B&N and Verizon Jump Into E-Reader Fray with iRex

[kennyc]

And does this actually require a special stylus?

I didn't find anything on press release etc. that definitively said that?

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Dylrob

That's because iRex uses Wacom pen technology rather than a resistive touch membrane.

Do you have a link to this information?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by luqmaninbmore

Spoken like someone who has never been kept from reading their books on their devices due to Adobe's onerous server-based DRM. I could see how another _exclusive_ form of DRM could confuse the issue, but there is nothing to keep any individual device from being compatible with both EReader and ADEPT DRM. Given the choice between the two, any educated consumer will choose the EReader DRM (provided that this is used in conjunction with the epub format to address the issues with formating and image size you point out) because it guarantees them access to their books no matter what happens to B and N or Fictionwise or EReader.com. If ADOBE changes their system or goes belly up you could be locked from your books permanently (and, of course, this has happened before in regards to ADOBE, so they don't deserve the benefit of the doubt). If Amazon started offering EPUB books with Mobipocket or Topaz DRM, I would understand your point about confusion. But I just don't think it applies here.

Luqman

I'm not against eReader except that it's not a nice format for use with a screen size bigger then a cell phone.

But as far as taking ePub and adding another DRM, that won't be very nice at all. And it means that the code for the device will have to have ADE supported and their own code to handle ePub. This is going ot make it a lot harder to manage the firmware for one. And we could have different issues having two different ePub renderers.

[davidspitzer]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Do you have a link to this information?

Wacom Tablets take advantage of the electro-magnetic resonance technology developed by Wacom Co. Ltd. in which radio waves are sent to the stylus and returned for position analysis.
Thus you can even put a sheet of paper or photograph on the tablet surface and trace the drawing or photo on it , getting a digital image of the original drawing or photo easily . For a detailed description of the unique, patented Wacom technology please refer to our White Papers. (http://www.wacom.com.sg/download/driver/Tech_Intuos.pdf)

[davidspitzer]

so i am not sure this was discussed, but is this iliad going away - I cant imagine buying an iliad for $650 if this new device is available for $400. I have always liked Irex's hardware but have been dubious of their price point and content distribution strategy. It looks like this new device addresses both issues, i hope they do well with it

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by davidspitzer

Wacom Tablets take advantage of the electro-magnetic resonance technology developed by Wacom Co. Ltd. in which radio waves are sent to the stylus and returned for position analysis.
Thus you can even put a sheet of paper or photograph on the tablet surface and trace the drawing or photo on it , getting a digital image of the original drawing or photo easily . For a detailed description of the unique, patented Wacom technology please refer to our White Papers. (http://www.wacom.com.sg/download/driver/Tech_Intuos.pdf)

That wasn't the question. I own a wacom pad and use it daily. The question was whether this e-book actually uses that technology. I found no other confirmation of that anywhere.

[Dylrob]

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

Wait, isn't this the reason why there wasn't a Kindle in Europe? Because they'd have to sign deals with various providers to get complete coverage? And nobody said you wouldn't have coverage, if you bought a Kindle! At least, not in any review I've seen... They all say, you can download via whispernet. Not you can download via whispernet if you can access whispernet, which you can't unless you live in a populated area.

So, I presume you can't buy the Kindle because it doesn't have a whispernet function in your neck of the wood...

(sorry, had to let this out...)

I can buy the Kindle, but I would have to download books via USB. Which defeats its biggest selling point compared to other devices.

To be fair Amazon does link to a map of Sprint's coverage area towards the middle of the product page.

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

No matter the provider, it's always good to have choices. But they should also bring out a version without inherent mobile phone carrier. That way you can use your current provider (if you have one) and everybody should be able to use it (no matter where they live).

The problem is that there are different wireless standards in use by different US carriers. Comparing just the four major carriers, AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM while Sprint and Verizon use CDMA. The latter doesn't even require SIM cards.

[Demented]

My biggest concern with this new reader would be the battery life. I posted on their blog asking about it. If it's not in the 3000-1000 page turn range then the device is basically useless. I saw the list of formats that it will display and I noticed that html was absent. Should I just assume it will read html?

[Lbooker]

If I did not already own a reader, I would probably choose this new Irex as my first device.
Especially since the screen looks like the ideal size, and has a better contrast ratio (12:1 against 10:1 maximum for the other readers).
But since I have a decent reader, I will not buy a new one as long as there is no screen as white as the pages of my books.

The last unknown hardware detail about this new reader is the weight. Anyone?

[Dylrob]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Do you have a link to this information?

That's part of the spec for the iLiad and DR1000S/DR1000SW. I'm assuming it will carry over.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by kennyc

And does this actually require a special stylus?

I didn't find anything on press release etc. that definitively said that?

Their other devices use a WACOM stylus, specifically the "penabled" ones. I would assume the DR800 will be the same.

[davidspitzer]

Originally Posted by kennyc

That wasn't the question. I own a wacom pad and use it daily. The question was whether this e-book actually uses that technology. I found no other confirmation of that anywhere.

oh sorry yes it definitely uses a wacom layer - they speak extensively of having to use a pen for input in all the demos and also highlighting that they use wacom technology so that it can sit behind the screen and not obscure the eink in anyway

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by davidspitzer

so i am not sure this was discussed, but is this iliad going away - I cant imagine buying an iliad for $650 if this new device is available for $400. I have always liked Irex's hardware but have been dubious of their price point and content distribution strategy. It looks like this new device addresses both issues, i hope they do well with it

I haven't seen any official announcements, and have not even heard any "unofficial" ones behind the scenes. However, I would not be surprised if the iLiad is discontinued shortly after the DR800 is released. That's just speculation though.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by kennyc

That wasn't the question. I own a wacom pad and use it daily. The question was whether this e-book actually uses that technology. I found no other confirmation of that anywhere.

Both the iLiad and DR1000 do, and they've said that the DR800 is going to be based off of a similar architecture to the DR1000. I would be very surprised if it was something other than a Wacom screen.

Please note though, there are several different types of Wacom screens. Not all of them are compatible. You specifically need the "penabled" (aka Tablet Display) ones. Their "Bamboo" pens, for example, do not work.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by Demented

My biggest concern with this new reader would be the battery life. I posted on their blog asking about it. If it's not in the 3000-1000 page turn range then the device is basically useless. I saw the list of formats that it will display and I noticed that html was absent. Should I just assume it will read html?

Just an FYI, iRex doesn't usually give their battery life in terms of page turns, but rather in terms of number of hours. I haven't seen any real world numbers for the DR800 though, probably won't until they start getting out "into the wild".