Over at the fictionwise group on yahoo we have been kicking around the idea of a revised or new eb1150 style unit. I thought I would share some of it here. I have collected most of the update ideas on my web page:
http://users.cwnet.com/dalede/eb1150.html
The idea is that the current new products are all too expensive and have no backlight. There is a demand in the mass market for cheaper devices and many who still want a device with a backlight to use in bed or in the evening. The goal is to stay under $150 for the full device or $100 would be even better. There is no need for a multipurpose device but it must be a good ebook reader. The eb1150 was chosen as a starting point as it is the cheapest device available today. Many folks find that it is the reader they most like but it is getting behind the curve in technology.
Two approaches have been explored so far.
1. Replace the firmware and support software with new releases that adds new needed features and replace the backcover of the unit with a cover that has a replaceable battery (20 hour min life) and a modern memory card. This would hopefully be upgradeable to existing units.
2. Using the idea of the eb1150 as a model come up with a new replacement device that has a touch screen, a LCD or equivalent display, with a backlight and more resolution in a box that is about the size of the current eb1150. The eink technology is rejected due to its high cost, its lack of a touch screen, lack of a reasonable light, and the low value of gray scale.
Any ideas you might have would be appreciated. I will update the wish list on my site for ideas that I think are workable given the size, cost, and other goals. One big idea is to use the 7 inch display currently proposed for the cheap laptop effort which can achieve 200 dpi in grayscale mode.
We are hoping to interest ebook technologies, maker of the eb1150 in pursuing this.
Dale