Survey says Apple’s iPad may rule the e-reader world

The e-reader market has gotten crowded over the past year with new entries like the Nook and Sony’s Daily Edition. No one had come close to matching Amazon’s all mighty Kindle 2 until Apple announced the iPad. A recent survey shows that the public is eager to get their hands on Apple’s latest gadget.

ChangeWave Research took a look at over three thousand consumers shortly after the iPad was revealed to the world. They gave special attention to the device’s function as an e-reader or its ability to snatch the sales crown from the Kindle. Jeff Bezos should be a little worried about the folks over in Cupertino.

A whopping 40% of those looking to bring an e-reader home in the next ninety days chose the iPad. The Kindle comes in second with 28%, Barnes & Noble’s Nook with 6%, and Sony with a miniscule 1%.

Even more dangerous for Amazon is the fact that the pre-launch demand for the iPad is better than the first iPhone. Steve Jobs’ keynote speech certainly grabbed headlines but the advertisement onslaught hasn’t hit a fever pitch yet. According to the Examiner, the iPad ad blitz starts on March 15th with a concentration on its use as an e-reader.

Their director of research, Paul Carton, doesn’t want ChangeWave’s study to be the last word on the e-reader wars. He said, “the iPad has been launched, so declaring victory before the army has landed is premature.”

The iPad has two versions with one that only uses Wi-Fi and another model that also uses AT&T’s 3G network. AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson claimed that the Wi-Fi version will outsell the 3G model which costs $130 more and will be on the market in the coming months. Many have speculated that the comment is meant to lessen the burden of the iPad on AT&T’s struggling network that can’t handle all of the data needs of iPhone owners. Even the FCC has weighed in on the issue.

It will be up to Apple to overcome the power Amazon has had in the e-reader market. The additional functionality in the device is certainly attractive but mobile gadget nerds may balk at the higher price of the 3G iPad and AT&T’s spotty service.