Astak Mentor eBook readers with WiFi and Touchscreen (read-only)

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by kesey

HarryT, I've seen you mention on other threads that the Cybook works better for you than did the 505. What makes it better?

- Dictionary lookup.
- The ability to load any TrueType or OpenType font onto the machine, and to view any book in any font.
- A much wider range of font sizes (12, vs. 3 on the Sony).
- Proper support for font families ("real" italic and bold fonts, rather than "synthesised" ones on the Sony).
- Support for the MobiPocket file format, which is supported on multiple devices means that I can read the same books on my phone, PDA, and Gen3.
- Not having to use Sony's horrible eBook Library software to buy books - with Mobi books you can buy from dozens of different book stores with any web browser on any machine.
- A user-replaceable battery.

That's enough to be going on with.

The Sony is a fine machine, but for me personally, the Gen3 has enough extra features to be worth paying extra for.

[tribble]

I agree with Harry and Emu

The CyBook will be alot more attractive, if Bookeen can bring down the price a bit. Although 249€ for the 505 would be very interesting aswell. We will have to see, what Sony will do, once they bring their device to germany.

[Mycropht]

Originally Posted by HarryT

You really can't directly compare US prices. By the time you add shipping, VAT, import duties, etc, you'll end up paying pretty much the same.

The shipping from China to US must be cheaper than shipping from China to Europe because US is downstream and Europe is upstream from China. Funny things, the oceans.

[Rosethorn1403]

ok so this is looking more and more like vapourware

[theDwarf]

Originally Posted by Rosethorn1403

ok so this is looking more and more like vapourware

You know, I used to work for a game company (RPGs). For two years all the industry could talk about was that game and when it would come out and many people made similar statements to yours.

I say this only to show that I understand lead time and development time and when I hear from different sources that there is a hold up on some part I don't automatically assume some product is vapourware especially if a company rep is still discussing it.


BTW, when the company I used to work for released the game it took "Game of the Year". If you are familiar with the RPG industry (pen & paper, not computer "RPG") then you would know what company I used to work for.
-Dwarf

[garygibsonsf]

@ the dwarf:

Not currently resident somewhere in Eastern Europe, are you? Apologies, of course, if you turn out to be someone other than the fantasy writer I know and suspect you of being. J'accuse!

[squonk]

hallo : new device prototype epaper reader
http://www.demo.com/watchlisten/vide...tid=1778578839

astak mentor 9.7 is now old when it will come out !!!!!

bye
A.

[wallcraft]

Originally Posted by squonk

astak mentor 9.7 is now old when it will come out.

Astal was not the first to provide details of a device with a 9.7" screen. We have known about the Hanlin V9 for a very long time, see Hanlin V9 Early Review & Photos. In both cases, the hold up is the actual 9.7" screen. Other vendors what to use these too, but the odds are that none of these devices will be available in volume before next spring.

By this time next year the high end of the EInk market will be dominated by 9.7" and 10.7" (Plastic Logic) screens. It has been a long wait, and it isn't over yet.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by squonk

hallo : new device prototype epaper reader
http://www.demo.com/watchlisten/vide...tid=1778578839

astak mentor 9.7 is now old when it will come out !!!!!

bye
A.

Hello everyone. Let me try to update a bit on Astak's devices.

We will have a major announcement on the 6 inch device regarding date of release, price, final features, etc in about three weeks. That is going to be the first one out and it will be very fast, very stable, almost impossible to hang-up, light and thinner than others, and will use a numerical system for menu options. We have had our entire staff deliberately trying to make it mess up and it seems to be rock-solid. Right now the only thing we are still deciding is the color. I think almost everybody likes Metallic Blue and Metallic Red. I also know that you don't care about color you just want to see it for real.

Let me tell all of you that the official unveiling is at the CES show in Las Vegas, January 7-10 in Las Vegas. There you will be able to buy the 6 inch and see what is cooking for the 5 inch and 9.7 inch. IF you want a free registration for CES, send email to: sales@astak.com and I will email you one if you give me your email address!! Be aware that hotels raise their rates for CES a ton and you should book a motel room in a low-life place; but come to the show and tell us what you want! Our booth # is 73206 and we have a 54 foot long booth right at the front of the Sands Expo Center!!

Prior to that, we are unveiling a NEW online website that will sell BOTH the 6 inch unit (now known as "EZ Reader") and the latest books for it. In three weeks I will publish when that website is up and coming.

Please note that IF I had 100,000 9.7 inch I could sell them in a week. I do not. I have been very honest with you all in telling you it has NOT been done before and a regular screen will not work on such a large size because it cracks when the unit is twisted (in a suitcase or purse or anywhere else). It takes a flexi-screen and that is moving forward, but slowly. I am NOT a panel manufacturer and I cannot rush it. IF you ARE a panel manufacturer and have a flexi-screen I want to hear from you right away. The biggest panel manufacturers in the world are working on this and the release date keeps moving back. It will happen... but do not hold your breath. Best guess for a 9.7 or 10 inch Flexi-Screen is likely May, 2009 by anyone. I have tried to be very straight with you from the start... and this is insider info.

I am sorry for the confusion and the delay. Most of it was not truly our fault as we were waiting for porting and new formats and the latest controller... and trying to get a device that is light and thin yet runs like a Nike-Hercules missile. The very second all is nailed down I will be back on here letting you know.

Robert B

[axel77]

Originally Posted by theDwarf

You know, I used to work for a game company (RPGs). For two years all the industry could talk about was that game and when it would come out and many people made similar statements to yours.

I say this only to show that I understand lead time and development time and when I hear from different sources that there is a hold up on some part I don't automatically assume some product is vapourware especially if a company rep is still discussing it.


BTW, when the company I used to work for released the game it took "Game of the Year". If you are familiar with the RPG industry (pen & paper, not computer "RPG") then you would know what company I used to work for.
-Dwarf

theDwarf... take into consideratoin what announcing release dates, and failings do mean for people. Astak announced for September, if not actually earlier. They fail that. There are people who especially did not by e.g. an iLiad, because out of some, for me not understandable reason, they thought the astak is gonna be better. Now they wait for months, now they realised they could have used an eReader all the time, but they have to make the same decision again. People get mad if you fail announcements.

If you need 2 years, its okay, just say so in beforehand before mixing up other peoples market...

[axel77]

Originally Posted by Robertb

Hello everyone. Let me try to update a bit on Astak's devices.

We will have a major announcement on the 6 inch device regarding date of release, price, final features, etc in about three weeks. That is going to be the first one out and it will be very fast, very stable, almost impossible to hang-up, light and thinner than others, and will use a numerical system for menu options. We have had our entire staff deliberately trying to make it mess up and it seems to be rock-solid. Right now the only thing we are still deciding is the color. I think almost everybody likes Metallic Blue and Metallic Red. I also know that you don't care about color you just want to see it for real.

Let me tell all of you that the official unveiling is at the CES show in Las Vegas, January 7-10 in Las Vegas. There you will be able to buy the 6 inch and see what is cooking for the 5 inch and 9.7 inch. IF you want a free registration for CES, send email to: sales@astak.com and I will email you one if you give me your email address!! Be aware that hotels raise their rates for CES a ton and you should book a motel room in a low-life place; but come to the show and tell us what you want! Our booth # is 73206 and we have a 54 foot long booth right at the front of the Sands Expo Center!!

Prior to that, we are unveiling a NEW online website that will sell BOTH the 6 inch unit (now known as "EZ Reader") and the latest books for it. In three weeks I will publish when that website is up and coming.

Please note that IF I had 100,000 9.7 inch I could sell them in a week. I do not. I have been very honest with you all in telling you it has NOT been done before and a regular screen will not work on such a large size because it cracks when the unit is twisted (in a suitcase or purse or anywhere else). It takes a flexi-screen and that is moving forward, but slowly. I am NOT a panel manufacturer and I cannot rush it. IF you ARE a panel manufacturer and have a flexi-screen I want to hear from you right away. The biggest panel manufacturers in the world are working on this and the release date keeps moving back. It will happen... but do not hold your breath. Best guess for a 9.7 or 10 inch Flexi-Screen is likely May, 2009 by anyone. I have tried to be very straight with you from the start... and this is insider info.

I am sorry for the confusion and the delay. Most of it was not truly our fault as we were waiting for porting and new formats and the latest controller... and trying to get a device that is light and thin yet runs like a Nike-Hercules missile. The very second all is nailed down I will be back on here letting you know.

Robert B

Never mention "rock solid" and "windows device" in one sentence :-) I'd rather have a devince that will *never* lock up, not "almost"...

Also I read here a lot of what people would wanted from a new device, but I want it thinner and lighter was by far not even in the top 10. People want to fix a lot with their eReader, but I hardly believe that anyones first wish would be "thinner and lighter".. I think people are pretty satisfied what devices offer today in this regard. Not that it isn't bad per se, there just so much more pressing issues...

If you are unsure about the Color, read the TCO99 specification for LCD screens, color matters for easy on eyes! not just style.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by axel77

Never mention "rock solid" and "windows device" in one sentence :-) I'd rather have a devince that will *never* lock up, not "almost"...

Also I read here a lot of what people would wanted from a new device, but I want it thinner and lighter was by far not even in the top 10. People want to fix a lot with their eReader, but I hardly believe that anyones first wish would be "thinner and lighter".. I think people are pretty satisfied what devices offer today in this regard. Not that it isn't bad per se, there just so much more pressing issues...

If you are unsure about the Color, read the TCO99 specification for LCD screens, color matters for easy on eyes! not just style.

Dear Axel:

Yes... slip of the tongue on the "almost". I just always fear saying "never ever ever locks up". My philosophy is that anything can be made to lock up if you try long enough and hard enough and get unlucky. Let me just say that our team of batterers could not get it to lock up or skip a beat!

It is a little depressing to hear that "thinner and lighter" ranked far down the list. Myself, I hate the bulkiness and weight of other devices. I guess it is just me then... but to me thin and small and light are prime considerations for comfort. We must have talked to about 50 book publishers who owned one of the other eBook Readers and kept hearing "cumbersom, no fun to hold, hard to pack, and particularly the general layout makes it impossible to hold for more than an hour". To them, our device was a major leap forward in ergonomics.

I did note another reader commenting on the delay for the Astak device. I do sympathize; but wanted to explain that this is brand new to us. We are not an Amazon or a Sony. Also, you initially set schedules based on what you think it will take. However, no man is an island... we were forced to work with Adobe, Microsoft, Mobiepocket and other formats. A device without a format is not a device. We expected they would fall all over themselves to get their format on our devices. Reality is they fell all over themselves not doing anything. Agreements took months and then it came to getting it actually ported. Silly me... I thought it would take a few weeks at most. Porting takes forever and there is little help. You either pay $200,000 to have someone else do it (raising the price you charge for the device) or you try to slog thru it yourself with engineers who never did it before. I do not think the average MobileRead Forum experts truly understand what porting is... an endless nightmare.

Yes, I agree that there are more pressing issues than "thinner and lighter" but at least I am open to hearing them. I did invite the readers to come to CES and chat. I cannot solve all of the problems with eBook Readers in one effort. I can just try to keep the price down and generate the best one yet. Will there be a Version 2? Yes, I think so. This is because technology keeps moving forward and eBook Readers are a compilation of the parts... panels, controllers, embedded flash, e-paper, micro-electronics, and copyrights. By the time you get one device to market, advancements have come out that you wish you had.

I do appreciate your comments!!

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by Robertb

It is a little depressing to hear that "thinner and lighter" ranked far down the list. Myself, I hate the bulkiness and weight of other devices. I guess it is just me then... but to me thin and small and light are prime considerations for comfort.

Hmm... the Sony, CyBook are pretty thin... the Kindle is a bit thicker but haven't had trouble holding it for long streaches... easier than a 12lbs hard cover.

Can I ask, is the EZ Reader as you are now calling it going to support eReader and Mobi or are you still bringing out two models?

BTW: Seems like plastic logic has a flexible 10inch display on the way... however they are doing their own reader and may not want to OEM the screens.

BOb

[Emu]

Originally Posted by Robertb

We have had our entire staff deliberately trying to make it mess up and it seems to be rock-solid. Right now the only thing we are still deciding is the color. I think almost everybody likes Metallic Blue and Metallic Red. I also know that you don't care about color you just want to see it for real.

Well, rock-solid sounds nice, thats one of the reasons why I love my cam (Canon A710IS)

The colour - MY (very personal) opinion is that over 50% of the buyers would either want a black or a white one, the other 50% would like to have a CERTAIN colour, but 50% of them don't get their personal colour and will buy a b/w one in the end. So I guess 75% of the market would go for a b/w one and 25% would buy a red or blue metal thing.

I e.g. would maybe prefer a coloured one, but for shure not a metal one, nor a blue or red or gray one. In the end I would just end up happy with a black or a white one.

[slayda]

Originally Posted by Robertb

Hello everyone. Let me try to update a bit on Astak's devices.

...

Prior to that, we are unveiling a NEW online website that will sell BOTH the 6 inch unit (now known as "EZ Reader") and the latest books for it. In three weeks I will publish when that website is up and coming.

...

Robert B

Will you be giving away free ebooks to advertise your new site like Tor.com did?