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Ask HN: Time for *cheap* e-notebooks?

2 points by grif-fin ↗ HN
Kindles and Tablets are getting cheaper. You can get one for 60$. It does all sort of things and some also let you use a pen on it. The kindles can go without charging for weeks.

I have a lab notebook. I wished it was electronic and I am not going to carry around my tablet around the lab as a draft e-notebook as I appreciate it more than just a notebook but my personal matter as well.

I'm sure more student and colleagues would like to replace their paper book with an electronic one if it is cheap. The only one I know right now is the Sony's E-Ink which is ~800$!

Isn't all above indicating that there is a great market opening up for mass produced cheap e-notebooks where people can literally replace their paper notebooks with?

10 comments

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Piskvorrr
The push for pen-and-tablet input has been here for two decades at least. Perhaps there are still issues? E.g. sensitivity, and possibly OCR.

Also, I can take a paper notebook anywhere and not worry that I sat on it/dropped it/dog played with it. Electronic? Game over.

grif-fin
I only care about the functionality a paper notebook can do. Being able to write on it and it stays in pages. Not expecting OCR.

Lab notebooks have hard covers, the e-notebook could also have one?

Piskvorrr
Hard covers+bends a bit w/o damage. It's not just a matter of scratch-resistance, but various sorts of forces applied. But all this is solvable - I guess there's not enough demand perceived from manufacturers.
Golddisk
Couldn't you just buy one the $60 tablets and use that? I get your point about appreciating the tablet more than a notebook, but even if e-notebooks were dropped in price, I couldn't see it falling much below the price of the tablets in the $60 range.

I imagine that there is also a ton less demand for e-notebooks then there are for tablets, which is probably one of the major factors as to why no one is trying to mass produce them and lower the price.

grif-fin
My point is if my passport had empty pages there is no chance I would bring it around and use it as notebook so tablet and e-notebook can't go to same category?

I think each student in any level of education has at least 2-3 notebooks around with them. Isn't it demand attractive?

Golddisk
Yeah, but most would probably prefer to just buy a tablet and use that instead since they can use it for more then just an e-notebook, unless there was a way to make e-notebooks cost similar to traditional notebooks which I just can't see happening.
GFK_of_xmaspast
I still don't understand why you can't have a personal tablet and a separate work tablet.
grif-fin
I think the question is: if you only need to take notes and e-notebook costs $20 would you spend $600 dollars for a tablet to be used as notebook?
Golddisk
The only problem I see with that is that one of the reasons notebooks are so cheap is because you almost constantly need new ones. They either get filled up or worn out relatively quickly. Therefore, companies know you will have to buy more to replace the ones you've already bought. That is part of the reason they are so cheap.

The same probably wouldn't be true for e-notebooks. They could hold tons more notes and hopefully be more durable than notebooks. Due to those factors, a company who produces them knows they aren't going to have as many reoccurring sales in the future to replace the e-notebook, so they are going to likely charge more up front.

Just my opinion and maybe I am totally incorrect.