Jan 16 2007
The Right E Reading Device Might Have Arrived
Earlier, I blogged about Bookeen’s new e-reading device. Baen Bar has been in negotiations with various suppliers to create a DRM free e-reader. It has finally worked out a deal with Bookeen. This e-ink device will have the same size screen and same technology as the Sony, but it is DRM FREE!!!!!!! and reads RTF, HTML, PDF and PRC (not drm’ed ones). This means all those e-publishing books do not need to be converted to read on your e-reading device.
Even more impressive, is that the Baen Bar Ebook Reader will be $30 cheaper than the Sony Reader. It will be $320.00. I hope to have more details for you on Sunday. My Sony Reader will be up on E-Bay during the summer months. Anyone else want in?
Via MobileRead.
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Jan 16, 2007 @ 12:27:14
That sounds awesome but does e-ink mean still no backlight? That really is a dealbreaker for me, because I use my Ebookwise in bed without the lamp on, just the backlight, so I don’t bother my husband. Unfortunately, a device I can’t use in low light or no light situations wouldn’t do me personally, much good :(
Jan 16, 2007 @ 12:37:19
It does not have backlighting. I think that Lightwedge is developing a booklight for the Sony Reader so I am hopeful that the booklight will solve my lighting probems.
Jan 16, 2007 @ 22:24:41
Jane, Jane, Jane: girls and their gadgets!
Can you comment on the attraction of E-ink devices in your report; I’m a minority but they make me motion sick (I also have trouble with twinkling lights, blinking/scrolling text on web sites and CRT monitors with low refresh rates).
Plus, I want user-configurable buttons and an input capabilty. I don’t read books sequentially so I need 5 controls (on/off, library, next_page, bookmark and search with an input capability).
Sigh – Apple dashed my hopes with the closed iPhone and this device is not even close.
Jan 16, 2007 @ 22:53:33
LinM – have you seen the e-ink in person? It has no movement. It is a flat, dead screen. That’s the beauty of it. It actually looks like paper, particularly in bright sunlight. The better the ambient lighting, the more paper like the screen looks. The best example I have is that it looks like the screen monitors you see at home furniture stores. Yes, I am a big geek girl. *sob*
Jan 16, 2007 @ 23:42:42
I could be wrong, but I thought the thing that made e-Ink devices so battery friendly is that the screen refreshes only once per page “turn.” I went to a Borders and took a look at it – the screen flashes “negative” for a moment, then you have the new page of text.
Personally, I think for fast readers, this could be as disconcerting as CRT refresh rates! So I’d think LinM would have to look away from the screen with each page change.
Beyond that, I can’t tell you about the controls. I played with it for a few minutes, but when I compared it to the value I get with my eBookwise, I just couldn’t justify the price.
Jan 17, 2007 @ 06:37:45
E-ink still makes no sense to my non-techie brain….
Jan 17, 2007 @ 09:00:46
Miki – you are right. There is a strange refresh rate which I hated when I first saw it, but have found that it is imperceptably over time. But I can see where it might bother some.