EbookReader
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Sony's PRS-500 e-book reader in the wild
Speaking of the future, we always thought that by the 21st century we'd all have digital pads to read stuff on, instead of these old-fashioned analog "books." Well, that's what Sony's betting on with its PRS-500, anyway, which has just been spotted in the wild for the first time -- in the hands of none other than Phillip Torrone of MAKE magazine (and Engadget) fame. We'd previously reported that this $350-ish e-book reader was going to be delayed (again), but that somehow it would be shipping in time for "the holidays." Given Sony's other problems of late, though, we wouldn't be surprised if the company was referring to our next summer holiday. Remember, regular ol' books may be low-tech, but at least they don't explode. Keep reading for another snap, and then head over to MAKE for the full lowdown...
Turn your Powerbook (or MacBook) into an eBook reader
John Udell has a PowerBook and lots of PDF's to read. Sounds like a natural fit to me, but John wasn't happy with having to read his PDF's on the PowerBook's widescreen. What's a geek to do?Why, use Preview to view your PDF's fullscreen and turn your PowerBook on its side. In a few seconds flat you have created yourself a very expensive eBook reader.[via Make]
Apple to do eBooks?
We tend to field a lot of inside information here at Engadget HQ, but we've gotten not one, but two bits from separate, trustworthy insiders that Apple's not satisfied merely vending Audible's books-on-digital-audio solution. With the iRex iLiad and Sony PRS-500 Portable Reader both right around the corner, is it possible the next iPod might catch the eBook bug? We'd say the possibility is very real, since according to a source at a major publishing house, they were just ordered to archive all their manuscripts -- every single one -- and send them over to Apple's Cupertino HQ. A separate trusted source let us know that the next iPod will have a substantial amount of screen real estate (as we'd all suspected), as well as a book reading mode that pumps up the contrast and drops into monochrome for easy reading. It's no e-ink, sure, but a widescreen iPod would be well suited for the purpose, and according to our source, the books you'd buy (presumably through iTunes) won't have an expiration -- kind of like Apple-bought music, as well, but contradictory to the movie rental scheme we've heard rumored. Could they please just rename it the iTunes Music, Movies, and Book Store and get it over with already?
