Skiff Reader is largest yet, will be hitting a Sprint Store near you
By Tim Stevens 
posted January 4th 2010 12:46PM
posted January 4th 2010 12:46PM
Amazon's Kindle DX may be big, but it's not the biggest any more. The Skiff Reader is here to take that crown -- despite being a mere quarter inch thick. It packs a 1600 x 1200 11.5-inch touchscreen (finger and stylus) that, as you can see from the above screenshot, should do much better justice to magazine and newspaper layouts than we've yet seen from an e-ink-based reader. That's exactly the sort of advance Hearst was promising when it first mentioned the device last month. Skiff includes 4GB of on-board storage (just over 3GB is available for content) with SD card expansion, and there's a 3.5mm headphone jack for tunes and, hopefully, text-to-speech. Content can be side-loaded over a mini USB jack or delivered via WiFi but, more importantly, 3G is also on offer thanks to Sprint, who will also dedicate some space in its retail stores to sell the thing when it launches sometime this year. Price? That we don't know.
This I actually may be interested in.
I wonder if it will be subsidized, and therefore tied to a contract, or unsubsidized and still able to use Sprint's 3G network (e.g. the Kindle).
@Kyle P
yeah, the bigger screen really would make a differnce for me. that's the problem I have with the others, it's that the screen is way too small.
@pavelbure
That, and the devices break easily.
@Kyle P - that's why it has a flexible screen. As they say on the website: "Shatter-proof, crack-proof"...
@NewL
That screen is extremely cool, albeit wasted on an e-reader. Lets see these on tablets!!
Few design cues from the Xbox 360 thrown in there.
@(Unverified) - an eInk screens' sole purpose is in a reading device.
And how is this thing not a tablet of sorts?
@NewL
I was referring to the bendiness.
This is freakin' beautiful, but I know I'm not going to be able to afford it. When the prices come down, though... come to daddy!
@Kyle P Finally, one big enough to hold a full sheet of music. Now to buy two of them, and make them communicate with each other for full-octavo viewing/page turning.
That is the true worth of this thing is the large screen size. They are getting closer to the magic size of 8 1/2 by 11, the true size of magazines and textbooks. this one is still not there yet as a PDF will have to squeeze graphics, diagrams and text to fit. C'mon! Just a bit more, please!
@johnpombrio
Do you think current Sprint subscribers will get some sort of subsidized deal/discount on this sucker? Definitely an interesting entry into the e-reader market; if the price is right I may think twice about getting a nook.
@NewL when I saw that flexible screen I though, "Woah!!", this is crazy amazing! But then I realised that wasn't the final product, and that there's a hard-shell to house it
- Is it too much to ask for a an e-Ink product i can roll up and shove in my bag? :P
@(Unverified) no, not wasted on a reader at all - the higher resolution means much sharper text and images which in turn means something closer to a "book" experience.
@Kyle P It will be the thinnest e-reader to hit the market, weighing just over a pound and sporting an 11.5" touch screen. It will also be the first product to rely on a new technology of e-paper that uses a sheet of stainless-steel foil which can be bent.
Now you can hear amazon ebook reader fans scratching their head.s now: More skiff detailsS: http://bit.ly/skiff-reader-amazing-details
amazing
@(Unverified)
i'm not easily blown away by everyday gadgets, but this big ass screen really makes it the best reader so far (i own none, though, too expensive for me yet)
oh, and can you really flex it like in the first screenie? ..
superbous.
@(Unverified) It is amazing, however I bet the price will be amazingly high!
@milkywayer If you look at that picture, you'll notice that they're only showing the screen and not the actual product. So the screen is flexible, the actual device isn't. I wouldn't want to carry around a floppy e-ready tbo :)
@cherryboom
Same here. Either it's extremely expensive or has massive flaws.
Or both.
@ch3burashka
"Either it's extremely expensive or has massive flaws. Or both."
Sounds like an Apple product.
Check the read link, the screen is TFT on metal foil. Not really anything out of this world.
@rjpaez
Nope, the device IS flexible.
heres a link to pcworlds article on it which talks about its bendableness.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/185832/skiffs_innovative_bigscreen_ereader_to_debut_at_ces.html
@(Unverified)
I think PC World needs to do better fact checking.
They're assuming it's bendy based on the same pic other's were.
"As the photo below illustrates, this device is quite flexible:"
Unfortunately, that's not a picture of the device, it's just the screen.
Read the actual specs, it has a magnesium frame. I.e. not even a little flexible.
This e-reader business is sure chugging along!
So it is US only I do not like this.... I live in UK ...DISCRIMINATION!
@pankomputerek Move to the us ;)
Is it a touch screen or just normal e-ink?
@GTYellowJacket9
"It packs a 1600 x 1200 11.5-inch touchscreen (finger and stylus)"
I'm not being sarcastic: is there a reason to believe that e-ink displays and touchscreens are mutually exclusive?
@GTYellowJacket9
I assume the question was is it an b/w LCD touchscreen or is it a bendable eInk touchscreen?
@Maddy
Alright NAGG members, go ahead, murder me.
@derX
Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but I think as it stands now e-ink itself does not have any touchscreen abilities. Everything on the market I believe (ie Sony readers) have a touch sensitive overlay to the e-ink display. Thats the reason why the Sony touch readers have really bad glare on the screen because of the touch overlay.
@Rick James - there are some readers that combine an eInk screen with a Wacom touchscreen tech (I can't recall the name of the company right now, though). It's probably the ideal combination of eInk screen quality & responsive, accurate and stylus-capable touch tech, but costs dearly...
@NewL
Now that I think about it, I think you are correct--that must be the tech that the iRex reader uses?
@Rick James - yeah, exactly, the iRex devices use that! But they cost like $1000+, which makes them pointless for the mass market...
@Rick James
Yeah... the Sony touchscreen e-readers have an additional layer over the e-ink screen.
IMO... it ruins the look of the e-ink screen.
If I'm at the bookstore, and both the regular Sony Reader and their Touchscreen Reader are displayed side-by-side... the non-touchscreen screen looks a lot better.
E-ink is amazingly sharp... but that extra layer of plastic or glass or whatever muddies the screen.
I like what the Nook has... with a regular e-ink screen up top, and an touchscreen LCD below for menus and typing, etc. Too bad the Nook has its own share of problems.
@Michael Scrip I agree, the stupid coating that they put for a resistive touchscreen makes everything look a bit blurred - it's a pain in the ass, kind of the same problem HPs original tablet PCs had, the touchscreen layer killed legibility.
wait, this has a flexible screen? (the first shot below the article) Isn't that big news for something that's actually available to consumers soonish? I thought it was only experimental tech?
@safe travels Wait, its it oled? I dont think so.And it seems its only the screen in that picture. There's no plastic cover like in the other pictures.
@safe travels
The screen itself is flexible, but the casing around the screen appears to be metal (or rigid, at least).
@Kyle P hmm, fair enough. why would they put a flexible screen into a rigid casing though? odd..
@safe travels
Because it isn't a glass screen with liquid crystals (aka an LCD screen) that can break easily.
A person might feel more comfortable throwing this in a bag without a case, for example.
@Kyle P huh, so, you reckon it's designed to be taken out of the case? that also seems unusual.. haha this device confuses me.
@safe travels oh wait, I see what you mean now, as in, no case for the whoel device, because it's safer, but not actually taking it out of the manufactured casing. nevermind haha. still, it's interesting that they'd use a flexible screen for such a reason.
@safe travels
How are you supposed to pack all the necessary hardware in a flexible surface?
Now this is awesome! If it's really bendable like that, then this beats anything out or coming in this category hands down!! Only depressing this is the 3G connection via Sprint aka CDMA...give me GSM so I can travel with it!!!!!!!! FOR F*** SAKES!!!
CDMA = Not Good for Travelers!!
@Plazmic Flame
But there's WiFi which should definitely make up for the lack of GSM.
@Plazmic Flame
Surely it can't be that bendable or they would mention it!
The page in that press picture looks far too thin to be the same device in the other side-shot photos.
@Plazmic Flame
It won't be bendable. The casing, 3G, WIFI, SD Slot and other parts will most definitely rule that out. Plus, that shot is of the screen only if you look closer.
@Plazmic Flame buy before you travel.
For 1st gen devices, the current crop (Sony, Kindle, Nook) look interesting. Just wait for the next generation of readers and see what they can do..
@rederikus
Actually the kindle is second gen. Sony readers are in their 3rd or 4th gen.