Usually there is a fairly even smattering of tech news from week to week. This past week has been an exception. On top of the new Apple releases on Oct. 20 and the Windows 7 release on Oct. 22, it's ebook reader week! Spring Design, Plastic Logic, Ectasco, Entourage and Barnes & Noble all have nifty ebook readers both in the works and already on the market (read: clawing for your hard earned cash).
First up, Spring Design. Device name: Alex. This is the first of many ebook readers that will be offering a color touch-screen, in addition to some form of internet browsing capability.
Now all you iPod touch and iPhone owners who have been reading ebooks, looking at PDFs and browsing the Internet on that dinky screen can upgrade. Alex has a six-inch e-ink electronic paper display (EPD) for your reading pleasure and you can find more interesting articles with the plethora of wireless connectivity it offers, including WiFi, 3G EVDO/CDMA and GSM.
Also included is a removable SD card, an external speaker and a headphone jack. Hopefully we will see this released sometime this year.
If a six-inch e-ink screen is not big enough for you and you are willing to wait a bit, Plastic Logic will be unveiling its upcoming QUE proReader on Jan. 7 next year. It sizes up to 8.5 x 11 inches so you can see your entire sheet of paper, but will be less than 1/3-inch thick. It offers a 3G connection courtesy of AT&T and an ebook store at www.QUEreader.com will be powered by Barnes & Noble.
It should be noted that this device is targeted more toward the business end of things, but that never stopped anyone.
Also in the works are included tools for "interacting with and managing the content," in reference to its support for PDF, Word, PowerPoint and Excel documents. This is somewhat beyond what we've typically seen offered, and it is good to see them pushing the boundaries.
Moving somewhat in the opposite direction of Plastic Logic's QUE proReader is the Ectasco JetBook Lite, which is hitting the $149 price point no matter the sacrifice in product quality. Even if that includes using a reflective TFT display (typcially found in pocket dictionaries), forgoing an internal battery (bring your own four AA batteries) and including a mere 100MB of internal memory.
With a five-inch screen, the JetBook has set the new low mark, especially since you can probably get a used Kindle or Sony Reader at that price. So if you have $149 burning a hole in your pocket, you can get this at Barnes & Noble. Doesn't it seem like Barnes & Noble is just soaking these products up?
There are more dual-screen ebook readers coming, there's no stopping them now. The Entourage eDGe is the less-than-beautiful love child of a netbook and an ebook reader.
On the left screen of this dual-screen hybrid is a 9.7-inch grayscale e-paper display. On the right, is a 10.1-inch LCD screen equipped with Android (Google's mobile operating system).
Both screens support stylus input, and the device includes 3GB of memory, WiFi (802.11 b/g), Bluetooth, an SD slot for expansion, two (two!) USB ports and a headphone jack. The Lithium-ion battery will supposedly last up to six hours. It's up for pre-order from the company's Web site now for $490.Unless you want a color other than midnight blue. That will cost you dearly. How dearly, you ask? $40 more. That's right, $40 for a paint job. On a dual-screen ebook reader. Worth it? Perhaps. It does fold back on itself, after all.
And finally, the big Kahuna. The one you've all been waiting for so eagerly. The Barnes & Noble Nook. Yes, Barnes & Noble has been developing the Nook, which it calls "the world's most advanced ebook reader." Released on Tuesday, it is awaiting your pre-order for $259.
It measures 7.7 x 4.9 inches, is half an inch thick and weighs a mere 11.2 ounces. It's got the dual-screen character that the Alex was sporting, with a 3.5-inch color touch screen taking up the bottom part of the device. Its battery charges in 3.5 hours, and Barnes & Nobles claims that the battery will last for 10 days if WiFi is off.
Speaking of WiFi, the Nook has 802.11b/g, AT&T 3G, along with 2GB internal memory, a microSD expansion slot, an MP3 player, an external speaker and a headphone jack. It also features bookmarking, note taking and passage highlighting.
A new 'Share' feature allows users to lend their books for up to two weeks at a time to other ebook readers, cellphones or computers.
Of course, free WiFi every time you find yourself in a Barnes & Noble location isn't such a bad incentive for a Hopkins student.
