Is Apple's $499 iPad a Kindle killer? (2)

It is true that the iPad is more versatile than the e-readers like Amazon's Kindle. However, e-readers like Amazon's Kindle have one thing to their advantage - price. The cheapest iPad, which will come with 16GB of flash memory and WiFi will cost $499. The most expensive version, with 64GB of storage and the ability to connect via a mobile 3G signal, will cost $829. And, buyers of the versions with 3G connectivity will also need to sign up to a data plan with a telecoms provider. In comparison, the 6-inch screen Kindle costs $259 and the 9.7-inch screen Kindle costs $489.

Also compared to the iPad's battery life, which can power the device up to 10 hours, the Kindle's battery can keep the e-reader powered up to a week or more.

In case of Kindle, wireless connectivity is also included in the price of the e-book downloaded while with Apple's iPad, consumers will likely have to fork over $30 a month for a data plan.

Kindle also does not use a backlight (thereby eliminating the eyestrain and glare associated with most electronic displays) and has a screen that can be read under the full glare of the sun.

And, most importantly, with Kindle, readers can wirelessly shop the Kindle Store, which boasts of over 350,000 books, including new releases and 104 of 112 New York Times Bestsellers which are typically $9.99 or less, over 50 top US and international newspapers including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Washington Post, Financial Times, The Times (UK), The Daily Telegraph and The Daily Mail, and over 35 top magazines, such as The Economist, Newsweek, Time, The New Yorker, Forbes, Fortune and PC Magazine). Kindle users can also purchase books, magazines or newspaper online, download them in less than 60 seconds, store them in their personal e-library (Kindle has a 2GB memory that can hold up to 1500 books), and never lose them (Kindle books are automatically backed up by Amazon so customers can re-download titles from their library).

So can the iPad kill off Amazon's Kindle? We're not too sure about that as it's not entirely clear if a huge number of people - apart from dedicated early adopters - are desperate for yet another device.