Hasta La Gadget!

We first caught sight of Sony’s latest reader when it mysteriously swung past the FCC, but now the PRS-T2 has arrived to spill the beans at Park Row’s most famous resident. J&R’s pre-order page reveals that the 6-inch touchscreen WiFi-only device is packing a 800 x 600 E-Ink display, a battery promising two months life and a built-in stylus. Software options include six dictionaries, Evernote Clearly, Facebook for Reader and a free copy of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. The electronics superstore has the device listed as “coming soon,” and when it arrives, will set you back $130 — but, as its write-up notes, that’s the price you pay to avoid being bothered with adverts.

Sony Reader PRS-T2 up for $130 pre-order at J&R originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Aug 2012 04:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Digital Reader  |  J&R  | Email this | Comments

We have ad-supported e-reading today, but the ads always sit on the periphery at most. That makes us more than slightly nervous about a newly-granted Microsoft patent for contextual e-book ads. The development would make the pitch based on not just targeted pages but the nature of the book in question: a sci-fi novel might try to sell lightsabers, and characters themselves might slip into the ads themselves if there’s a fit. Promos could be either generated on the spot or remain static. Before anyone mourns the end of unspoiled literature, just remember that having a patent isn’t the same as using it — Microsoft doesn’t have its own dedicated reading app anymore, let alone any warning signs that it’s about to pepper our digital libraries with marketing. If the Newco partnership results in copies of War and Peace bombarded with Black Ops II ads, though, we’ll know where to place the blame.

Microsoft patents contextual ads in e-books, whether we like it or not originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Aug 2012 12:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  USPTO  | Email this | Comments

If challenging E Ink‘s supremacy in the e-paper market was hard before, it just became Sisyphean. The company is acquiring e-paper module maker SiPix through a share buyout worth about NT$1.5 billion ($50.1 million) if all goes smoothly. What goals E Ink has with the merger aren’t as apparent, although the company wants to go beyond just supplying the parts for another Kindle Touch or Nook Simple Touch — the aim is to “diversify into newer applications” even as the company corners those markets it already leads. The deal should close in the fall if regulators sign off on the deal, although we wouldn’t be too quick to assume clearance is a sure thing. As NPD DisplaySearch warns, the deal would give E Ink complete control of the electrophoretic display technology that dictates the e-paper field. That doesn’t allow for a lot of variety in the space when alternatives like Qualcomm’s Mirasol are being scaled back.

Continue reading E Ink acquires SiPix, may dominate e-paper universe

Filed under: Displays

E Ink acquires SiPix, may dominate e-paper universe originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Aug 2012 08:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  E Ink  | Email this | Comments

When internet mega retailer Amazon kicked off its fiscal year this past spring with $13.8 billion in net sales, the prognosis for the quarter ahead was dour, to say the least. At the time, the company projected its Q2 2012 performance would see an operating loss of $40 million to $260 million versus Q2 2011, as well as a slight down tick in revenue at $11.9 billion to $13.3 billion quarter to quarter. Well, the numbers are in and it looks like the forecast was right on the money. The Seattle-based outfit posted $7 million in net income for the quarter, a year over year loss amounting to a whopping 96 percent decrease. As for net sales, that picture’s a bit rosier given the 29 percent increase over Q2 2011 that saw the Bezos-backed co. pull in $12.83 billion — a figure that would have risen to 32 percent were it not for a $272 million hit due to “changes in foreign exchange rates[.]” Operating cash flow for Q2 2012 was down by nearly half at $107MM compared to the same segment last year.

Unsurprisingly, the company’s budget Kindle Fire tab — which has enjoyed relatively weak competition up to now — is still the number one item across Amazon’s site, with titles in its Lending Library growing to over 170,000. Bezos also made note of Prime’s growth, pegging that subscription offering’s catalog of items at 15 million and highlighting the addition of 18,000 movies and TV shows to its streaming service.

As for the future, the company expects Q3 net sales to grow by at least 19 percent year-over-year, landing somewhere between $12.9 billion and $14.3 billion, with a projected operating loss of $50 million to $350 million. Hit up the PR after the break for the full load of financial highs and lows.

Continue reading Amazon Q2 2012 earnings: net income down 96 percent to $7 million, net sales up 29 percent to $12.83 billion

Amazon Q2 2012 earnings: net income down 96 percent to $7 million, net sales up 29 percent to $12.83 billion originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Jul 2012 16:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Talk about flying under the radar. While everyone’s focus on Qualcomm’s results last week centered on the mobile chip business going gangbusters, the company quietly revealed during its fiscal results call that it’s backing out of producing Mirasol displays itself. CEO Paul Jacobs instead wants the company licensing out the butterfly-inspired screens to interested companies and will limit its direct commercialization to “certain” devices. The company isn’t explaining why beyond the plan more closely matching “addressable opportunities,” although the absence of any widescale launches (and unconfirmed but repeated talk of low yields at The Digital Reader) suggests that factory output never quite reached critical mass. We’re hoping that someone picks up the color e-reader torch before too long and delivers more than just the reference model derivatives we’ve seen to date.

Filed under: Displays

Qualcomm axes its own Mirasol production, will only bring some devices to market itself originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 23 Jul 2012 13:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Digital Reader, TechCrunch  |  Seeking Alpha (call transcript)  | Email this | Comments