Sony And Reader -- Engadget

sony,reader posts

Switched On: Making book with ePUB

by Ross Rubin posted Oct 25th 2009 at 12:30PM

Ross Rubin (@rossrubin) contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.

The ePUB standard, developed by Adobe, allows consumers to purchase books at a variety of digital stores and use them on a wide range of compatible devices without the manufacturer having to explicitly support them. That may sound a bit like the PlaysForSure initiative that Microsoft tried mounting to challenge the iPod but ultimately shifted away from (at least for MP3 players) in favor of the Zune, but ePUB has a better shot than PlaysForSure did.

First, unlike PlaysForSure, which was playing catch-up to the already dominant iPod, ePUB is appearing relatively early in the market; it need not break anyone's "stranglehold." Second, after attracting the support of Sony, the format achieved a significant coup with the support of Barnes & Noble, which noted last week that it was "excited" to be supporting the format in its forthcoming Nook e-reader.

Continue reading Switched On: Making book with ePUB

Sony's CEATEC concept party includes Walkman bracelet and 0.2mm thin OLED (video)

by Darren Murph posted Oct 6th 2009 at 5:13AM

We've yet to see a trade show where Sony left its Rhode Island-sized booth at home, and CEATEC is no exception. Aside from pushing its 1080p 3D installations with an epic amount of force, the company also had a smattering of swank new concepts on display that caught our eyes. A 0.2 millimeter-thin flexible OLED display was alive and displaying content, while an ultrathin Reader mock-up looked more like a MID and less like a Kindle. Without question, the two items that took our breath away were the all-panel laptop (which tossed the traditional keyboard in favor of a single, swooping display) and the Walkman bracelet, which did little more than talk dirty to us and get our imaginations working overtime. Unfortunately, all the good stuff was behind bulletproof glass with practically zero information to digest, but you can indulge your senses anyway in the gallery below and video after the break.

Gallery: Sony's CEATEC concept party includes Walkman bracelet and 0.2mm thin OLED

Continue reading Sony's CEATEC concept party includes Walkman bracelet and 0.2mm thin OLED (video)

Sony outs pink Vaio W, Pocket Reader bundles for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

by Laura June posted Oct 2nd 2009 at 1:54PM

Sony's announced it will support Breast Cancer Awareness month by outing two new bundles -- and both of them are super pink. The first bundle will include a Berry Pink 10.5-inch Vaio W with an Intel Atom N280 CPU, 1GB of RAM, and a 160GB hard drive, plus a matching sleeve and mouse. The second bundle will include the special edition Rose Pocket Edition reader with a gold clutch case, plus download codes for four e-books. Sony has said it will donate $110,000 to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation in conjunction with October sales for these bundles. The Vaio W bundle will run you $499, while the reader bundle is $199. Both can be ordered now at Sony Style.

[Via Slashgear]

Video: Sony Reader Touch Edition gets touched, desktop software upped to 3.0

by Ross Miller posted Aug 27th 2009 at 3:33AM

Sony's Daily Edition may be taking a front row seat in everyone's hearts and minds right now, but let's not forget just three weeks prior the company revamped its other two, decidedly network connectivity-free e-book reader models. MobileTechReview got its hands on the PRS-600 "Touch Edition," which scores points for an easy-to-use dictionary and enhanced note-taking abilities that are purported to sync to the desktop, at least eventually. Turns out the screen isn't as sharp as the PRS-505 and there's a bit of glare, but there's certainly more contrast with the new device. Last we heard both readers were due for check out by the end of this month, although as of this writing only Pocket Edition seems to be available on Sony Style -- and if you're already enjoying a Sony reader, you'll be happy to know that 3.0 desktop software is now making the rounds for PC and Mac. Video after the break.

[Thanks, Tom]

Read - PRS-600 review
Read - SonyStyle store
Read - eBook Library Software 3.0

Continue reading Video: Sony Reader Touch Edition gets touched, desktop software upped to 3.0

Sony's Readers cozy up for a family portrait

by Paul Miller posted Aug 25th 2009 at 11:52AM

It's too bad Sony doesn't have a working prototype to show of its new Daily Edition Reader (pictured on the right), but we got to look at all three of the Readers up next to each other, and it paints quite the picture of familial unity. We asked to see the Daily Edition without its cover, but apparently it's built into the device -- though you can change it out for an alternative, and the battery is replaceable. Check out the close-ups below.

Gallery: Sony's Readers cozy up for a family portrait

Sony announces Reader Daily Edition, free library ebook checkouts

by Nilay Patel posted Aug 25th 2009 at 10:31AM

It flew under the radar until a quiet leak this morning, but Sony's just announced the Reader Daily Edition, as well as updated Mac-compatible eBook Library 3.0 software and a new library content service. The Reader Daily Edition has a seven-inch touchscreen with 16 levels of gray as well as a AT&T 3G modem, enabling it to pull content wirelessly -- it'll launch in December for $400, and the 3G access will be free, but limited to accessing the Sony eBook store. Yeah, sorry -- no web browser here. We're a little more geeked about the library finder service, which enables you to check out ebooks and other digital content from your local public library on any of the Readers -- for free. The New York Public Library is the flashy public launch partner, but there are "thousands more" looped in through a partnership with Overdrive.com -- check out the huge selection of top-tier content you can get through the Chicago Public Library, for example. Interestingly, the library buys a fixed number of "copies" of each title and "checks out" the licenses, so you're on a time limit -- licenses will revert after 14-29 days depending on your local branch's rules. Yeah, it's a little DRM-y and there's a lot of interesting new media and copyright implications there, but it's still a pretty amazing idea, and it's definitely a major advantage over the Kindle. We're gunning for more info now, we'll let you know as soon as we find out more -- until then, check two more images after the break.

Update: We're told that partnerships with university libraries were "only a matter of time," but sadly there's no timetable for a European launch at the moment.

Read - Sony Reader Daily Edition PR
Read - Overdrive.com partnership PR

Continue reading Sony announces Reader Daily Edition, free library ebook checkouts

Sony's 'Daily Edition' Reader launch event

by Paul Miller posted Aug 25th 2009 at 10:30AM

We're huddled up in an obscure corner of the New York Public Library, waiting for Sony to drop its new Reader news on us. There are numerous publishing people here, and for our money we'd say a wireless-equipped, "daily" news sort of device is about to descend upon us, but we'll find out for sure when Sony gets on the makeshift stage and tells all.

10:30AM: The President and CEO of the New York Public Library is up front, and he says the digital content of the NYPL will be available to Sony Readers for free.

10:34AM: Steve Haber, president of Sony's Digital Reading Business Division is up now, and he likens the transition from books to digital books to vinyl to CD and film to digital photo.

10:38AM: Launching 3.0 eBook Library software. Mac and PC compatible, notes made on the touch edition can be printed.

10:40AM: Library Finder. You can register for a library card, and then check out ebooks from the "library" over the internet. Content expires in the number of days specified by the library. No late fees!

10:43AM: Sony Reader Daily Edition! 3G, 7-inch touchscreen, $399. Picture is up top.

10:53AM: Check out some "hands-on" photos below. He didn't let us touch it, and apparently this isn't even a working prototype. Still, from our angle, it's looking pretty slick!

Gallery: Sony's 'Daily Edition' Reader launch event

Sony teases Daily Edition Reader, announcement imminent

by Paul Miller posted Aug 25th 2009 at 9:37AM

We're actually about to head out the door for a Sony Reader announcement of some sort, and this "Daily Edition" device that just popped up on Sony's "Words Move Me" site sure seems like a prime candidate. Is Sony trying to mix in a bit of the Kindle's wireless-based up-to-date-ness at long last? We'll find out in about an hour.

[Thanks, Skippy]

Video: Sony PRS-600 Touch is fast but too dim to satisfy PRS-505 owner

by Thomas Ricker posted Aug 24th 2009 at 5:14AM

Touch, it's the panacea of e-book readers, right? Sure, just so long as readability isn't sacrificed in the process. Flickr user Doodlydood uploaded some pics and video of Sony's new $300 PRS-600 (on the left above) reader and did a quick comparison with his legacy PRS-505. Unfortunately, the glare from the plastic resistive touchscreen is an issue and the weak contrast, like the touchscreen PRS-700 before it, pales by comparison to Sony's two year old PRS-505 with glass display. On the flip side, page turns on the new 600 were fast and "work extremely well" compared to the PRS-505. Unfortunately, that's a minor victory when the whole purpose of an e-reader it to well, you know... read. See for yourselves in the videos after the break.

[Via Lesen.net, thanks Johannes]

Continue reading Video: Sony PRS-600 Touch is fast but too dim to satisfy PRS-505 owner

Sony takes Reader openness one step further, will offer EPUB titles only

by Darren Murph posted Aug 13th 2009 at 7:18AM

Slowly but surely, the mega-corp who has historically clung tight to its own formats while the world opts for others is finally seeing the light. Just over a year after Sony pushed out an update that enabled its Reader to use purchased books in the open EPUB format, the outfit is now promising to sell digital books only in that format by the year's end. Moreover, Sony is aiming to nix its "proprietary anti-copying software in favor of technology from the software maker Adobe that restricts how often e-books can be shared or copied." Once the switchover takes place, books purchased in Sony's online store will be readable on any device that supports EPUB, one of which will be Plastic Logic's forthcoming e-reader. And to think -- if only this change of heart would've happened prior to the introduction of ATRAC...

Sony Reader Pocket and Touch editions lower cost of entry, online e-book store follows suit

by Ross Miller posted Aug 4th 2009 at 6:11PM

As it turns out, those Sony Reader leaks from earlier this week were spot on. The company just went official with the PRS-300 and 600, which will more affectionately be known as the Pocket and Touch editions, respectively. The latter (pictured left, not to scale) is the 6-inch resistive touchscreen model replacing the PRS-700, with Memory Stick / Duo and SD card slots. The backlighting layer from its predecessor has been dropped to improve touch responsiveness and to alleviate concerns of glare. It also comes packing a stylus and a digitized copy of the Oxford American English Dictionary and will be available in red, black, and silver. The Pocket Edition, on the other hand, is your standard fare with no touchscreen or expandable disk port, and palettes including blue, silver, and rose. Both models have USB 2.0, 512MB internal memory, and no WiFi whatsoever -- Sony assures us a WiFi version is coming and there'll be news on those coming soon, but this isn't it. There's also Mac compatibility, a first for the series, that's trickling down to older models via a firmware update. Touch and Pocket will be available by the end of August and will retail for $299 and $199, a substantially more competitive price point than its previous generation. Speaking of which, as of tomorrow, the Sony's e-book store is dropping the prices of its bestsellers from $11.99 to $9.99. A win all around, but will it be enough to make a dent in Kindle's stronghold? Things are certainly getting more interesting.

Gallery: Sony Reader Pocket and Touch editions lower cost of entry, online e-book store follows suit

Full specs leak on Sony Reader PRS-300 and PRS-600

by Darren Murph posted Aug 3rd 2009 at 7:52AM

Still doubting that Sony has a new duo of e-book readers on the horizon? Have a look at this. Sony Insider is reporting that retailer J&R posted up product listings for both the PRS-300 and PRS-600, but both were quickly pulled in order to avoid a stern wrist slap from the suits at Sony. 'Course, neither were pulled quickly enough, and what we're left with is a list of full specifications and MSRPs for the both of 'em. If said sheets are to be believed, the 5-inch (800 x 600 resolution) Sony PRS300-RC Reader Pocket Edition will ship with 512MB of onboard memory, PC and Mac support, a battery good for 7,500 page turns and USB 2.0 connectivity. The 6-inch (800 x 600 resolution) PRS600-SC Reader Touch Edition checks in at 0.4-inches thin and boasts a virtual keyboard, doodle capability, 512MB of storage, a built-in English e-dictionary, PC and Mac support and the same battery as on the smaller sibling. We're looking at price tags of $199 and $299, respectively, but with no apparent WiFi or WWAN built in, it'll still be a hard sell over Amazon's connected Kindle here in America.

New Sony Reader PRS-300 and PRS-600 details leaked

by Joseph L. Flatley posted Jul 30th 2009 at 2:37PM

You know the drill -- service manuals get posted for new / unannounced products, the kids in the forums pounce, and then Sony makes 'em disappear (the documents, that is -- Sony doesn't rub people out, at least not yet). In this case, user 'berboris' over at The Electronic Book found details for two Sony Readers as yet unheard of: The PRS-300 features a 5-inch display, roughly 440MB storage after system files are accounted for, and that's about it -- no touchscreen, no audio output, no card slots. The PRS-600, however, sports a 6-inch touchscreen, audio output (presumably for MP3 audiobooks and the like), SD/MS slots, and 380MB storage when all's said and done. The manuals don't mention any sort of lighting for the units or any kind of wireless connection, although both models will apparently be available in silver, red, and black -- which you can peep, conveniently enough, after the break.

[Via Mobile Read]

Read - Forum post
Read - More info and PDFs at Sony Insider

Continue reading New Sony Reader PRS-300 and PRS-600 details leaked

Sony brings over a million Google Books to the Reader

by Nilay Patel posted Jul 29th 2009 at 9:46PM

Cool move by Sony to bolster the number of titles in its Reader ebook store -- it's linked up with Google to provide over a million free public domain works from Google Books, just like those fun folks at Barnes and Noble. The books are in the EPUB format and will work with the PRS-505 or the PRS-700 in the US only for now -- different countries have different copyright terms, so we'd imagine the lawyers are busy sorting it all out. Sure, none of this will do much to shake the Kindle's market- and mindshare, but at least Sony won't be deleting this stuff off your device without your permission, right?

[Thanks, Tom]

PVI's color e-ink delayed until 2010, big-screen Sony Reader coming?

by Tim Stevens posted May 8th 2009 at 9:17AM

Color e-ink displays are starting to become less of a curiosity and more of a reality, but if the rumor from DigiTimes proves true it's going to be another year or so before we start seeing them en masse. PVI, makers of displays for the Kindle and Sony Reader, has apparently indicated that its attempts at creating a color display have been more or less unsatisfactory and it's going to take until 2010 at least to get its hues sorted out. That's the bad news. There is some good news, though, indicating that Sony's working on its own 8.5 x 11-inch reader utilizing the same screen as the Kindle DX. Since the last rumors about that display was pretty-much on the mark, we wouldn't be surprised if this one proved true as well -- and we can't wait to see what Sony charges for it.

[Via SlashGear]