[lacker]

The consumer has limited space in his pocket. Why would anyone want to have a Phone and a Kindle with them at the same time.

I think this misses the point. A Kindle doesn't even fit in your pocket. The value of a Kindle is not that you take it with you anywhere, but that for many people it's a better way of reading books.

[jrockway]

Indeed. I do most of my Kindle reading on my couch.

Of course, it's also nice to have the same ability on an airplane, too. And it's nice that the battery doesn't die in an hour like my phone would.

I wouldn't want a Kindle if my phone could magically shape-shift to be the size of a book and if it had unlimited battery life. But in the real world, you have to compromise.