Jul 05

Sony cuts e-reader prices: Pocket Edition now $149

Posted in: e reader, e-book, e-books, e-readers, ebooks, sony, Today's Chili
Not much of a surprise here, but it looks like you can officially include Sony in the e-book reader price wars. It’s now dropped the prices on its three current models: the Pocket Edition is down from $169 to $149, the Touch Edition drops from $199 to $169, and the 3G-equipped Daily Edition is now $299 (down a full $50 from $349). As The Digital Reader blog notes, however, that still leaves Sony a bit out of step with the competition — the Pocket Edition lacks the WiFi of the similarly-priced Nook, for instance, and the Daily Edition remains a tough sell even at $299.

Sony cuts e-reader prices: Pocket Edition now $149 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Jul 2010 14:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 01

E Ink explains the new Pearl display used in the updated Kindle DX

Posted in: e ink, e reader, e-book, e-books, e-readers, kindle, Today's Chili
Amazon has already boasted that the display in its updated Kindle DX has a 50% improved contrast, but E Ink has now thankfully come out and provided a few more details on the new display technology used. Dubbed Pearl, the new display builds upon E Ink’s previous Vizplex displays, and not only promises enhanced readability and text that “pops from the page,” but the lowest power consumption of any display used in e-readers today (something also claimed about E Ink’s previous displays). Of course, the display technology isn’t limited to just the Kindle DX — E Ink currently has five different Pearl displays ranging from 5-inch to 9.7-inch, all of which boast 16 levels of gray, and resolutions ranging from 800 x 600 to 1,200 x 825 (and 200 to 150 DPI).

Continue reading E Ink explains the new Pearl display used in the updated Kindle DX

E Ink explains the new Pearl display used in the updated Kindle DX originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 16:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 01

Toshiba Book Place full-color e-book store is powered by Blio, launches soon (video)

Posted in: e reader, e-book, e-books, e-readers, Today's Chili, Toshiba, video

And here we go, an honest to goodness book store built around Ray Kurzweil‘s Blio e-reader software. It’s been a long time coming and still it’s only a teaser page, but Toshiba is promising to unleash its Book Place store “in the coming weeks” stocked with “thousands” of full-color e-books. The Blio software, you might remember from our video hands-on, offers a fully interactive reading experience rich in multimedia capabilities and should run beautifully on oh, say, Toshiba’s new dual-screen Libretto W100. Man, when did Toshiba suddenly become interesting? See it in a cheesy, promotional packaging rager (that hints at an iOS app at the 2.42 mark) after the break.

Continue reading Toshiba Book Place full-color e-book store is powered by Blio, launches soon (video)

Toshiba Book Place full-color e-book store is powered by Blio, launches soon (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 06:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Akihabara News  |  sourceBook Place  | Email this | Comments

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Jul 01

New, Black Kindle DX Now $380

Posted in: e-books, kindle, tablets, Today's Chili


Amazon has added a new, 50% higher-contrast screen to its Kindle DX and at the same time dropped the price to $380. It has also changed color to what Amazon is calling “graphite”, but which the rest of us will call black.

The Kindle DX was clearly growing to be a white elephant. It was versized for most purposes, and overpriced for all at $490: for just $10 more you can buy an iPad.

And the iPad clearly echoes throughout the product pages for the new DX. Take these rather defensive examples:

Free 3G Wireless. No monthly payments, no annual contracts

Read in Sunlight with No Glare

System requirements: None, because it doesn’t require a computer

The new DX also gets the recent software update applied to other Kindles, bringing PDF pan and zoom, new fonts, collections and the possibly lame social features, which let you share passages and Tweet from the Kindle. Web browsing, though, remains in the “experimental” category.

This new Kindle and the price drop for the smaller Kindle are making these e-readers where they should be: cheap, one-trick devices that make their money from book sales. I loved my old Kindle until the screen died, and e-readers, with their light-friendly screens, are a lot better for reading books than an iPad or cellphone. That also do a hell of a lot less, so they need to be cheap. Good work, Amazon.

Say Hello to the Newest Kindle DX [Amazon]

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Jun 30

The New Kindle DX [Amazon]

Posted in: amazon, e ink, e reader, e-books, kindle, Today's Chili, top

The Kindle DX gets refreshed today with a lower price of $379, and a 9.7-inch screen with 50 percent better contrast. It also happens to come in a graphite finish. Ships on July 7th but orders start now. More »

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Jun 30

Amazon Kindle just $149.99 on Woot! (update: sold out)

Posted in: amazon, deal, e reader, e-book, e-books, e-readers, kindle, sale, Today's Chili

You read that headline correctly: Amazon’s 3G 6-inch Kindle is selling for just $149.99 on Woot, an eReader that will cost you $199 $189 on Amazon’s own site. It’s a one day deal no doubt helped by the fact that big daddy Bezos just purchased the deal-a-day site on Wednesday. It’s exclusive and it won’t last forever so you’d best get to clicking if you’ve been on the fence.

Update: And it’s sold out. You know what they say about the early bird…

[Thanks, Kristin]

Amazon Kindle just $149.99 on Woot! (update: sold out) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 01:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 30

Graphite Kindle DX coming July 7th for $379, now available for pre-order

Posted in: breaking news, BreakingNews, e reader, e-book, e-books, e-readers, kindle, Today's Chili

Amazon’s having a field day with its Kindle lineup as of late. Hot off the heels of its Kindle price drop, bigger brother Kindle DX has gotten a new shade, a touted 50 percent improved contrast, and a $379 price tag — much lower than the $489 it asked for when first hitting the scene. Not to worry, there’s still a 9.7-inch E-ink display and free 3G wireless. Though not shipping until July 7th, you can go ahead and give Bezos and co. your money today, whether you’re a domestic or international customer.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading Graphite Kindle DX coming July 7th for $379, now available for pre-order

Graphite Kindle DX coming July 7th for $379, now available for pre-order originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 00:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 29

Kindle for Android Joins the E-Book Party

Posted in: Android, e-books, kindle, Phones, Today's Chili

Amazon continues its electronic march across the e-book world with Kindle for Android, which joins Kindle apps for iOS, BlackBerry, Mac and PC.

Like the other Kindle flavors, the Android version will keep your reading organized and synchronized across all your devices via Whispersync, let you make and view annotations and buy titles from the Kindle store. Also like the other version, the Android Kindle app is free to download (find it in the Android Market). What you don’t yet get are the audio and video extras announced for iOS devices yesterday.

The actual hardware Kindle certainly kick-started the mainstream e-book market, but it looks more and more like that was its main reason for existing. Amazon, as we know, makes its money on selling books, not selling Kindles, and the relentless push to make its e-book library available anywhere shows the business plan clearly. It doesn’t hurt that the Kindle’s catalog stands at around 600,000 titles, making it the one of the best-stocked stores around. Kindle for Android will work on any device running Android 1.6 or better.

Kindle for Android [Amazon. Thanks, Kinley!]

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Jun 28

Kindle for Android now available

Posted in: amazon, amazon kindle, AmazonKindle, Android, breaking news, BreakingNews, e reader, e-book, e-books, e-readers, kindle, Today's Chili

Move over, Kobo — following the promise of a Summer launch, Amazon’s Kindle app for Android is now live, bringing the usual array of features that existing Kindle users will hold near and dear: access to the Kindle store right from the app, adjustable font sizes, free book samples, and most importantly, wireless bookmark synchronization with your entire stable of Kindle-equipped devices (because we know you’ve all got an iPad, iPhone, and physical Kindle lying around somewhere). The app requires Android 1.6 to operate, which is going to leave a few people in the lurch — but it’s always good to have a compelling reason to upgrade hardware, is it not?

[Thanks, Neil]

Kindle for Android now available originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 16:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 27

Amazon Kindle Editions with video and audio added to iPhone / iPad app

Posted in: amazon, app, Apple, e reader, e-book, e-books, e-readers, ipad, iPhone, ipod touch, IpodTouch, kindle, Today's Chili

No, Amazon didn’t just release a new Kindle capable of doing full motion video with embedded audio. Instead, Amazon just updated the content for the Kindle app running on Apple gear that gives a few books an inject of multimedia. For example, Rick Steves’ London Kindle Edition with audio/video features walking tours with Rick doing the narration while Rose’s Heavenly Cakes features video tips for… you guessed it, making delicious cake. Unfortunately, we’re only seeing about a dozen titles classified as “Kindle Edition with Audio/Video” so it’s hard to tell if the move is a first step in a wholesale Kindle change or just a toe in the water to gauge interest. We suspect the former, given enough time and publisher interest.

Continue reading Amazon Kindle Editions with video and audio added to iPhone / iPad app

Amazon Kindle Editions with video and audio added to iPhone / iPad app originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Jun 2010 01:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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