Thanks to the Centered Librarian for pointing out:
“Interead, maker of the COOL-ER e-reader has partnered with Argos to offer the device in stores across the UK. The COOL-ER is described as a light, small and elegant electronic book reader that is both compatible with Mac and PC computers and runs on Linux…”
Here is an e-reader comparison chart in a wiki that may be helpful. Click through to the complete chart/comparison and all the details.
Yesterday I tweeted about a post from engadget titled Astak’s $199 EZ Reader Pocket PRO Wants to Give Kindle a ‘run for its money‘ about yet another new e-reader vying for the e-book market:
Last we heard from Astak, it was quietly peddling some off-the-wall Mentor e-book reader based on adrab OEM model that every other no-name reader manufacturer uses. Now, however, it seems the company has a bit more pep in its step (though it’s still copying others, this time the BeBook), as it has proudly proclaimed that the new 5-inch EZ Reader Pocket PRO is primed to ‘give Amazon’s Kindle a run for its money.’ With Adobe’s blessing, the device is able to support over 20 open file formats along with DRM-laced PDF files; also of note, a sure-to-be-controversial text-to-speech feature can read back documents aloud…”
“…Dell and Intel are collaborating on a touchscreen tablet due for release next year. Though our source has learned little about specifications of the device, what’s apparent is that the tablet will serve as a subscription-based e-reader for displaying newspapers, magazines and other media, giving Amazon’s Kindle — particularly, the nearly $500 large-format DX model — a run for its money.
As notable as the format is the business model: The tablet will be free for consumers who opt into a contract subscribing to one or more digital media subscriptions, according to our source. That’s similar to how telecom companies currently subsidize cellphones when customers agree to two-year contracts…”
From DigitalKoans today:
“Sony has announced that one million public domain books from Google are available for its current e-book readers.
In related news, there are rumors that two new Sony e-book readers may be released in August.
Read more about it at ‘Sony E-Readers Get Access to 1M Free Public Domain Books from Google‘ and ‘Sony to Offer 1 Million Google Books through Its Readers.’…”
From KINDLE REVIEW, etc. blog on the new Sony PRS-600
“…Sony Reader PRS 600 – Key Features
Sony Reader PRS 600 Default Fonts
5. Extendible memory – The manual indicates SD Card and Memory Stick Duo are both supported.
6. Very compact – It’s 4.87″ by 6.87″ by .4 inches. That’s roughly 11 cm by 17.4 cm by .98 cm.
Sony Reader PRS-600 – Key Details
You can look at the Sony Reader 300 manual in PDF or get the Sony 300 manual’sKindle compatible version…”
The Centered Librarian‘s post Read 2 Me Reads to You on Your iPhone today points our a useful app for the iPhone:
“Read 2 Me is an iPhone application that provides full speech synthesis for an entire library of texts…Read 2 Me uses Acapela-Group’s text-to-speech technology and can read almost anything that can be converted to UTF-8.txt. It is already optimized for the Gutenberg collection…”
“In this episode of Killer Apps, Slate’s Farhad Manjoo reviews the new Amazon Kindle application for the iPhone and how it compares with the experience of using Amazon’s own e-book reader.”
MUST SEE – WATCH: iPhone vs. Kindle
Amazon Kindle Software on the iPhone and Kindle 2:
The Centered Librarian today pointed out ScrollMotion’s new “Iceberg” electronic reader for iPhone which ScrollMotion describes as:
“Iceberg is our revolutionary new electronic reader. Iceberg brings the timeless experience of reading books to the mobile space, wedding the functionality of the iPhone to the feel and familiarity of books.
Iceberg is different from all other existing electronic book readers – it’s the only one that replicates the actual experience of reading a book. It’s all done in an organic way that feels right to people who love to read…”
Visit the ScrollMotion site for more details. It will be interesting to hear the reviews from iPhone users.
Here is an excerpt of an interesting post that I can empathize with from Sarah Zhang titled Kindle: Lo-fi v. High Tech from the Digital Natives blog today.
“With Amazon’s new Kindle set to debut next week, the web is abuzz with rumors about Kindle 2.0. Will it have web browsing? Will there be networking features with other Kindles? Will it at least be a little less clunky?
When the original Kindle debuted in fall 2007, Jesse wrote an insightful post arguing that despite the tempting comparison to iPods, the Kindle is really a digital immigrant’s device. It’s designed to mimic the tactile and visual sensation of reading a book, and it has none of the slick elegance of an iPhone. Far short of paradigm-shifting, it looked back instead of forwards. These characteristics opened up the Kindle to criticism, but it hasn’t kept the device from gaining a loyal following…
It’s true, the Internet can be demanding. New email, unread counts, missed calls, text message – they gush at you in a constant stream. It’s comforting, sometimes, to hold in your hands something finite and discrete, something that doesn’t ask you to respond right away
…extolments of Kindle’s paperness reminded of Jack Cheng’s “In Praise of Lo-Fi,” in which he asks what happens to deep contemplation in a world blanketed in wi-fi and wireless power – a world where connectivity can’t be turned off. He turns to the opposite: lo-fi…
I often find myself in search of lo-fi these days. At first, I tried to battle technology with technology. Leechblock or an user account with “parental” controls disabling Internet, but I found them too easily circumvented when surrounded by multiple web browsers and multiple computers. Even though many of my classes have online readings, I now print out and annotate them by hand, making sure to sit far away from any luminescent electronic screens. When writing a paper, I sometimes shut my laptop and take a walk outside to ruminate by myself. Those with better willpower can take less drastic measures, but I’m too easily distracted.
When the new Kindle does debut, it’ll have to mediate two opposing tensions. One of innovation, it has to compete with all-capable gadgets like the iPhone. On the other hand, it should still be a reading experience, not another portable computer. Will it combine the best or worst of both worlds? If I got a Kindle, I’m afraid I’ll be lured by easy downloads and accumulate a backlog of books much like the way unlistened podcasts have taken over my iPod. Or perhaps, it’ll have better wireless integration and finally get me to read the articles I’ve saved via Instapaper. Convenient or too convenient?…”
From Barron’s Tech Trader Daily – Barron’s Online : Amazon: Kindle Demand Ahead … blog today by Eric Savitz:
“CEO Jeff Bezos this afternoon told investors on the company’s post-earnings conference call that demand for its Kindle e-book reader is outpacing expectations. He says the company is ‘scrambling’ for more manufacturing capacity so it can reach its goal of shipping the device immediately upon orders being received. ‘We’re working hard to get there,’he says. ‘We’re super excited by the very strong demand.’”
Copyright © 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Publishers Weekly [Publishers Weekly - International Book & Bookselling News, Reviews ...] reported today [Amazon To Drop Microsoft, Adobe e-Book Formats - 1/26/2009 7:08:00 ...]:
“Amazon.com has notified its publisher and author clients that it plans to cease offering e-books in the Microsoft Reader and Adobe e-book formats. In the future, the online retailer says it plans to offer only e-books in the Kindle format (for wireless download to its Kindle reading device) and the Mobipocket format, both of which are owned by Amazon. The online retailer’s note asks publishers and authors to make sure that Amazon has written permission to offer their books for sale in the Mobipocket format.
Amazon did not specify how long the Adobe PDF and Microsoft formats will continue to be available…”
©2009 Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
The amazing pent-up desire for Kindle expressed in number of searches [http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/12/23/searches-for-kindle-picked-up-during-the-holidays/]:
“We already know that the Kindle, Amazon’s electronic book, is sold out for Christmas, but people are still looking for them. Searches on Google
for the term ‘Kindle’ picked up in October to nearly triple the level during the summer. It’s settled down a bit, but search volume is still at about double the previous rate.
Not finding any available Kindles, searches for ‘Sony Reader’ are picking up as well, although the clear preference is still the elusive Kindle by nearly two to one. If you really want one, just do yourself a favor and wait for the next version to come out early next year.
Despite the surge in demand and sold-out inventory, I’d be surprised if Amazon has sold more than one million Kindles to date. Maybe 500,000. That would not be a stretch, given that 240,000 had been manufactured through August. It’s a complete guess, though (the 500,000)…”
Earliest shipping dates for Kindle 2 from Amazon: “Expected to ship in 11 to 13 weeks“
