Tidap.com

Speculation regarding the likely Kindle 4 launch date has been growing over the last couple of weeks – fueled by the release of a couple of new ebook readers onto the market. There’s little doubt that Amazon’s Kindle 3 is the runaway market leader, but first Barnes and Noble updated their Nook reader and then, within a fortnight, the iRiver Story HD reader launched.

The new Nook features an e-ink technology screen with touch screen controls. This means that the QWERTY keypad is redundant and allows the Nook to be made smaller and lighter. It’s about an inch shorter and an ounce lighter than the Kindle 3.

The Story HD reader is the result of a partnership between Google and iRiver. The Story HD’s claim to fame is the fact that it is the first reader which is integrated with Google’s eBookstore. Story HD owners will be able to select their books the Google eBookstore, and then download them directly via Wi-Fi. From a technical perspective, the Story HD’s most noteworthy feature is the fact that it incorporates the first XGA e-ink display on the market. This has a resolution of 1024 x 768 – compared to the 800 x 600 of both the Kindle and the Nook.

In short, although it’s less than a year old, the Kindle 3 is starting to look ever so slightly out of date in comparison with it’s newer rivals. Perhaps Amazon should be thinking about releasing the Kindle 4 sooner rather than later?