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When the sales returns are totted up at the end of the year, it seems certain that 2010 will have been another record breaking period for the Kindle. Despite numerous predictions of the Kindle’s impending demise as a result of the launch of Apple’s iPad, Amazon’s category leading ebook reader just seems to go from strength to strength.

Even without the introduction of a color screen, the release of the Kindle 3 in the autumn of 2010 opened the gap between the Kindle reader and the following pack even further. In addition to a host of technical upgrades, including increased memory (enough for up to 3,500 titles), a better contrast display and a smaller and lighter case, Amazon introduced an entry level WiFi only model.

The entry level Kindle sells for just $ 139 – less than a third of the price of the most basic iPad. For $ 189 you get the WiFi plus 3G version – still a lot less money than even the cheapest iPad. The fact that the Kindle has no monthly download or connection fees associated with it is another big selling point.

Another big selling point of the Kindle has always been the vast number of Kindle books available for download from Amazon’s website. At the moment there are more than 750,00 Kindle books for sale on Amazon’s website – and that number grows daily. As if that wasn’t enough, there are an additional 1.8 million out of copyright titles – including many classics – which can be downloaded for free.

One of the concerns that many potential e-book reader buyers seem to have is that they may become tied to a particular brand of reader. They worry that, having built up a library of a particular type of e-book, they may be unable to switch their books over should they wish to buy a different type of reader in the future.

This has been cleverly addressed by Amazon, who have released a variety of apps to allow Kindle books to be read on a range of different devices. Currently, there are free Kindle apps for the PC, the Mac, the iPad, the iPhone, the Blackberry smart phone, the Windows phone and any device which uses the Android operating system. It’s a clever strategy on Amazon’s part. Not only does it overcome the concerns regarding the transfer of books, but each of these apps effectively acts as another retail outlet for Kindle books. Approximately 20% of all Kindle book sales are estimated to be made via non-Kindle hardware. That percentage will probably continue to grow in future.

All things considered, 2010 has seen the Kindle strengthen its leading position in the e-book reader market. The only credible competition to the Kindle comes from a tablet computer which costs more than three times as much as the Kindle – and that tells a story in itself. The Kindle looks like maintaining its dominant position in the e-book market into 2011 and beyond.

Now that the dust from the Xmas sales season has settled, it seems obvious that it has been another incredibly successful year for the Amazon Kindle ebook reader. The latest generation Kindle, released at the end of August 2010 has pretty much continued where the Kindle 2.0 left off and maintained it’s position as Amazon’s number one selling product.

Over the Christmas sales period (November 14 to December 19) it outsold all other items on the Amazon website. The 8GB Apple iPod Touch took second place.

Amazon are always somewhat reticent when it comes to Kindle sales figures and are not confirming any specific numbers. However, industry analysts have increased their prediction for 2011 Kindle sales from 5 million units to 8 million. Amazon also has an incredible 90% share of the present ebook market.

It’s the combined effect of the Kindle reader and the massive choice of Kindle books which appears to tip the scales in Amazon’s favor. At this time, there are in excess of 800,000 Kindle books available for the Kindle. Those paid titles are also supplemented by a further 1.8 million out of copyright titles – including classics by such famous authors as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Jules Verne, Homer, Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and Emily Bronte – which can be downloaded free of charge. You could, quite conceivably, save enough money to make your Kindle pay for itself.

Amazon has been pretty smart by making a lot of free Kindle “apps” availaable. These allow users to read Kindle books on other portable electronic devices, so there’s no need to worry about losing your ebook library should you decide to change hardware. Currently, there are Kindle apps for the Windows PC, the Mac, the Apple iPhone, the iPad, Blackberry’s smart phone and any device which uses Android. And, just in case you didn’t notice, all of these apps also function as an effective route to market for Kindle books.

Whatever you may think regarding the comparison between ebook readers and conventional books, it seems fairly clear that the Amazon Kindle is the top ebook reader by some distance. The very fact that the Apple iPad, a tablet computer which costs more than three times as much as the Kindle, is Amazon’s only credible competition at this time.

Business analysts are anticipating a reduction in Amazon’s share of the ebook market in future. However, that’s hardly a damning indictment considering that their current market share is, as mentioned previously, 90%. It’s difficult to imagine how such a high level could be maintained for any length of time. A three way split, of roughly equal proportions, between Google, Apple and Amazon is forecast by 2015. Of course, based upon current growth, Amazon will have a smaller percentage of a very much larger market.

For the moment at least, there is little sign of the dominance of the Kindle diminishing. The perceived threat following the release of the iPad doesn’t appear to have taken the wind out of Amazon’s sails in the slightest. There will, no doubt, be some rationalisation as the market develops and matures – but in the meantime Amazon look set to make the most of their dominant position and will probably continue to be one of the driving forces in the electronic publishing arena for a long time to come.

There surely can’t be much doubt that the main player in the e-book reader market is the Amazon Kindle. The recent release of the new and improved third generation Kindle has underlined Amazon’s dominant position. It’s noteworthy that the only credible competition which the Kindle has seen to date has come from a multi-functional tablet computer which is more than three times the price of the Kindle – Apple’s iPad.

However, even the launch of the iPad doesn’t seem to have impacted upon demand for Kindle readers. Since it was unveiled at the end of July, the new and upgraded Kindle 3 has been flying off the shelves. The new Kindle is selling faster than any earlier Kindle reader did in the equivalent post launch period.

One massive advantage which Amazon has over its competition – the Apple iPad included – is their huge collection of Kindle books. There are more than 670,00 titles available on Amazon’s Kindle store at the moment – and that number is increasing every day. There are also a further 1.8 million books which are out of copyright and which Kindle users can download for free!

As well as making the Kindle reader a more attractive choice for prospective customers, this large selection of e-books means that Amazon can afford to have a slightly reduced retail price for their e-book reader hardware based on the perfectly reasonable assumption that customers will be buying Kindle books over the lifetime of their reader. For Amazon, it’s a clear competitive advantage over their competitors.

The manner in which Amazon expect the e-book market to develop is clearly shown by the fact that they are making free apps available which allow users to download and read Kindle books on a variety of personal electronic devices. They clearly feel that, going forward, e-book sales will be more important than the sales for e-book reader hardware. This has certainly proven to be a successful strategy for Amazon to date. They have between 60% and 80% of the American e-book market (depending upon which estimate you care to give credence to) and about 20% of their total Kindle book sales are intended for use on non-Kindle devices.

Bearing in mind the downward price trend of e-book readers in general, and the Kindle reader in particular, you have to wonder whether we might even see Amazon giving Kindles away for free in the not too distant future. Of course, it may well be a gift that came with some strings attached. Members of Amazon Prime (Amazon’s premium express delivery service) could perhaps qualify. Perhaps they could launch some kind of e-book club where a commitment to buying a certain number of books in a given period of time would qualify members for a free Kindle – a sort of digital book of the month club. There are a number of different options which could, very possibly, make this a feasible business model for Amazon assuming that e-book reader prices continue to trend downwards.

The mere fact that this is an option which is available to Amazon, but not to the large majority of their competitors, must make it a scenario which they will find worthy of consideration. It’s certainly not beyond the bounds of possibility.

It’s three years since Amazon unveiled the first Kindle reader. Despite the massive influence of the Kindle, it’s worth recalling that it was not the first ebook reader to be launched. However, ebooks are now becoming accepted by the public – mainly due to the influence of the Kindle. Whether or not conventional printed books will eventually be replaced by ebooks is a topic for discussion – but it certainly looks like ebooks are set to become a permanent fixture in the publishing landscape.

However, a lot of people are taking the plunge and getting themselves an ebook reader. The recent round of price cuts by Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Sony means that ebook readers have now become a much more affordable option for many consumers. Whilst the Kindle is the clear market leader, it’s far from the only option available. So, if you’re considering getting your first ebook reader, what are the key points to look for?

One of the most important factors that you need to consider is the quality of the display. Most ebook readers use e-ink technology displays. The reading experience provided by this is really very similar to reading text printed on paper. It’s a lot easier on your eyes than a back-lit computer screen. It doesn’t suffer from screen glare and can be read in bright conditions, including direct sunlight. Another advantage of e-ink technology is that it draws power only when “turning the page” – so battery life tends to be measured in weeks rather than hours.

It’s tempting to go for the largest display possible. Obviously readers with larger screens cost more than those with smaller displays. Clearly they are larger and weigh more. This will have implications on the device’s portability. If you intend to read mainly at home, then that may not be something that concerns you greatly. However, a physically larger reader will be more awkward to use with one hand – something which a lot of users like to do.

The ability to browse and download books from virtually anywhere in less than sixty seconds was undoubtedly a major factor in the success of the Kindle. However, both Amazon and Barnes and Noble are now marketing Wi-Fi only versions of their readers. These are a little bit cheaper than the 3G readers and could be a good option for anyone who doesn’t mind connecting via a Wi-Fi hotspot or who does not anticipate making many downloads whilst out and about.

Obviously there’s little point in having an ebook reader unless there’s a good selection of books to read on it. Currently, there is no standard format for ebooks. Google uses the ePub format – but Kindle books are in a format which is proprietary to the Kindle. However, Amazon has released a number of free apps that lets users read Kindle books on a wide variety of different devices – without the need for a Kindle reader.

The cost of exactly the same ebook can be quite a bit different from one reader to another. If you read a book a week, then choosing the right reader could save you enough money on ebooks to make the reader self financing in a matter of months. It’s well worth your while to check before you come to a decisions as to which reader to choose.