The eReaders Wars: Amazon vs. Sony vs. Apple...

The Amazon Kindle is getting company, whether it wants it or not. As Sony continues to add their its buffet of electronic readers, rumors are swirling that Apple CEO Steven Jobs is taking over the Apple Tablet project, which can only mean one thing: The hippest tech designers in the country are serious about rolling out a game changer in the eReader market. For whatever reason this week brought a raft of big news in the eReader world. Here's a rundown:

1) Sony announced it will be adding a 7-inch diagonal eReader in time for Christmas, to go along with its Pocket and Touch editions. Sony now offers three readers -- its smallest goes for a very affordable $299 -- in a wise move that emulates Apple's approach to iPods: offer similar products at different sizes and price points to give consumers more options.

2) Rumors are swirling that Steve Jobs is taking a more direct role in the design of roll-out of the Apple Tablet, which insiders expect to be either an entertainment portal or a netbook-type computer with eReader capabilities. If the Tablet is, as rumored, basically a bigger more powerful iPod Touch, the colorful touchscreen could provide a easy aesthetic advantage over Sony and Amazon's grayscale models. Gizmodo also reported that Jobs has killed the Tablet twice already, possibly for concerns about performance and battery life.

3) Gizmodo has also provided this awesomely handy eReader comparison chart. The one conclusion I'd draw from it is that Amazon, despite being the first kid in the pool, is already in danger of being shoved around and out-played by the more experience hardware designers.

This article available online at:

http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2009/08/the-ereaders-wars-amazon-vs-sony-vs-apple/23893/