iRex's Brit biz partner lowers expectations–but wouldn't it help if Borders UK put the iLiad on the home page? :

The Rolls (US$699) and the BMW (US$599) of E Ink machines both come from iRex Technologies—one of my favorite e-book hardware companies because it isn’t pulling any stunts to lock people into proprietary formats.

No, the iLiad 2nd Edition and the less expensive iLiad Book Edition aren’t as easy for novices to buy and download books with as the wireless Kindle is. But within E Inkdom, nothing for sale today beats those eight-inch screens.

Friendly suggestions for iRex—and Borders UK

With the above in mind, I hope iRex will pay attention to an item in The Bookseller, headlined BA: iLiad ‘not iPod moment for books.’ That tough-love-ish pronouncement is coming from none other than the chair of Borders, U.K.—iRex’s partners in Great Britain. And I see merit in his words, which can’t just be shrugged off as coming from someone with a vested interest in paper books. That said, Borders UK may be part of the problem. Why isn’t Borders UK, currently not even bothering to promote the iLiad on its home page—a rather bizarre omission? Should it really be waiting for the launch of borders.co.uk? Meanwhile—from The Bookseller:

“The reader went on sale in seven Borders stores on Saturday for £399. Borders has sold around 10 readers so far, according to c.e.o. Philip Downer, but in his keynote speech to delegates at the BA conference,” Chair Luke Johnson “said that it did not mark a tipping point for the industry. ‘It might appear a very attractive proposition but it’s not cheap, there are competing formats and the value of the plain old traditional book will still stand out,’ he said.”

Here are the lessons for iRex and Borders, UK, as I see it—beyond the need to aim for lower prices:

• Most immediately, focus on creating some stunning, easy-to-read documentation in print. Don’t expect nontechies to rejoice in printing out detailed documentation. And remember, they’re just accustoming themselves to reading books on screens. Best for them not to have to learn at the expense of enjoyment of their brand-new iLiads or iLiad Book Editions. I’ll welcome an update if iRex has done things in the documentation area I don’t know about. A printed “QuickStart card” isn’t enough.
• Work closely with retailers to create ways to make e-book downloading as easy as music downloading is with the actual iPod. I’d hope that partners such as Borders, UK would be helpful even if this means cannibalizing the physical side of their business. If Borders won’t help out iRex all the way, the real beneficiary won’t be the retail chain’s physical side, but rather Amazon. Please, Borders. Treat your partner better and if nothing else use the Web site to direct people into the stores to buy iLiads.
• Keep refining e-book software so it’s as easy to use and flexible as possible. I haven’t tried the latest Mobipocket reader for the iRex, but the one I did use didn’t let me use a variety of fonts, nor could I bold the lettering for better readability.