleashed digital e-book content, especially e-text books, into classrooms around the world.

Sony's e-reader, Amazon's Kindle and Barnes & Noble's Nook may have been among the first to the party, but that fact alone won't necessarily be enough to keep Apple from becoming as dominant a force in the book distribution business as they are in music. Consider iTunes University, Apple's source for educational audio and video content. Since 2007, Apple has been promoting, building, and filling iTunes U with educational multimedia content, coincidentally, around the time rumors started to surface of a possible tablet-style device. And it makes sense: imagine a student reading his or her science text book on an iPad, and being able to flip to an iTunes U video on the same topic, on the same device! School districts will love the text book updates, too. Instead of having to purchase new text books every seven years, students can simply update their text book the same way you update an App.

It's an exciting time for schools, publishers, and gadget lovers everywhere. How do you think the iPad will impact education?