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

[rgeorg]

Originally Posted by Robertb

Dear JicMic:

The next model out is the Mentor Intrigue, slated for release in May or June. That will have 8 levels of grey scale and get double the charge life of anything now on the market.

Robert B

I probably just missed it - but when is the scheduled release date for the Mentor Lite?

I'll also repeat a question I saw posted - but no answer - will there be any way for people in Europe to purchase the US unit?

I thought I read somewhere in this topic that 500000 similar units have already been sold in Russia and the EU - under what name brand
---- Searched around and found the answer...

I hope that my questions are not inappropriate in any way...

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by rgeorg

I probably just missed it - but when is the scheduled release date for the Mentor Lite?

I'll also repeat a question I saw posted - but no answer - will there be any way for people in Europe to purchase the US unit?

I thought I read somewhere in this topic that 500000 similar units have already been sold in Russia and the EU - under what name brand
---- Searched around and found the answer...

I hope that my questions are not inappropriate in any way...

Dear rgeorg:

Your questions are always welcome. I hope you are also reading my blog: www.robertbEZ.blogspot.com

I did post an answer to purchasing in Europe. Yes, when we release you will be able to buy from our new website (under construction now): www. goEZebook.com.

The European distributor for similar to the Mentor is Longshine in Germany.

We hoped to release the Mentor in 5-6 weeks. However, we just heard from the factory that it will not have the Epson controller until May sometime and we want to ensure that this is on there. Also, the Mentor Lite would not have MP3... something that we feel is important for the North American market. We are trying to decide now whether to go with the Mentor Lite or just wait for the Mentor Intrique. The Intrigue has 8 levels of greyscale, 16,000 pages to a single charge, MP3, and the Epson controller... and is due anyway in June... plus I love the new design. Plus, we can get Touchscreen, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth on it if we want all that. We already have the EZ Reader Basic and the Mentor Lite is essentially the same basic machine.

So... there is some planning and choosing going on.

Robert B

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by DG25

At what price will it be? Is there an option for black color?

Dear DG25:

Black is always the basic color ( or lack of color perhaps). Gettinng them in black is not a problem.

Pricing is still being worked out. We do not know yet.

Robert B

[rgeorg]

Dear Robert,
Thanks so much for answering my questions. I'll look into the European contacts - although I also have relatives and visit the USA regularly, being an ex-pat.

Perhaps you can help my basic question - I don't really care about the .mp3 as I have a dedicated .mp3 player with great battery life, or touchscreen or wireless, etc. What I am really interested in was the no-black-page-flash and speed of page changes that you mentioned on your (very interesting!) blog site for the Mentor Lite. I hesitate to purchase the EZreader, or really any other current device, because I fear (unreasonably?) that the page-turn delay and flash will bother me.

I suppose the most prudent course is just to wait until this summer and see what arrives on the market. Unfortunately, waiting is not my strong suit!

Thanks again for your prompt and informative reply!

[wallcraft]

Originally Posted by rgeorg

What I am really interested in was the no-black-page-flash and speed of page changes that you mentioned on your (very interesting!) blog site for the Mentor Lite.

With the Epson controller potentially providing a major improvement in functionality, it will likely be worth waiting for. Note that the Sony PRS-700 and Amazon Kindle 2 already have this controller, and it isn't guaranteed to help in all cases (some K2 owners complained about ghosting, i.e. incomplete page refreshes, for example). Earlier Netronix designs, as in the Cybook Gen 3, also used a D-pad for on-screen navigation (but with the old controller) and this is exactly the kind of operation that the Epson controller should significantly improve. The EZ Reader primarily uses its number pad for navigation, but the page turn flash might be bothersome. Most people find that they can ignore it (and the page turn delay) after a while. However, less flash and faster page turns are a good thing.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by rgeorg

Dear Robert,
Thanks so much for answering my questions. I'll look into the European contacts - although I also have relatives and visit the USA regularly, being an ex-pat.

Perhaps you can help my basic question - I don't really care about the .mp3 as I have a dedicated .mp3 player with great battery life, or touchscreen or wireless, etc. What I am really interested in was the no-black-page-flash and speed of page changes that you mentioned on your (very interesting!) blog site for the Mentor Lite. I hesitate to purchase the EZreader, or really any other current device, because I fear (unreasonably?) that the page-turn delay and flash will bother me.

I suppose the most prudent course is just to wait until this summer and see what arrives on the market. Unfortunately, waiting is not my strong suit!

Thanks again for your prompt and informative reply!

Dear rgeorg:

Purely and cleanly, what determines the speed of page turns (and no black screen in between turns, is the speed of the controller. Five years ago there was hardly any installed base for eBook Readers and no controller company wanted to get involved. PVI (the world's largest panel manufacturer) had to invent their own controller for eBook Readers. THAT is why the page turns have been very slow as controllers is not a PVI strong suit.

Now, Epson has come out with the first new controller. It is about 5 times as fast as the PVI controller and makes the world of difference that you seek.

That controller will start being installed by our factory in Taiwan in late May. SOME of the Mentor Lite would likely get it if we delay the order. BUT... if we delay the order, we might as well wait until late June and get the infinitely better Mentor Intrique as of the 8 level grey scale and note-taking, and dictionary support, and MP3, and double the battery life.

Robert B

[emellaich]

Originally Posted by rgeorg

... What I am really interested in was the no-black-page-flash ...

I'm not convinced that 1) The black page flash will go away with the new controller; and 2) I think the black page flash is a 'feature' not a limitation .

1) I don't really have all of the information here -- I'm just inferring from what I have read. I think the new controller has two features. First, it refreshes the page faster, and second it allows partial refreshes so that you can easily redraw just the portion of the screen that changes (ie, the menu area).

The purpose of the black flash is to make sure that the e-ink is cleanly reset between each screen refresh. The Cybook (on the Netronix hardware) had an option to turn off the black flash -- even though it used the previous generation controller. With the flash off, the screen begins to degrade as you turned pages, the screen begins to degrade. Think along the lines of a poor quality fax with random dots. The black flash basically ensured all the dots were set to a zero (white) state before the new page was written. Without the flash, some of these dots could get stuck on.

I thought this was a characteristic of the e-ink screen and matching it with a new controller would not change the need for the screen to be 'cleaned' between uses?????

On the K2, the 'ghosting' is due to the fact that the screen has top and bottom margins that are not refreshed when the page turns. If you see a K2 (Kindle-2; I have one) turn the page and you will notice that the black flash does not impact the bottom margin of the screen. Since this area never goes through the black flash it is never cleaned up. Holding down alt-g on the K2 forces a full screen black flash and cleans up the after image.

2) Esthetically, I'm not sure that having a black flash isn't preferable anyway. Think about reading a book. You have to refocus as you move from the bottom of the left page to the top of the right. You have an even bigger 'flash' as you turn the right page to get to the new page.

This flash is simply a page turn. In fact, if it happens quickly (as it does on the K2) this flash is not at all jarring. It simply signals that a new page is being presented.

[moz]

I'd be happier with the flash if they made a double-page reader. That would let me read alternate screens when I'm reading fiction and have either a split screen (two arbitrary pages on the two screens) or a big screen (800x1200) when reading non-fiction. I think that would suit me better in some ways than a single large screen (unless the large screen folded or rolled up)

[rgeorg]

Originally Posted by emellaich

I'm not convinced that 1) The black page flash will go away with the new controller; and 2) I think the black page flash is a 'feature' not a limitation .
...

The purpose of the black flash is to make sure that the e-ink is cleanly reset between each screen refresh.
...
This flash is simply a page turn. In fact, if it happens quickly (as it does on the K2) this flash is not at all jarring. It simply signals that a new page is being presented.

This is something I had not considered and makes alot of sense. That would also provide rationale for Robertb's statement about perhaps skipping the Lite and going right to the Intrigue model for the added features of .mp3, wireless, touchscreen and longer battery life (all of which are not terribly important to me right now). I prefer dedicated devices that do one or two things - but really well.

It does make for a crowded handbag though!

[HarryT]

I think that pretty much everyone who's actually used an eInk device will say that the "flash" as the page turns is a complete non-issue. After an hour of using the device you don't notice it any more - your brain just "blocks it out". It's no more distracting than having to turn the page of a physical book is.

[igorsk]

Originally Posted by moz

I'd be happier with the flash if they made a double-page reader. That would let me read alternate screens when I'm reading fiction and have either a split screen (two arbitrary pages on the two screens) or a big screen (800x1200) when reading non-fiction. I think that would suit me better in some ways than a single large screen (unless the large screen folded or rolled up)

Panasonic did that with SigmaBook. It wasn't terribly successful.

[pilotbob]

Just as an aside. My Sony 500 flashes on every page turn. My Kindle only flashes on every other page turn. As a matter of fact I didn't realize this until very recently since I don't even normally notice the flash. I am sure as the technology advances the need to "flash" the screen will become less and less, perhaps to every 5th or 10th turn.

BOb

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by wallcraft

With the Epson controller potentially providing a major improvement in functionality, it will likely be worth waiting for. Note that the Sony PRS-700 and Amazon Kindle 2 already have this controller, and it isn't guaranteed to help in all cases (some K2 owners complained about ghosting, i.e. incomplete page refreshes, for example). Earlier Netronix designs, as in the Cybook Gen 3, also used a D-pad for on-screen navigation (but with the old controller) and this is exactly the kind of operation that the Epson controller should significantly improve. The EZ Reader primarily uses its number pad for navigation, but the page turn flash might be bothersome. Most people find that they can ignore it (and the page turn delay) after a while. However, less flash and faster page turns are a good thing.

Wallcraft always knows the answers and I am grateful.

As a note: all new models of Mentor (likely even Mentor Lite) and EZ Reader will have the Epson Controller.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I think that pretty much everyone who's actually used an eInk device will say that the "flash" as the page turns is a complete non-issue. After an hour of using the device you don't notice it any more - your brain just "blocks it out". It's no more distracting than having to turn the page of a physical book is.

I agree with Harry. It is great to have fast page turns; but it really does tend to become a non-issue. If you are reading a good book your interest should be on the plot of the book anyway... and you will not notice the page turn. It is nice that the "problem" is going away with the new controller... and I am glad... but if you read and note the page turn speed you need a better book that will engross you.

Robert B

[Jellby]

Faster page turns are needed for quickly browsing a book or the library, though.