A few days later than expected, but there it is, the Apple iPad will ship April 3rd with preorders starting on March 12th.  Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK will see the iPad launch later that month, though a specific date has yet to be specified.

Now, keep in mind that the April 3rd launch date is for the WiFi only version. The WiFi+3G iPad will launch in “late April”, but you can still preorder a 3G version on March 12th.

When the iPad does arrive in stores so will Apple e-reader app, otherwise known as iBooks.  They’ve signed on major and independent publishers, including Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Penguin Group and Simon & Schuster and will feature books from from the New York Times Best Seller list.

Pricing breaks down like this:

• WiFi 16GB – $500
• WiFi 32GB – $600
• WiFi 64GB – $700
• WiFi+3G 16GB – $629
• WiFi+3G 32GB – $729
• WiFi+3G 64GB – $829

iPad Available in US on April 3
Pre-Order on March 12

CUPERTINO, California-March 5, 2010-Apple® today announced that its magical and revolutionary iPad will be available in the US on Saturday, April 3, for Wi-Fi models and in late April for Wi-Fi + 3G models. In addition, all models of iPad will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK in late April.

Beginning a week from today, on March 12, US customers can pre-order both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models from Apple’s online store (www.apple.com) or reserve a Wi-Fi model to pick up on Saturday, April 3, at an Apple retail store.

“iPad is something completely new,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We’re excited for customers to get their hands on this magical and revolutionary product and connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before.”

Starting at just $499, iPad lets users browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more. iPad is just 0.5 inches thick and weighs just 1.5 pounds-thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook-and delivers battery life of up to 10 hours.*

iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ interface makes surfing the web an entirely new experience, dramatically more interactive and intimate than on a computer. You can read and send email on iPad’s large screen and almost full-size “soft” keyboard or import photos from a Mac®, PC or digital camera, see them organized as albums, and enjoy and share them using iPad’s elegant slideshows. iPad makes it easy to watch movies, TV shows and YouTube, all in HD, or flip through the pages of an ebook you downloaded from Apple’s new iBookstore while listening to your music collection.

The App Store on iPad lets you wirelessly browse, buy and download new apps from the world’s largest app store. iPad includes 12 new innovative apps designed especially for iPad and will run almost all of the more than 150,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone® or iPod touch®. Developers are already creating exciting new apps designed for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch interface, large screen and high-quality graphics.

The new iBooks app for iPad includes Apple’s new iBookstore, the best way to browse, buy and read books on a mobile product. The iBookstore will feature books from the New York Times Best Seller list from both major and independent publishers, including Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Penguin Group and Simon & Schuster.

The iTunes® Store gives iPad users access to the world’s most popular online music, TV and movie store with a catalog of over 12 million songs, over 55,000 TV episodes and over 8,500 films including over 2,500 in stunning high definition. All the apps and content you download on iPad from the App Store, iTunes Store and iBookstore will be automatically synced to your iTunes library the next time you connect with your computer.

Pricing & Availability
iPad will be available in Wi-Fi models on April 3 in the US for a suggested retail price of $499 for 16GB, $599 for 32GB, $699 for 64GB. The Wi-Fi + 3G models will be available in late April for a suggested retail price of $629 for 16GB, $729 for 32GB and $829 for 64GB. iPad will be sold in the US through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers.

iPad will be available in both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models in late April in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. International pricing will be announced in April. iPad will ship in additional countries later this year.

The iBooks app for iPad including Apple’s iBookstore will be available as a free download from the App Store in the US on April 3, with additional countries added later this year.

*Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

J&R, via Amazon has the lowest price ever for the Sony PRS-600 Digital Reader Touch Edition.  It’s $279 + free shipping = $279 shipped! This reader has a 6-inch display that is visible in direct sunlight and easy on the eyes.  It can hold up to 350 book and is highly portable thanks to its slim and slender design.

NOTE: You might have to look to the right for “more buying choices” to get this deal

If you’ve got any kind of interest in e-readers, then you know they can be a bit pricey.  But the jetBook-Lite from ECTACO is looking to change all that by selling for $149.95.

The jetBook-Lite is officially, as of this writing, the cheapest e-reader device on the market.

Now, when you get a low-cost device like this, naturally you give up a few things.  Tops on the list is 3G wireless connectivity and color secondary screens.

However, what you DO get is support for pretty much any ebook format on the face of the earth, including eReader DRM from Barnes and Noble.  Plus, you also get support for multiple languages and a built-in dictionary, a rotating screen that can handle portrait or landscape mode, and last but not least, and incredible twenty three hours of run time on the strength of four AA batteries.

It’s a pretty good value for a cheap e-reader.

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Barnes and Noble came clean about their e-reader device today, and yes, it’s called the Nook.  And like the leak said the device sports a 6″ e-ink screen for actually reading the books (or magazines) as well as a 3.5″ color touchscreen for perusing Barnes’ ebook store.  If you’re game, you can preorder the device today for $259 (the same price as Amazon’s 6″ offering) and it should ship as early as 11/30, which is a bit late for the whole bum rush of holiday sales.

As for wireless delivery of books you can jack into any available WiFi connection, or suck them down over AT&T’s 3G connection.  Built-in storage caps out at 2GB, which is good for about 1,500 books, but you can expand that to a whopping 16GB via microSD card slot.  Taking a cue from Apple, it looks like the battery is non-removable and will achieve up to 10 days of page turning action before you need a recharge, which takes about 3.5 hours.

Size wise were looking at a .5″ thin, 4.9″ wide and 7.7″ long, which makes it a bit fatter than any of Amazon’s Kindles and a bit shorter and narrower than their 6″ versions.

For all you Android fans out there you’ll be glad to here the Nook has joined the ranks, the first e-reader to sport the OS.  To get another leg over Amazon they’re letting users lend e-books for up to 14 days to other Nook users and their store currently boast over 1 million titles that start at $9.99.

While my vote is still out on the Nook until I get a hands on, the color touchscreen is a huge draw, but might prove more gimmick than anything else.  Kindle does have a physical QWERTY keyboard, but since I’ve never tested one I can’t speak to its actually usability.

Video walk through after the ‘leap’

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The WSJ is reporting that Barnes and Noble will officially announce their e-reader device as early as tomorrow.  Word is that the e-book reader will be called the “Nook”, let users share books with friends and cost $259.  The news comes by way of a leaked full page ad, which one has to assume isn’t going to be placed in the Wall Street Journal, at least not any more without a significant discount.

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Pictured above is supposedly Barnes and Noble’s e-reader.  While specs and a wireless carrier have yet to be announced, or leaked in this case, rumor has it that it has an e-ink display on the top 3/4 of the device for reading magazines and books, while the lower quarter is a color LCD screen that will not only be good for perusing book covers but will double as a touchscreen keyboard or mutlitouch surface. 

Perhaps a 3G carrier isn’t in the works and that’s why they now offer free WiFi at all their locations.

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LG is coming out with an amazing new gadget that’ll quite possibly change the way you think about summer: the solar-powered e-reader.

This is actually a whole lot of amazing in one sentence, so I’ll try and break it down into more manageable chunklets for you.  One, an e-reader that runs entirely on solar power is an exciting development.  Reading a book outside in the spring–or in some cases, summer–sun has long been a popular activity, but now you can take a library outside with you and have your choice when you finally settle in under that tree and set out to read.

Two, this is one of the first e-readers to be powered by the sun, thus every other e-reader is now going to have a significant bit of competition on its hands.  None of the other e-readers are powered by free sunlight, you know.  And buying batteries over and over, or paying the power company to recharge batteries, will always lose out to free recharge.  Every time.

Three, a solar panel capable of powering a gadget by itself, and still be portable?  This might be the start of something new and different in the whole solar panel industry.  It might take an entire roof’s worth of solar panels to make a five thousand watt generator, but one panel running an e-reader?  That’s interesting.

The LG solar e-reader represents several significant strides forward, and hopefully, we can get our hands on them fairly soon.

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Seems the competition for a piece of Amazon’s coveted Kindle market has already started to boil up out of the woodwork.  iRiver’s Story is one of the first off the block.

Formerly a major player in the Flash-based MP3 market, iRiver’s been having a lot of troubles in its home market of  Korea.  Thus, they’re looking to join in on the e-reader market and snag a little market share away from Amazon.

The iRiver Story has a six-inch LCD display, two gig of internal memory and comes in white only.  It’ll also play back MP3s, which is handy for those books on tape.  It’s not a bad little design, from the look of things, even if it really DOES look a lot like the Kindle.  So hopefully, it’ll manage to pull off a comeback.

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Guess who wants a piece of Amazon’s Kindle market?  As it turns out, a whole a lot of people.

The list is pretty wide and growing by the day, and includes names like News Corp (otherwise known as Fox), Hearst Publishing, and now, Time Magazine wants to change the way you read books and possibly even its own magazine.

At the rate things are going now, it’s not so hard to believe that dead tree publishing will go the way of the dodo within the next 20 years.  After all, who is really that interested in keeping giant cases full of books in their house when all they have to do is put their library down on the nearest end table at night?  Taking a paperback book with view to the grocery store or jury duty or to a doctor’s appointment is a pretty cumbersome task unless you have deep pockets or a handbag,  and you can really only carry one at a time. But imagine the possibilities of being able to take your entire library with you. And why stop at yours? Why not the entire Library of Congress?

Maybe print-based books will have longer than I think they do to live.  But with the sheer amount of competition coming for them, it won’t be an easy fight.

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Sony added to their e-reader line up today with the announcement of the Reader Daily Edition.  Following on the heels of the Reader Pocket and Touch Edition, which were announced earlier this month, the Reader Daily Edition uses a larger 7-inch touchscreen and provides access to Sony’s eBook store anywhere in the US thanks to built-in wireless connectivity via AT&T’s 3G broadband network.

In terms of revolutionary features, Sony has partnered with OverDrive, a leading global digital distributor of eBooks to libraries, to provide Reader users with access to their local libraries eBook library.  Users simply punch in their zip code, download a desired eBook and after 29 days of use the eBook will automatically be deleted with absolutely no late fees or costs.

A built-in USB port allows books to be uploaded directly from a computer and the stock memory of the Reader Daily Edition will store up to 1000 eBooks with a memory stick card slot for expansion.  The e-ink display can show up to 16 levels of gray scale, while the 7-inch screen, which is housed in an aluminum body can be viewed in portrait or landscape mode.

The Reader Daily Edition will launch this December for $399.

Full release after the ‘leap’

EXTRA, EXTRA: SONY’S DAILY EDITION ROUNDS OUT NEW LINE OF DIGITAL READERS

Wireless 3G Reader Extends Sony’s Commitment to Bring
Open Digital Reading to Mass Audience

NEW YORK, August 25, 2009 ¾ Delivering on its promise to give consumers a variety of choices, Sony today announced the third member of its new Reader family – the Reader Daily Edition™, a highly-anticipated wireless model with 3G connectivity. The Daily Edition caps its new line of Reader products, joining the Reader Pocket Edition™ and the Reader Touch Edition™ which were announced earlier this month.

The Reader Pocket Edition and the Reader Touch Edition are available immediately, and the Reader Daily Edition will be available this December in time for the holidays at SonyStyle stores and SonyStyle.com.

“We firmly believe consumers should have choice in every aspect of their digital reading experience,” said Steve Haber, president of Sony’s Digital Reading Business Division. “Today, we take another large stride to deliver on that promise. We now have the most affordable devices on the market, the greatest access to free and affordable eBooks through The eBook Store from Sony and our affiliated ecosystem, and now round out our Reader offering with a wireless device that lets consumer purchase and download content on the go.”

A Family of Three Readers

The Reader Pocket Edition sports a five-inch electronic paper display packaged in a stylish chassis and is available in a variety of colors, including navy blue, rose and silver. It is available for the ground-breaking price of $199, making it the most affordable dedicated reading device on the market.

The Reader Touch Edition features a responsive, menu-driven six-inch touch screen panel that enables quick, intuitive navigation, page turning, highlighting and note taking with the swipe of a finger or by using the included stylus pen. It comes in red, black or silver and retails for about $299.

The Reader Daily Edition gives consumers wireless access via AT&T’s 3G mobile broadband network to Sony’s eBook store from just about anywhere in the U.S. Book lovers will be able to browse, purchase and download books as well as select newspapers and magazines when and where they want. There are no monthly fees or transaction charges for the basic wireless connectivity and users still have the option to side load personal documents or content from other compatible sites via USB.

The seven-inch wide, touch screen display provides for intuitive navigation and comfortable layout of content, including newspapers and magazines, whether you’re reading in portrait or landscape orientation. In portrait mode, about 30-35 lines of text are visible, making the experience very similar to that of a printed paperback book. A high contrast ratio with 16 levels of grayscale ensures that text and images are crisp and easy to read. The Daily Edition also boasts an attractive aluminum body with an integrated cover for durability. It has enough internal memory to hold more than one thousand standard eBooks and expansion slots for memory cards to hold even more. It will sell for about $399.

All three models feature Sony’s award-winning industrial design and an E Ink® Vizplex™ electronic paper display that emulates the look of ink on paper. Sony’s eBook Library software 3.0, which now includes support for many Apple® Macintosh® computers as well as PCs, makes it easy to transfer and read any Adobe® PDF (with reflow capability), EPUB, Microsoft® Word®, BBeB® files, or other text file formats on the Reader.

Access to Even More Content at the eBook Store by Sony

In addition to announcing a new family of Readers, Sony has also made several changes and improvements to its eBook Store to provide better access to an even greater variety of ebooks. Earlier this summer Sony announced the availability of more than one million free public domain books from Google, and the company made new releases and New York Times bestseller titles available for $9.99.

Today also marks the launch of Sony’s Library Finder application. Sony, working with OverDrive (www.overdrive.com), the leading global digital distributor of eBooks and to libraries, will now offer visitors to the eBook Store by Sony easy access to their local library’s collection of eBooks. Thousands of libraries in the OverDrive network offer eBooks optimized for the Sony Reader, and visitors can now find these libraries by typing their zip code into the Library Finder. Through the selected library’s download website, visitors can check out eBooks with a valid library card, download them to a PC and transfer to their Reader. At the end of the library’s lending period, eBooks simply expire, so there are never any late fees.

The Reader Pocket and Touch Editions, as well as available accessories such as AC adaptors, cases and covers with reading lights, are available now at SonyStyle.com and SonyStyle stores. Book lovers interested in trying out a Reader in person will also be able to find them for sale at Best Buy, BJs, Borders, Sam’s Club, Staples, Target, Toys“R”Us, Wal-Mart and other authorized retailers nationwide.

DIGITAL READING ECOSYSTEM EXPANDS FOR SONY’S READER

NEW YORK, August 25, 2009 ¾ Further evidence of the broad support for its open approach to digital reading, Sony today announced relationships with a variety of traditional and digital publishers who provide content in industry standard formats to create a universe of reading material compatible with the Reader.

All of these sites will offer content in the EPUB format, the International Digital Publishing Forum’s (IDPF) XML-based standard format for reflowable digital books and publications. EPUB has gained acceptance among major trade book publishers with dozens of publishers already producing the majority of their eBooks using the standard. Sony recently announced that the company is transitioning its entire content library to the EPUB format, giving consumers the freedom to purchase or download free eBooks from the eBook Store by Sony and read them on any EPUB-compatible device.

“From the beginning, we have said that an open format means more choice for consumers,” said Steve Haber, president of Sony’s Digital Reading Business Division. “Now, working with other industry leaders, we can provide a device that is compatible with the widest selection of content available. Readers can shop around for what interests them rather than be locked into one store.”

Sony’s eBook Store already provides access to more than one million public domain Google Books in EPUB format and, starting today, Sony’s Library Finder application will go live. Library Finder offers visitors to the eBook Store by Sony easy access to their local library’s collection of eBooks. Thousands of libraries offer eBooks optimized for the Sony Reader, and visitors can now find these libraries by typing their zip code into the Library Finder. Through the selected library’s download website, visitors can check out eBooks with a valid library card, download them to a PC and transfer to their Reader.

Other sites offering EPUB content include:

· Independent Bookstores – More than 200 participating members of the American Booksellers Association—including stores such as Tattered Cover (Denver, CO) and Vroman’s Bookstore (Pasadena, CA)—will have the ability to sell e-content to consumers beginning this fall. The stores using ABA’s IndieCommerce platform will offer content in the EPUB format and protected by Adobe’s Content Server 4 (ACS4) digital rights management, which is compatible with Sony e-Reader products. In addition, plans are underway to make Sony’s e-Reader devices available for purchase from independent bookstores in time for this holiday season. ABA is a not-for-profit trade organization devoted to meeting the needs of its core members – independently owned bookstores with storefront locations – through education, information dissemination, business products and services, and advocacy.

· BooksOnBoard – BooksOnBoard, the largest independent eBook bookseller and member of both the ABA and IDPF, has been a staunch supporter of the EPUB standard through its founder Bob Livolsi. BooksOnBoard was the first eBook site to offer the EPUB standard to its burgeoning customer base and has sold more EPUB formatted books than any other online bookstore. BooksOnBoard believes that the EPUB standard significantly benefits the publisher, authors and most importantly the consumer.

· NetGalley – NetGalley is an innovative and easy-to-use online service and connection point for book publishers, reviewers, media, librarians, booksellers, bloggers and educators. NetGalley delivers digital galleys and promotional materials to professional readers and helps promote new and upcoming titles. Starting today, NetGalley will support the Reader with the ability to download a protected PDF file and this fall the company will offer digital galleys in EPUB format.

· Powell’s Books and Powells.com – Powell’s Books is the largest independent bookseller in the world. Innovative since its inception in 1971, it was one of the first booksellers online (beginning in 1994), and one of the first to sell eBooks for reading devices (the Rocket eBook) in 1999. Powell’s offers EPUB content for a wide range of compatible devices, including the Sony line. Powell’s is an important player in the open access world of eBooks, where titles are provided by a wide range of publishers in a competitive retail environment, read on a range of devices, and downloaded and owned by millions of people around the world.

SONY DEBUTS DESTINATION TO CELEBRATE THE POWER OF WORDS

wordsmoveme.com Enables Readers to Share Favorite Passages and Literary Moments

NEW YORK – August 25, 2009 Continuously looking for ways to enhance the product experience for its customers, Sony today announced wordsmoveme.com, a new online destination empowering readers to share their favorite moments from the literature they love.

With the launch of wordsmoveme.com, Sony continues to deliver on its promise of making reading a shared experience. By connecting people through the literature and words they love, Sony enables them to express their individuality, share their own stories and discuss the impact that literature has on their lives.

Words Move Me is part of a broader social networking effort in which Sony Electronics is encouraging open, honest dialog with consumers. The Sony Electronics Community is the launching pad for this effort, which encompasses a corporate blog, video, photos, polls and profiles. For a list of all the Sony Electronics community sites go to: http://www.sonyelectronicscommunity.com/sony/communities/.

Key Facts:
Sony launches wordsmoveme.com, an online destination, in conjunction with the unveiling of the new Sony Reader DailyTM Edition.
Words Move Me invites users to create a profile and share favorite literary passages.
It does not require use of a Reader device and is free for anyone to join and participate.

Quotes:
Steve Haber, president of Sony’s Digital Reading Business Division: “We strongly believe that the future of reading is a shared experience. We created wordsmoveme.com as a way for readers to remember their favorite moments, and share those moments with others – creating a richer and more interactive engagement with books.”

Registration:
wordsmoveme.com is now live. A profile can be created by visiting the site.

Links:
Words Move Me site: www.wordsmoveme.com
Sony Reader site: www.sony.com/reader
Sony News site: www.sony.com/news

Tweet:
Sony celebrates the power of words, in launching wordsmoveme.com #SonyReader http://alturl.com/6z67

Editor’s Note: For additional information about the Reader digital book, your readers can call (888) 315-SONY, or visit Sony’s web site at: www.sony.com/reader. Members of the media looking for complete product specifications and digital images and other information are invited to visit Sony Electronics’ news and information web site at www.sony.com/news.

Although we’ve known for a few months now that Samsung had plans to enter the e-reader game, we didn’t know when the device would emerge.  Today the company made the device official and what was known as the Papyrus has now become the SNE-50K, at least as far as I can tell.

It sports the same 512mb of storage as the Papyrus, a 4320 continuous page view battery life, 5-inch screen, 6.5oz weight, lack of any wireless connectivity (everything must be downloaded from a computer iPod style) and costs about $270.  Right now it’s only available in South Korea, but Samsung says they’ve got plans to show off a prototype e-reader to international markets at CES 2010.

To put it in perspective, Amazon’s Kindle 2 offers a 6-inch screen, wireless connectivity and its very own e-book store.

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Price drop alert! Amazon today cut the price on their Kindle 2 E-Ink reading device.  It includes a 25% longer battery life, 6-inch sun bright readable screen, 20% faster page turns, weighs 10.2oz, wireless and is just a 1/3-inch thick.  It’s $359 – $60 instant savings + $0 S&H = $299 shipped!

Samsung, whose no stranger to displays, is getting into the book business, but not the paper type.  Yup, the e-book reader line up just got a bit longer, which might mean affordability and seeing as the Samsung’s Papyrus e-book is a rumored to be sub $300 I don’t see why not.  But with cost savings comes sacrifices, such as no wireless connection and a purported locked amount of memory, 512mb, with no expansion slot in sight.  But that’s more speculation than fact since the details on the device are still a bit foggy.  That antenna like thing sticking out from its side is in fact a stylus for the reader’s touchscreen.

[Pocket-lint]

Amazon Kindle 2 e-reader may have launched last month to endless amounts of fan fare, but something it doesn’t have is a touchscreen color display. And that’s exactly where Fujitsu’s FELPia e-reader comes in. It packs in an 8-inch touchscreen, stylus, Bluetooth, WiFi, mini USB port and 260,000 colors. But it don’t stop there. Preinstalled is Window’s CE 5, which means access to email, web surfing, spreadsheets and more. Books can be downloaded from the Papyless online book store which are stored on an SD card. Course, with all these features comes a price of $1,000 and a long flight to Japan where they’ll go on sale on April 20th.

Full release after the ‘leap’

Fujitsu Begins On-Line Consumer Sales of World’s First Color E-Paper Mobile Terminal FLEPia
- Displays up to 260,000 colors; features Bluetooth and high-speed wireless LAN; thin and lightweight -
Tokyo and Kawasaki, Japan, March 18, 2009 – Fujitsu Frontech Limited and Fujitsu Laboratories Limited today announced the start of consumer sales in Japan of the world’s first color e-paper mobile terminal, FLEPia, available for purchase from today through Fujitsu Frontech’s online store “FrontechDirect”. Developed by Fujitsu Frontech and Fujitsu Laboratories, FLEPia is the first ever mobile information terminal to feature color electronic paper (color e-paper). In addition to being lightweight and thin, the color e-paper mobile terminal features an easy-to-view 8-inch display screen capable of showing up to 260,000 colors in high-definition, in addition to being equipped with Bluetooth and high-speed wireless LAN. FLEPia is also power-efficient, enabling up to 40 hours of continuous battery operation when fully charged, and does not require power for continuous display of a screen image, consuming power only during re-draw. Featuring significant storage capabilities, when used with a 4GB SD card, the color e-paper terminal can store the equivalent of 5,000 conventional paper-based books when each book is 300 pages long at 600KB per book, thus being environmentally friendly.　In Japan, FLEPia can now be easily ordered from Fujitsu Frontech’s online store. As an additional option, through Fujitsu Frontech’s dedicated website, FLEPia users can purchase e-books from the largest e-book online retailer in Japan and download the e-books directly into FLEPia. As the only color e-paper mobile terminal commercially available, FLEPia offers a convenient, paper-free and eco-conscious enriched innovative mobile reading experience to users.

Figure 1: Fujitsu’s color e-paper mobile terminal FLEPia
Larger View
Background
Fujitsu Frontech and Fujitsu Laboratories co-developed proprietary color e-paper, and announced the launch of FLEPia in April 2007 as the world’s first color e-paper mobile terminal. Previously, commercial samples of FLEPia were available for purchase on a limited basis for corporate use only, as part of field trials of the first ever color e-paper mobile terminal. Compared to the FLEPia commercial samples which were used in field marketing, the latest FLEPia offers 1.5 times higher brightness and greater contrast, enabled through optimization of the color e-paper’s optical properties. Re-draw speed was also enhanced by 1.7 times. In addition to previously available high-speed wireless LAN, FLEPia is equipped with Bluetooth, enabling users to easily download and access various content from nearly any desired location.

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Key Features
1. Lightweight, thin and high-performance: 8-inch screen displays up to 260,000 colors in high-definition
Weighing just 385 grams (385g) and only 12.5mm thick, FLEPia is lightweight and easily portable, while offering an easy-to-view 8-inch screen. Featuring world-leading color e-paper technologies, the mobile display terminal enables users to view a multitude of documents and images in high-definition at 768 dots x 1,014 dots (XGA), with up to 260,000 displayable colors (4,096-color and 64-color display is also possible, if desired).
2. Power-efficient color e-paper; enables up to 40-hour continuous battery operation
As the color e-paper employed displays text or images by reflecting external light, FLEPia does not require power to maintain screen display, consuming power only during re-draw (power consumption is approximately just 1/50 that of standard notebook PCs under similar usage conditions). When fully-charged, FLEPia offers up to 40 hours of continuous battery operation (conditions: display of 2,400 pages at 1 page per minute with 64 colors).
3. Feature-rich external interface (Japan: Bluetooth, high-speed wireless LAN)
Equipped with Bluetooth in addition to high-speed wireless LAN, FLEPia offers dial-up connection via various Japanese mobile carriers, thus enabling easy download of content featuring images and text (excluding audio and video content) from nearly any desired location. Also included as standard features are a USB mini-B connector supporting USB2.0 (480Mbps) and a SD memory card slot. Stereo speakers (embedded) offer audio playback of e-books, including picture books.
4. User-friendly operation: touch screen, digital stylus, scroll key, function buttons
A touch screen featured on the 8-inch display screen, along with a digital pen, enables easy operation of FLEPia. Also included are a scroll key and 6 function buttons, enabling users to freely and quickly implement commands on the screen in all 4 directions (up, down, left, right), as desired.
5. Two e-book viewers included as standard features (XMDF and .book formats)
Two popular e-book viewers widely used on PCs or mobile phones in Japan – “BunkoViewer” (XMDF format; “bunko” refers to “library” in Japanese) and “T-Time” (.book format) are included as standard features. These e-book viewers enable downloaded e-books to be easily read with FLEPia. The e-book viewers offer an enriched reading experience compared to conventional paper-based reading, enabling readers to jump from the table of contents to desired sections and freely enlarge or shrink text or images. A vast number of e-book sites are currently available on the Internet, and a wide range of approximately 20,000 Japanese e-books in either XMDF or .book format can be downloaded with FLEPia (see “Content Storage Capacity” under Specifications).
6. Equipped with Windows CE5.0 (Japanese version)
In addition to the content browser, Microsoft’s Windows CE5.0 (Japanese version) enables use of an internet browser, e-mail, and various software on FLEPia. Microsoft’s Office can also be used to generate text documents, spreadsheets, or presentations, making it possible to view a variety of documents – including e-mail file attachments – while in transit or in the field and away from an office environment, thus fully maximizing FLEPia’s multiple functions as a mobile information terminal. In terms of text input, a software keyboard and digital stylus make it possible to send e-mails and other text.

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Dedicated customer-support website offers technical support, maintenance, software upgrades (Japan)
Fujitsu Frontech will offer a dedicated customer-support site, FLEPia World, on its Japanese website. FLEPia World will offer product information to potential customers considering purchase of FLEPia, in addition to technical and maintenance support to FLEPia users. Software upgrades will be offered free-of-charge.
Furthermore, customers will have the option of purchasing e-books through the FLEPia World website via Japan’s largest e-book online retailer – offered through a collaboration between the retailer PAPYLESS CO.,Ltd. and Fujitsu Frontech – and downloading the e-books directly onto FLEPia.
Pricing, Options, and Shipment
Product    FrontechDirect on-line purchase price** (Japan)    Availability (Japan)
FLEPia unit set* (White or Black)    99,750 JPY    From April 20, 2009
Options (sold separately)    Book cover
(White or Black)    5,800 JPY    From April 20, 2009
Storage case
(White or Black)    5,500 JPY    From April 20, 2009
*Set includes USB cable (mini-B connector), AC adaptor, stand, wrist strap
**Prices include 5% consumption tax
Sales Target (Japan)
50,000 units by the end of 2010

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Specifications
Dimensions, Weight    158mm (Width) × 240mm (Height) × 12.5mm (Depth. Thinnest section: 11.3mm) , Weight: 385g
Screen Size    8-inch (123.6mm x 164.8mm)
Unit Colors    White or Black
Resolution    768 dots x 1024 dots (XGA)
Number of Displayable Colors    260,000 colors (3 Scans); 4,096 (2 Scans); 64 colors (1 Scan)
Re-Draw Speed    1.8 seconds (1 Scan), 5 seconds (2 Scans), 8 seconds (3 Scans)
Wireless LAN (embedded)    IEEE802.11b/g（11/54Mbps *1）
Bluetooth    Bluetooth Ver2.0+EDR
Memory    SD Memory Card*2 (Maximum up to 4GB)
USB Connector    USB2.0 (480Mbps) mini-B connector × 1
Audio    Stereo speakers (embedded), headphone connector x 1
Power Supply    Lithium polymer battery (embedded), AC adaptor
Fully-charged continuous operation： 40 continuous hours
(Conditions: Display of 2,400 pages/at 1 minute per page/with 64 colors)
Content Storage Capacity (when used with a 4GB SD card)    Equivalent to 5,000 paper-based books when each book is 300 pages long with 600KB per book
Security    128Bit AES (Advanced Encryption Standard)
Software    FLEPia application, Japanese version Microsoft Windows CE5.0, Japanese e-book viewers: BunkoViewer (XMDF), T-Time (.book)
CPU (embedded)    XScale RISC CPU
Environmental Operating Conditions    Operation: Temperature range: 5 to 35 degrees Celsius, Humidity: 20 to 80% RH
Storage: Temperature range: – 10 to 50 degrees Celsius, Humidity: 20 to 80% RH
*1 Figure indicates theoretical maximum transmission rate for standard
wireless LAN; does not indicate actual data transmission speed.
*2 SD memory card is sold separately

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Related Websites:
Fujitsu Frontech: http://www.frontech.fujitsu.com/en/
Fujitsu Laboratories: http://jp.fujitsu.com/group/labs/en/
Press Contact:
Public and Investor Relations
Fujitsu Limited
Inquiries: https://www-s.fujitsu.com/global/news/contacts/inquiries/index.html
Customer Contact:
Global Business Development Department
Fujitsu Frontech Limited
Inquiry: http://www.frontech.fujitsu.com/en/contact/
About Fujitsu Frontech
As part of the Fujitsu group, Fujitsu Frontech Limited develops, manufactures and sells products such as ATMs, operation branch terminals, POS terminals, public display devices and offers related software, system integration and outsourcing as part of its total solutions offerings. The company also supports the security sector by offering products incorporating Fujitsu’s latest palm vein authentication technology. Fujitsu Frontech is actively involved in the development of key technologies in various fields and is currently focusing on the areas of color electronic paper and service robots. For more information, please see:http://www.frontech.fujitsu.com/en/
About Fujitsu Laboratories
Founded in 1968 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Fujitsu Limited, Fujitsu Laboratories Limited is one of the premier research centers in the world. With a global network of laboratories in Japan, China, the United States and Europe, the organization conducts a wide range of basic and applied research in the areas of Multimedia, Personal Systems, Networks, Peripherals, Advanced Materials and Electronic Devices. For more information, please see: http://jp.fujitsu.com/group/labs/en/.
Company and product names mentioned herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Information provided in this press release is accurate at time of issue and is subject to change without advance notice.

I’m a little disappointed, since I was expecting an official announcement from Endless Ideas, but the ever present and dominating Engadget got a quick hands on with the latest BeBook.  Price and actual release date weren’t confirmed the device does in fact have a touchscreen, although it’s not clear what it’ll facilitate.  Other notable upgrades include the same battery life despite a slimmer and more slender build, improved the e-ink’s gray scale and WiFi/3G connectivity.  Sounds like we should dig in for a Q3 or Q4 launch.

[Engadget]

iRiver just couldn’t resist, could they?  Amazon just announced their newest Kindle e-reader and without a month passed iRiver unleashes the iRiver Libre.  It actually turns out that this e-reader is in fact a private labeled version of the eSlick.  So, looks like iRiver is having a laugh or just sees some opportunity in the recently hyped e-reader market.

[Gizmodo]

As expected (and leaked) Amazon unleashed their Kindle 2 e-reader today. The pics and price we detailed on Friday were 100% accurate, but now we’ve got the official details for you to salivate over.  This version of the Kindle is much more svelte, measuring a 1/3 of inch thick and weighing just 10.2oz, which is apparently less than most paper back books, at least as far as Amazon is concerned.  They’ve updated its connectivity to 3G enabling books to be delivered in under 60 seconds.  And while slimming down the e-reader, and rounding the corners,  they’ve managed to improve battery life by as much as 25% and increase ‘page turns’ by 20%.  Another big notable is the ‘read-to-me’ function that will fill the void in case Mom or Dad aren’t around to read you bed time stories. The Kindle 2 will be released February 24th and cost $359.  Kindle 1 owners will get first priority if they place their order by Feb 10th, that is assuming Amazon sells out to the general public. Ton o’ videos on the product page including a drop test, which makes the Kindle 2 look suitable for military application.

My only disappointment? No college/text book integration as first rumored.  Amazon could’ve been a major factor in the fight against Scoliosis.

Amazon Kindle 2 product page

Full specs:

• Display: 6″ diagonal E-Ink® electronic paper display, 600 x 800 pixel resolution at 167 ppi, 16-level gray scale.
• Size (in inches): 8″ x 5.3″ x 0.36″.
• Weight: 10.2 ounces.
• System requirements: None, because it doesn’t require a computer.
• Storage: 2GB internal (approximately 1.4GB available for user content).
• Battery Life: Read on a single charge for up to 4 days with wireless on. Turn wireless off and read for up to two weeks. Battery life will vary based on wireless usage, such as shopping the Kindle Store and downloading content. In low coverage areas or in 1xRTT only coverage, wireless usage will consume battery power more quickly.
• Charge Time: Fully charges in approximately 4 hours and supports charging from your computer via the included USB 2.0 cable.
• Connectivity: EVDO modem with fallback to 1xRTT; utilizes Amazon Whispernet to provide U.S wireless coverage via Sprint’s 3G high-speed data network (check wireless coverage). See Wireless Terms and Conditions.
• USB Port: USB 2.0 (micro-B connector) for connection to the Kindle power adapter or optionally to connect to a PC or Macintosh computer.
• Audio: 3.5mm stereo audio jack, rear-mounted stereo speakers.
• Content Formats Supported: Kindle (AZW), TXT, Audible (formats 4, Audible Enhanced (AAX)), MP3, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively; PDF, HTML, DOC, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP through conversion.