We have chosen not to do so because it reduces the reading legibility and clarity of the E Ink display. It increases glare, and decreases the amount of light reaching your eye. Today for the Kindle there is nothing between your eye and the E Ink screen. That\u2019s what makes it easy to read on.\u201d<\/p>\n
– Steven Kessel, an Amazon senior VP for digital media, explains why the Kindle lacks a touchscreen<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Those words clearly put the fear of Jobs into Amazon\u2019s leadership, because today comes news that the online retailer is scrambling to improve Kindle, buying Touchco, a start-up based in New York that specializes in touch-screen technology. News of the deal was first reported by The New York Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n Established by a small team of computer scientists from New York University’s Media Research Lab, Touchco has developed a low-cost, low-power multitouch screen with a technology called interpolating force-sensitive resistance (IFSR)<\/a>. It hasn\u2019t yet commercialized the product, so what Amazon is really doing here is buying some engineers. A wise move, particularly if the multitouch screen these particular engineers have devised can detect an unlimited number of simultaneous touch points and will cost as little as US$10 per square foot.<\/p>\n And, clearly, Amazon must do something to defend its e-book turf against Apple\u2019s looming incursion. And that\u2019s what it will remain, unless Amazon is able to develop the same sort of intuitive multi-touch control metaphor that we see today in the iPhone and iPad and a vibrant software ecosystem that makes good use of it. Really, what Amazon needs here is an entirely new device, because when it finally arrives at market, the iPad isn\u2019t just going to set the standard for tablet devices, it\u2019s redfine consumer expectations for e-readers. <\/p>\n And, if it\u2019s not able to create such a device? Well, it best start thinking about recasting Kindle as an inexpensive, or even free, single-purpose reading device or hope that the Kindle app proves as popular on the iPad as it has on the iPhone and iPod touch.<\/p>\n Buy This Item: [Click here to buy this item]<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.stoth.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-o-matic\/cache\/bd9f4_kindleipad.jpg\")
When Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced the company\u2019s new iBookstore and iBooks application for the iPad last week<\/a>, he said that while Amazon (AMZN) has gone a great job with the Kindle, Apple (AAPL) plans to \u201cstand on their shoulders and go a little further.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nBut is simply slapping a touchscreen on Kindle enough? A Kindle with a touchscreen is, ultimately, still just a Kindle — a monochrome device designed for a single purpose.<\/p>\n