We saw the writing on the wall about Kno and are pleased to announce they are in talks to pull out of their tablet investments and focus on software.
Kno has not actually shipped either of the two tablets that have been displayed in many tech shows over the course of the last year. They have two models in development and those who pre-ordered are left high and dry. The Silicon Valley startup initially promised to deliver its $599 and $899 versions of the tablet by the end of 2010.
Kno has raised over ten million dollars to get into the tablet arms race and facilitate relationships with colleges and universities to get their custom software and tablets in the school rooms. Unfortunately, their management has been heavy on the software and light on the hardware. Kno Co-founder Osman Rashid has a lot of experience in digital education market. He was also the co-founder of Chegg, the textbook rental business that is reportedly aiming for an IPO soon.
What is in the future of Kno? They are going to be building iPad applications and other applications for Android.
Kno has been playing a game of show and tell, promising us everything but producing nothing. Everything about their company has been muddled with inconsistencies. It is very hard to get behind a company that keeps on pushing back release dates without giving any kind of reason why. Even now, when it’s confirmed that the company is getting out of the tablet business and selling it off to other companies, no one at the company would comment. This same attitude about keeping everyone in the dark during their development process is the reason hundreds of people cancelled their pre-orders.
RIP Kno, we hardly knew ye.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
