Amazon chief executive Jeff Bezos on Monday defended the high price of the company's new widescreen Kindle DX e-book reader.

It's a myth that multi-purpose devices are always better, Bezos said at the Wired Business Conference in New York. I don't want to read a novel on a mobile phone – the screen display technology is difficult for reading over long periods of time.

Humans like to do what's easy, and buying books in 60 seconds fits that bill, he said.

The new Kindle DX, which was introduced last month, has a 9.7-inch screen and retails for a $489.

Bezos insists that it is an unbelievably low price for a device that has an internal computer, a display, and a 3G wireless radio.

Amazon Kindle Jeff bezos