Sony cuts prices for its Readers, but only modestly

Sony has cut the prices for its e-book readers, though by less than the dramatic cuts made last month to competitors from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

The 7-inch Sony Daily Edition PRS900BC now costs $299, down from $349; the 6-inch Sony Reader Touch PRS600SC, will now cost $170, down from $200; and the 5-inch Sony Reader Pocket PRS300RC is $150, down from $170. (Price in the pages of the Ratings of e-book readers, available to subscribers, have not yet been changed.)

The cuts aim, but mostly fail, in making the Sony devices more competitive with their rivals. The Daily Edition, Sony's only model with wireless 3G service, boasts a slightly larger screen than the 6-inch 3G-connected models that dominate the reader market—the Amazon Kindle, now $189, and the Barnes and Noble Nook, now $199—and one with touch capability that those models lack. But it's questionable whether those pluses are worth an extra $100 or more to most buyers.

The Sony 6-incher, the Touch, also with a touch screen, now costs a bit less than the Kindle and Nook at $170. But the Touch and the 5-inch Pocket lack 3G or even Wi-Fi capability, and so must be connected to a computer to download content.

Sony's evident pricing strategy now increases the need for the company to refresh its Reader line, and create compelling new features to persuade people to pay more for a Sony Reader over other e-book reader brands.

For help on deciding which e-book reader is right for you, check out our free online buying guide to e-readers and our full Ratings, available to subscribers.

—Paul Reynolds