10:41 AM by suncor in E-Book General | News

I didn't expect to be the first to see this, and apologies if it is elsewhere, or if I have done this wrong.

The two new Sony Reader devices will be very attractively priced, and are definitely much more compact and lighter than previous models with a possible width under 10mm. From what we’re hearing the new models will also have improved contrast and faster page turns. The PRS-650 will have a six inch screen while the PRS-350 will have a five inch screen. There will also be a bump in capacity from the usual 512MB or less found in currently Sony Reader models to 2GB of internal storage. We are not sure if that capacity bump extends to both devices, but will most certainly be true for the PRS-650. We also know that the PRS-650 will have Wi-Fi (and possibly free 3G), while the PRS-300 will not have any wireless connectivity (like the PRS-300).

http://www.sonyinsider.com/2010/08/1...s-coming-soon/

08:55 AM by Mike L in Miscellaneous | Lounge

The Edinburgh International Book Festival 2010 is getting under way. And, once again, it will be the venue for MobileRead's Edinburgh meet-up (now in its third year).

So if you're anywhere near the Scottish capital, head over here for another splendid afternoon of fun and e-literary chat.

Here are the details:

Date:
Saturday 21st August 2010

Time:
From 2.30 pm

Place:
At the Edinburgh International Book Festival venue in Charlotte Square, Edinburgh. We'll meet in the cafe in the Highland Spiegeltent, which is on your left as you come in through the main entrance.

How to recognise us:
Look for the A4 Mobile Read logo. Failing that, just look for a bunch of intelligent-looking people poring over various hand-held devices.

Other details:
At present, the plan is to meet over coffee or a beer, and then perhaps to visit the festival together, with the possibility of continuing into dinner
in the evening.

About the festival
The festival is one of the largest events of its kind in Europe. Its extensive book displays and exhibits are free and open to all, as are some of the events and entertainment (but most talks and presentations require a ticket). Even without our meet-up, it would be a great place to hang out (provided you like books).

The meet-up is only a few days away now, so do your best to get here. It promises to be another excellent afternoon.

(Photo (c) Kevin Rae (Creative Commons Licence))

07:00 AM by Alexander Turcic in Miscellaneous | Week in Review

If you've been a bit too busy to keep up, here are a few of our favorite stories from the past week.

E-Book General - News

• Colour E-Ink hitting the market by the end of the year?
• GooReader launched, supports Google Books

12:51 PM by Nate the great in E-Book General | News

A new reading app for Google Books was just announced today. It's called GooReader and it interfaces directly with the Google Books website. It comes in both paid and free versions.

I just posted an early review over on my blog. I'm not impressed. I really have to wonder what's the point. You can download these books as PDFs. I have a couple really good PDF readers and this wasn't any better.

The Digital Reader

12:01 PM by m-reader in E-Book General | News

Here we go ...

E Ink Holdings, the company behind the power-sipping screens contained within Amazon's Kindle and Sony's Readers, is keeping to its schedule for the biggest overhaul of its display technology yet. Color panels are reportedly now sampling out to device vendors and China-based Hanvon has already answered the call -- it promises to deliver color E Ink readers by the end of this year. Two varieties of touchscreens are also being prepared: the first is a capacitive panel to sate the kids' need to flick and swipe everywhere, while the second will include a pen-friendly digitizer that should make annotations a doddle (or should that be a doodle?). Better response times and reflectivity are also being touted, though the big question is obviously when this good stuff will make its way into mainstream devices like the Kindle. If you believe Jeff Bezos, that won't be any time soon.

Highlights are mine ...

07:00 AM by Alexander Turcic in Miscellaneous | Week in Review

Just in case you've missed anything, here is the list of our frontpage news this week.

E-Book General - News

• NookStudy now available for download
• Foxit kills off eSlick ebook reader
• Amazon Releases Games for Kindle
• UK Kindle ebook store Now Open
• Irex rises from the (almost) dead
• German Hanvon's showing a new ereader

05:02 PM by carld in E-Book General | News

FREMONT, Calif. - (Business Wire) Converging on its core business strength, Foxit Corporation, a leader in PDF software solutions, today announced that it will license its industry-leading PDF and ePub technology to key players in the eBook market to help enhance digital rights management, content management, content distribution and viewing technology in the space. The company will cease development of the eSlick™ Reader, its own electronic reading device, to focus on providing platform-independent PDF technology and multi-device support to leading eBook providers.

Foxit kills off eSlick ebook reader [Engadget]

05:00 PM by Geppetto in E-Book General | News

German Hanvon website (not the English one: how strange) is showing a new ereader I've never heard of before: WISEreader B630

http://www.hanvon-deutschland.de/htm...ader_b630.html

looks like a 6" N520, in fact.

I wonder how many different models (for different markets) they made.