iPad Officially Impacts eReaders: iSuppli

iSuppli has officially answered the question we all wondered about since the iPad was only a rumor late last year—“will Apple’s iPad kill the standalone eReader. “
In iSuppli’s view, the answer is, the iPad has relegated the standalone eReader to a niche product. “The longer-term future of eBook readers is likely to be more niche that initially expected,” said analyst Jordan Selburn.
Meanwhile, iSuppli blames the iPad for the recent price cuts by Barnes & Noble and Amazon on their eReaders. The resulting low prices on the Kindle ($189) and Nook ($199), place these devices at about the break even level with the cost to make them. In the short term, the low prices could attract customers, but in the long run, the tablet will win out.
The future of eReaders depends on whether upgrades will make them more competitive with the iPad (iSuppli said iPad, not tablets in general). One such upgrade is a color display, but that is at least a year off, said iSuppli.
Another note is the Nook uses 50 percent more parts than the Kindle as it has two screens and because its Android OS and use of WiFi require more parts. The E-Ink display is the highest cost component for each device, accounting for 28 to 32 percent of material costs for the full device.
Source: iSuppli