29
April
2005
|
02:01 AM
America/Los_Angeles

Electronic ink is here with Sony Librie

Digital Writingpad.jpgJason Kottke has a report on the new Sony Librie that I think is really exciting. The $600 ebook reader is a totally new breed of device that could fundamentally change what it means to read on screen. It uses technology from E-Ink that allows bits to be displayed on paper-like substrates. He says:


What you can't see from the photo is how insanely crisp and clear the text on the "screen" is. It was book-text quality...it looked like a decal until you pushed the next button and the whole screen changed. It was *really* mind-boggling; and you could instantly see how most books are going to be distributed in the very near future. Despite looking like a computer, when you were reading, it felt like a book because of the resolution (a very odd sensation). And it's not only for books...I was told that there's e-paper that's capable of full-color 24 fps video. Can't say enough about how blown away I was by the Librie.



Sony-Librie.jpgThe device still looks and handles like a computer; but the promise of E-ink is for paper-like forms. When that happens, you have books, video, web, mail, and rss all happening on something you can roll up into your pocket. We're not quite there yet; but the fact that Librie is here means we're getting much closer. And when you think about mpods and PSPs and other full-motion handhelds, consider this comment of Jason's: "It's a TV, video player, book, magazine, gaming platform, and hybrids of all of the above."