Nov 15
We already know that Microsoft’s been looking at ways to turn Kinect into a snitch, but now, Big Brother is taking his talents to the nation’s students with a shiny new line of merciless, whistle-blowing e-books. More »
Nov 13
PocketBook teases first front-lit, color e-reader for June 2013, gets ahead of itself
Posted in: Today's Chili 
Shouting “first!” isn’t reserved for overeager blog commenters. PocketBook is just as determined to get ahead of the e-reader field with the first unveiling of a front-lit, color E Ink device, well before it’s ready for store shelves. While the device doesn’t even have a name, we’re already promised the combination of Kindle Paperwhite-like illumination with a Triton-based 8-inch, 800 x 600 touch display that can show 4,096 colors. There’s even an early battery life estimate of a month of typical use, which should stack up decently against most of the e-reader’s grayscale counterparts. Just don’t be surprised if PocketBook loses its crown before it’s even sitting on the throne. An initial launch in the Commonwealth of Independent States is pegged for June 2013 — far enough into the future that competitors could announce and ship products before PocketBook lands its first sale.
PocketBook teases first front-lit, color e-reader for June 2013, gets ahead of itself originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Nov 2012 14:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Nov 09
There’s no doubt that Barnes & Noble in love with the paper-like interface of the Nook HD+. Not all of its new owners are quite so taken with the retro chic, with the proof being XDA-Developers member verygreen’s early root for the Android tablet (and possibly its HD cousin). The preliminary code is enough to offer a glimpse of a more digital interface as well as teasers of a CyanogenMod port and booting from SD cards. Before racing to use the instructions at the source, be aware that the root’s usefulness may vary wildly in the near future — as of this writing, a familiar defense mechanism dating back to the Nook Color has kicked in that rejects the root and restores itself to factory stock after eight failed boot attempts. That there’s a root at all will nonetheless be a comfort in the long run to those who like the idea of a budget tablet without the enforced nostalgia for dead trees.
Continue reading Barnes & Noble Nook HD+ tentatively rooted for the paper UI-phobic (video)
Filed under: Tablets
Barnes & Noble Nook HD+ tentatively rooted for the paper UI-phobic (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Nov 2012 18:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nov 08
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite update optimizes your Manga mania, offers quicker settings
Posted in: Today's Chili 
Amazon is on the cusp of launching the complete Kindle line in Japan, so it’s only right that the online retailer fine-tune its firmware for local reading habits. A new version 5.3.0 update for the Kindle Paperwhite puts much of that focus on Manga, introducing options to fit the stylized comics to the screen as well as tweak their page refresh interval separately from that of plain old text. Wider efforts to improve font rendering touch on Japanese characters in the process. Even if we’re a little rusty with our hiragana, there’s still some usability tweaks in store: settings are accessible directly from the menu, readers can purge their home screens of recommended content and sample books now sync their position relative to the full title. The bookworms among us that are too impatient to wait for an automatic update to 5.3.0 can hit the source link for the full skinny and a fast-track installation through USB.
Filed under: Amazon
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite update optimizes your Manga mania, offers quicker settings originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 04:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Nov 07
Sony Network Entertainment prez Tim Schaaff retires, will remain on board of directors
Posted in: Today's Chili 
Tim Schaaff came over to Sony from Apple back in 2005 with a mission of aligning its vast consumer electronics and entertainment interests, and today the company has announced he’s retiring from his post as Sony Network Entertainment President at the end of the year. Schaaf’s responsibilities will be taken over by current Sony Computer Entertainment president Andrew House to start 2013, although Schaaf will retain his seat on Sony Network’s board of directors. In place and SNEI prez since 2010, he was around for the infamous PSN hack and subsequent outage in 2011, calling it a “great experience”… that he would not like to do again, of course. While Sony has made great strides in reorganizing the way its disparate arms work together since ’05 (remember Sony Connect? No one else does either.) his departure comes amidst new company head Kaz Hirai’s “One Sony” turnaround efforts along the same lines. A rebranding of PlayStation Network to Sony Entertainment Network hasn’t pushed the Music and Movie Unlimited properties to the top just yet, nor connected devices like its tablets and phones — we’ll see if this executive shuffling has any effect on the company’s fortunes going forward.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Mobile, Sony
Sony Network Entertainment prez Tim Schaaff retires, will remain on board of directors originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Nov 2012 20:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nov 07
DC Comics brings a veritable justice league of titles to Kindle, iBooks and Nook Stores
Posted in: Today's Chili 
Not that there’s been any lack of ways to get Batman or Supes on your chosen tablet, between Comixology and the devoted DC app, but if you happened to need on more, the publisher announced today that it will be bringing its entire line to three prominent e-bookstores. Justice League, Batman, Superman and a slew of others are hitting the Kindle Store, iBookstore and Nook Store. Never let it be said that your tablet doesn’t support Flash. check out some thoughts from co-publisher, cartoonist and all around awesome dude Jim Lee after the break.
Filed under: Tablets
DC Comics brings a veritable justice league of titles to Kindle, iBooks and Nook Stores originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Nov 2012 14:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nov 06
More Info
While tablet and smartphone manufacturers battled it out over screen sizes, e-reader makers seem to have settled on an industry standard of 6-inch displays. It’s a trend that Kobo, at least, is trying to buck. The company is supplementing its flagship device with a smaller model, the $79 Kobo Mini, which has a more diminutive 5-inch screen, and weighs less, to boot. But how much of a difference does an inch really make? Is smaller necessarily better on an e-reading device? And with so many options for consuming e-books, does the world really need a different, slightly altered form factor? We’ll tackle all of these burning questions and more after the break.
Continue reading Kobo Mini review: does the world need a smaller e-reader?
Kobo Mini review: does the world need a smaller e-reader? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Nov 2012 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nov 06
EU regulators to accept Apple and book publishers’ offer of cheaper e-books
Posted in: Today's Chili 
According to Reuters, EU regulators look likely to accept an offer from Apple and a handful of publishers, including Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, Hachette Livre and Macmillan. The assembled publishers propose that they will allow retailers (including Amazon) to sell e-books cheaper than Apple currently does. The move will attempt to end the EU’s anti-trust investigation that looked into the publishers’ e-book pricing model that unfairly affected retailers’ ability to compete with Apple’s own electronic book collection.
Filed under: Apple
EU regulators to accept Apple and book publishers’ offer of cheaper e-books originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Nov 2012 09:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nov 05
Sony’s ‘Reader’ App finally re-launches on iOS, purchases handled through Apple
Posted in: Today's Chili 
Sony’s Reader App for iOS launched way back in the heady days of 2010, long before Kindle’s had set Fire or gone Paperwhite. It was subsequently rejected by Apple, per the company’s longstanding policy of not approving software for iOS that bypassed Apple’s own in-app purchase system for a proprietary one. It’s been more than a few months at this point, but Reader has finally re-launched on the iOS App Store — free of charge, of course — and it’s got a brand new look based around the required Apple payment system. As The Digital Reader points out, Sony’s Reader looks an awful lot like the Bluefire iOS e-reader app, though we’d wager Sony’s store offers more in the way of literary choice.
Filed under: Software, Apple, Sony
Sony’s ‘Reader’ App finally re-launches on iOS, purchases handled through Apple originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Nov 2012 12:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Nov 02
More Info
There’s nothing like a good underdog story. Aside from last year’s failed Vox tablet, Kobo has made some quality devices, but has still failed to make a huge dent in the e-reader market — a space dominated by Amazon and Barnes & Noble. In the case of the Glo front-lit e-reader ($129), Kobo might just be hampered by unfortunate timing. Though the company managed to get a jump on things in the last round with the Kobo Touch, the Glo comes on the heels of similar devices, the Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight and the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite. But, could this reader have what it takes to convince Kindle and Nook owners to take a leap of faith? Find out after the break.
Gallery: Kobo Glo review
Continue reading Kobo Glo review: another illuminated e-reader lights up the market
Kobo Glo review: another illuminated e-reader lights up the market originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Nov 2012 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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