05:42 PM by Bob Russell in E-Book Readers | Sony Reader

Do you have a Sony Reader and want your friends to be able to give you the gift of e-books? MobileRead has discovered that, according to Sony Connect Store support, friends can purchase Best Buy gift cards for that purpose. Specifically, you can redeem Best Buy gift cards at the Connect E-book Store for e-books for your Sony Reader.

Until now, it was only known that you could buy a gift certificate using the Sony Reader software: "In order to purchase or redeem a gift certificate you would need to install the software that comes with the Sony Reader."

Now we know that there is an additional option also available. "You can purchase a gift card at any Best Buy store in your location. To redeem a Best Buy gift card Launch the CONNECT Reader, go to eBooks Store, and register to create an account. If you already have an account, please login with your existing username. Click on 'Gifts' in the menu and click on the 'Redeem a gift certificate' link on the bottom of the page. Enter the gift code that you received and click on 'Submit'. This will automatically add the amount of the gift certificate into your account. Now search for your favorite books, download and enjoy."

But until someone confirms that this actually works, I'd still recommend proceeding with caution.

WARNING & UPDATE: A little birdie has whispered in my ear that, in fact, Best Buy gift cards will NOT work at the Sony Connect Ebook Store.

ANOTHER UPDATE: On further consultation with Sony it was learned that, as we already know, you can log on from your Reader's Connect software, and buy a gift certificate at the Connect store for someone else. Additionally in the future, Borders will be selling pre-paid cards.

11:32 AM by Alexander Turcic in E-Book Readers | Alternative Devices

While you can't count on getting special attention by waving around a Palm TX handheld, it's still an attractive alternative for reading e-books to those who are just not ready to buy an E Ink device yet. David of Teleread started a fresh forum where the Palm TX crowd can discuss any single possible way how to turn their beloved device into an e-book reader.

The Palm TX includes a high-resolution 320x480 screen, integrated WiFi and Bluetooth, SD/MMC support, 128MB of RAM, and you can grab it on sale for $260 USD from Amazon.

08:59 AM by Alexander Turcic in E-Book General | Deals and Resources (No...

While the Project Gutenberg online library offers hundreds of the world's greatest works of literature - including classics like Mark Twain's "Tom Sawyer," Shakespeare's "Hamlet," and the plays of Chekhov - at times its immense catalog is overwhelming and a little cumbersome to browse. So it's nice to see that they've put up a Top 100 page which ranks the top 100 books and authors that were downloaded yesterday, the last 7 days, and the last 30 days ago.

[via lifehacker]

05:46 AM by Alexander Turcic in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

CorePlayer, one of the most anticipated software releases for mobile devices, is now officially available for purchase. While I am sure that it's abundance of features will appeal to the geek in you, there is one aspect of CorePlayer that you should not miss before you spend your money. There's been a discussion in the CorePlayer forums about how the software will take care of legitimate registrations. Excerpts:

Q: Does CorePlayer need to be connected to register/download the player?
A: Yes, as each compiled installer is specific for each user is will work ONLY against the hardware it is to be installed with the specific Core Account.

Q: Will you offer an 'offline' way to register CorePlayer?
A: Yes, we will provide details later

Q: What happens if my device online I register it and then I take it offline?
A: After xx days that it has not 'touched' our server and received a custom 'byte' made for you. it will revert back to CorePlayer FREE till you come online.

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A: After a random period of time the player will prompt you to login to your Core Accout and download a 'seed' to keep the player active. This can be loaded via SD/MMC or the installer for the PC, etc. It will give you plenty of time to do this... so dont think a few days... but I will not elaborate on specifics. Otherwise once you are connected.... the player does a 'touch' update automatically and the seed is generated/updated without any interaction by the user.

So, not only do they lock CorePlayer to a single device (something that is not mentioned on the purchase page), but also will they temporarily deactivate features of your purchased copy should you not keep "in touch" with their server (something else that is not mentioned on the purchase page). I am sure the guys of CorePlayer deserve every credit for their efforts to create the world's best mobile media player. But I don't care whether it's a small start-up company or Bill Gates himself - forcing me to regularly stay in contact with someone's online server and, should I do not, disabling features of a software that I legitimately purchased, is just plain wrong. And most certainly not legal in the country I live in.

Related: CorePlayer (the new TCMP) to be available Oct 16, 2006

03:11 AM by Stuart Young in E-Book General | News

This is the 2nd piece we've posted from Walt Crawford recently. This time the topic of discussion is one which is probably on the lips of serveral Sony execs.

So what happened? If you believe the International Digital Publishing Forum, 2005 worldwide ebook sales were up 23% from 2004—to just under $12 million, considerably less than Forrester's or Accenture's projections. By comparison, the total U.S. book publishing market was between $25.1 and $31.6 billion—up more than a billion from the previous year. Worldwide ebook sales represent about 1% of the increase in U.S. book sales—but less than one-twentieth of one percent of total U.S. book sales. In other words, ebook sales might just amount to a rounding error in overall book sales.

Read the rest of the article here.

Oh and for all those who wonder 'Why Aren’t Ebooks More Successful?' it's because these folks haven't released an e-ink device yet. (biased naaaah)

02:23 PM by Alexander Turcic in More E-Book Readers | iRex

Just as we were promised iRex released firmware upgrade 2.7 for their iLiad e-reader today. The upgrade includes:

• 10% improvement in battery life
• key lock
• search for and rename files
• improved keyboard
• automated upgrade functionality
• PDF zoom and pan
• PDF landscape mode
• set preferred network profile

For more details and discussion check out Tad's post.

05:39 AM by Alexander Turcic in More E-Book Readers | iRex

In a world that has gone sudokuing mad, it doesn't come as a surprise that puzzle enthusiasts turn latest gadgets into platforms for ancient games. Thanks to MobileReader yokos who created 666 Sudoku puzzles of three different difficulties for the iRex iLiad. So, dear iLiad fans, it's time to sharpen your pencils... uhm, styluses!

How to play: Fill in the grid so that every row, every column and every 3x3 box contains the digits 1-9. There's no maths involved. You solve the puzzle with reasoning and logic.

07:52 AM by Bob Russell in Archive | Handhelds and Smartphones

If you've ever wondered what gadgets might look like in ten years, you'll love the concept versions (not working models) that HP has presented in London last week.

They are slim, sleek and with awesome displays. You can envision a whole new sort of integration into your life when you see these things. Desktops with displays integrated, cool extendable rollup displays, even the oddball unimaginative little laptop with a great screen but an unusable keyboard.

Predictions have a way of being a bit off, but if we see devices like this in the next ten years, it will be incredibly exciting for gadget lovers.

Via GottaBeMobile.