Colour E-Ink hitting the market by the end of the year?

[Teyrnon]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

For the most part color would be a waste in a 6" device IMO.

Well, it might make a good photo-frame type display but for color in books and magazines I think we'd want something in a minimum size of 9"

[boswd]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

For the most part color would be a waste in a 6" device IMO.

I don't think so, having a full six inch color book cover art and this should also allow for a sharper contrast which will be very appealing. Also viewing newspapers would be attractive as well with color photos.

being able to view your library on the main screen in full color would be very much eye candy on a six inch.

it would be great for Childrens book that have color pictures. you don't need a 9 inch screen to enjoy the benefits.

[tomsem]

Does anyone happen to know what color model they are using? How many color elements, and what they are named?

In any case, I would not want to trade good black on white contrast for color, particularly if the color is not good.

[Crowl]

Originally Posted by boswd

I don't think so, having a full six inch color book cover art and this should also allow for a sharper contrast which will be very appealing. Also viewing newspapers would be attractive as well with color photos.

being able to view your library on the main screen in full color would be very much eye candy on a six inch.

it would be great for Childrens book that have color pictures. you don't need a 9 inch screen to enjoy the benefits.

Covers in colour or children's books are fairly minor benefits to justify paying a premium over a standard e-ink screen though, the more common uses for a colour screen would be things like magazines or comics and for those most people would tend to need a larger screen with many people not thinking the ipad is large enough for them really, but is a reasonable compromise of size and weight for reading comfort.

[Phogg]

Originally Posted by ppw

Whichever company adopting color e-ink and touch now must be out of his mind. Be it Amazon or Barnes Noble. Amazon tried hard to distinguish Kindle from IPad. If kindle adds color and touch, Kindle and Ipad will be in the same device category.

I think color e-ink will not come from a major company in the near future unless they can compete with IPad in the same category.

The Ipad lacks the battery life to be in the same category with a bistable color device.

This is like declaring a Ford F250 truck and a BMW Cooper to be in the same category because they both have 4 wheels and an engine.

I would buy a comic book sized electronic reader for camping in a heart beat.

[Holland]

Originally Posted by ppw

Whichever company adopting color e-ink and touch now must be out of his mind. Be it Amazon or Barnes Noble. Amazon tried hard to distinguish Kindle from IPad. If kindle adds color and touch, Kindle and Ipad will be in the same device category.

I think color e-ink will not come from a major company in the near future unless they can compete with IPad in the same category.

I'm going to have to politely ask if you'd share what you're smoking

eReaders differentiate themselves quite strongly and have no need to "compete with iPad" as in the most important categories, iPad fails miserably.

1. eInk is dramatically better for 'reading' than a lit screen
2. eBooks are small enough to handle easily and for long period while still being large enough to read comfortably
3. iPads are firmly in the 'tablet / netbook' market, not the eReader market. It is to eReading what the netbook I'm typing this missive on is.

If, and only if, eInk becomes as robust, reliable, and agile as LEDs currently are will there be any consideration for adopting them into Kindle-sized multi-function computers. If/When that happens, in a number of years, then begins the question of specialist-products (eReaders) vs generalist-products.

There is no comparison between the comfort of eInk and the distinct discomfort of reading on lit (even dimmed) LED media for more than short-term focused reading. The device that services the material is itself immaterial.

[ppw]

Originally Posted by Holland

eReaders differentiate themselves quite strongly and have no need to "compete with iPad" as in the most important categories, iPad fails miserably.

We can argue back and forth whether a new color e-reader and iPad are in the same category. But one thing I am pretty certain is:

If Amazon brings a Kindle DX with color touch screen, video capability, and a web browser (Webkit) in 2011, it will be compared to the second generation of iPad to death disregard they are in the same category or not.

[RichyRich]

I think the iPad will be compared to the Android tablets. Color E-Ink readers will be touted as a niche product because they would only run a minimal amount of programs at most. For them to gain mass popularity, the color E-Ink readers will need excellent battery life. I definitely enjoy that my EZ Reader Pocket Pro goes for half a month before I lose a bar on the battery meter and that's with reading 100+ pages daily. I don't quite agree with the need for touchscreens on ebook readers because of fingerprints but some form of annotation ability would be nice, such as via a touchpad.

[Dopedangel]

Originally Posted by RichyRich

I think the iPad will be compared to the Android tablets. Color E-Ink readers will be touted as a niche product because they would only run a minimal amount of programs at most. For them to gain mass popularity, the color E-Ink readers will need excellent battery life. I definitely enjoy that my EZ Reader Pocket Pro goes for half a month before I lose a bar on the battery meter and that's with reading 100+ pages daily. I don't quite agree with the need for touchscreens on ebook readers because of fingerprints but some form of annotation ability would be nice, such as via a touchpad.

If the screen refresh is quick enough their is no reason why android tablets with color ink won't be introduced in a 1-2 years

[Wordcrasher]

Originally Posted by ppw

Whichever company adopting color e-ink and touch now must be out of his mind. Be it Amazon or Barnes Noble. Amazon tried hard to distinguish Kindle from IPad. If kindle adds color and touch, Kindle and Ipad will be in the same device category.

I think color e-ink will not come from a major company in the near future unless they can compete with IPad in the same category.

I don't know about market, but if Amazon should come out with color e-ink Kindle, same size and weight as K2 or K3, at a similar price, I'll buy it 5 secs after it's announced.
For the same reasons I decided to buy a b&w Kindle ad not an iPad (weight, size and price).

[ardeegee]

http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20100811PD219.html

[meem]

If it released in a normal price it will kills all current E-Readers !

[Papi]

Wondering if the color filter will alter the quality of the contrast in B&W mode...If it doesn't, it looks tempting, at least to me.

[HappyMartin]

Not interested in colour for a 6" device and for me a 6" device is the sweet spot for fiction reading. I am not interested in a larger screen in B/W as I would love to read magazines on a larger screen but colour would be needed for that.

[CallOfCth'reader]

Originally Posted by jswinden

That photo of the first generation e-Ink screen looked washed out, so they have a long ways to go as far as improving the quality.

I see a potential problem getting e-Ink to work with colour: e-Ink's grey-scale strength (IMO) is the clarity and matt 'paper' quality; with colour, to match a magazine/book, it must be vibrant and reflective.

Are they going to be able to have colour that packs a punch, and still retain the paper-like quality for text, or are they going to compromise and have weaker performance in both spheres?