E-book Reader Devices

John Tillapaugh

E-book readers

• Used to display e-books.• Each reader displays a different

format of an e-book.• Several available, quite expensive

E-book Readers/Devices

• Franklin eBookMan• Sony E-book Reader• iRex iLiad• STAReBOOK• HanLin• Amazon Kindle• Bookeen

Franklin eBookMan

• Came out in 1999• Standard PDA functions• Plays audiobooks and other audio• Touch screen• R&D stopped in 2002, but you can

still buy them for $99.95.• Open source, people still make

programs for them.

Franklin eBookMan

Sony Reader

• 64MB ram• Linux OS• 6 inch e-ink display, 167 DPI with 4 levels of

gray• SD/MMC/Memory Stick slot• Headphone jack, USB port• It supports: BBeB (its proprietary format), PDF,

TXT, RTF, JPG, PNG, MP3, AAC.• $349.99

Sony Reader

Sony Connect

• >10,000 ebooks, download and put onto the reader

iRex iLiad

• From Rex Technologies• Intel XScale 400Mhz CPU, 64MB RAM, 128 Flash

Memory, Linux OS, 8.1 inch 1024x768 16 grayscale e-ink display, pen-abled touch screen, MMC and SD slot, 802.11g for service connection, audio headphone jack, USB port, and rechargeable battery.

• Supports PDF, HTML, XHTML, TXT, and MP3. Costs 649€, which equates to $844!

iRex iLiad

STAReBOOK

• From eREAD• 512MB SC card included, 6-inch screen e-

ink display.• Faster page turning than the Sony and

iLiad, headphone jack, and only supports STK and MP3 formats.

• Costs $420 and comes from a new company eREAD.

STAReBOOK

HanLin

• From Jinke Technologies (Japan)• Wolf Mini OS, 200 MHz Samsung ARM

processor, 32MB SDRAM and 64MB NAND flash memory

• 800 by 600 6-inch display with another separate 254 by 96 touch display with a touchable keyboard, SD slot, USB port, headphone jack, and MP3 player.

• Uses e-ink technology and supports PDF, HTML, DOC, TXT, and XLS.

• Costs $349.

HanLin

Amazon Kindle

• 600 x 800 6-inch 4-levels of gray e-ink display, 256MB internal storage, SD slot, headphone jack, AC power and rechargeable battery, USB port, keyboard, and scroll wheel.

• Amazon has yet to release information about when it will be available and how much it will cost.

• Rumor = cost less than $100?

Amazon Kindle

Bookeen

• French based company.

• 6-inch 800 by 600 LCD display which is touch sensitive and can be displayed portrait or landscape, Linux OS, Samsung Arm 9 200 MHz, 16MB RAM and 64MB Flash, USB port, headphone jack

• Supports XHTML, PDF, and MP3 formats

Bookeen

Possible e-book readers?

• iPhone• PDA devices, Cell phones• T-mobile Ameo

Conclusion

• e-book reader market is still young.

• Fairly limited number of readers available to consumers.

• Most offer MP3 playback, trying to offer a multi-function device is important.

• Don’t see it going anywhere due how expensive they are and their limited features.