Sony e-ink reader, e-ink watch and other e-ink devices
I’ve mentioned in earlier articles that I bought a Sony eBook Reader in July 2007. The Sony eBook Reader is one of the most popular innovations in recent years, with its ability to offer hundreds of books for you to read, all stored in the convenient shape of a slim line piece of hardware no bigger than a paperback book. It managed to do this by using e-ink technology, from the American company of the same name. But it’s not just Sony who’s benefiting from this technology.
From helping with weather forecasts to improving mobile phone display screens, the technology behind e-Ink is fast becoming one of the most sought-after pieces of software today. The best thing about it is that the company doesn’t scream about its baby and how it’s the next big thing on the market. Then again, it doesn’t need to, as the results speak for themselves. So who else uses e-Ink’s technology?
Ambient Devices
One of the biggest companies in America today when it comes to sharing electronic information such as weather forecasts, energy efficiency and traffic congestion reports, Ambient are using e-Ink in their Weather Wizard. Much like a bedside LCD clock, it displays a 5-day weather forecast in real time.
Citizen Watch Co. Ltd.
The Japanese company famed for its watches and clocks uses the e-Ink technology in its patented “flexible clocks”, which are the wonderfully stylish curved clocks you see in hardware stores and shopping malls all across the country. The e-Inktechnology allows this shape to come to fruition, without compromising design or performance.
iRex Technologies BV
An offshoot of Royal Philips Electronics, the e-Ink software is used by iRex to power an eReader called the Iliad, which is similar to Sony’s Reader. The difference with the iRex product is that you can also write with it, using the supplied stylus, and transfer these documents to a PC or another Iliad.
Jinke Electronics Hanlin eReader
Another Japanese company who use the e-Ink technology is Jinke Electronics. Currently used in their Hanlin eReader V2, this is another electronic reading device that can store books, eBooks and other similar documents and is just as impressive outdoors as it is inside.
Lexar JumpDrive Mercury
One of the companies at the forefront of memory and storage devices for computers, American company Lexar has incorporated the e-Ink software into its range of JumpDrive Mercury USB flash drives. By using an e-Ink display screen, you can immediately tell how much memory has been used on your flash drive, making transferring of media files a whole lot easier.
Motorola Motofone
Japanese mobile phone giant Motorola is using the enhanced benefits of e-Ink technology in its display screens for its complete MOTOFONE series of handsets, including the RAZR phones.
Seiko Curved i-ink watches
The Japanese watch company has used the technology to enable it to make incredibly stylish watches that are curved in design, with the display embedded into the curve itself. These have been hugely popular with women, and have resulted in large sales of these particular watches.
Store Hundreds of books in the Slim Sony PRS-500 eBook Reader
Sony eBook Reader – A New Way To Read
Actually, the Sony eBook Reader’s 64 MB internal memory will hold 80 books. If you use an inexpensive 1GB SD card, you can carry around more than 800 complete books in this half inch thick, 11 ounce, device.
I purchased a Sony eBook Reader in July 2007. I wasn’t sure if I was going to keep it or just play with it a few times then sell it on eBay. Although it’s not perfect, I’ve found some great uses for it that I’ll tell you about the next few articles. But first, I’ll tell you what and eBook reader is – and how it works.
If you enjoy reading books, you’ll know that one of the only downsides to this extremely enjoyable hobby is the space a collection can take up. This is especially true if you’re an avid reader who manages to get through a book a week, and possibly two. Soon your bedroom, or whatever room you keep you books in, can start to resemble a library, and unless that’s a look you’re trying to cultivate, this can soon become annoying.
However, this can now be a thing of the past with the Sony Reader (also known as the Sony eBook Reader). Now, instead of having hundreds of old books littering your valuable shelf space, you can have all these in one convenient place, and best of all, you can take them all with you whenever you go travelling. Now you need never be stuck for a book to read again, or limited to choice due to bag or suitcase space.
What Is a Digital Book Exactly?
Simply put, the Sony Reader is a “digital book”, similar to a PDA and roughly the same size as a paperback at 175.6mm in height and 123.6mm wide; yet it’s a lot lighter, weighing only 250 g. I’ve learned that the Sony reader has these dimensions because At just 13.8mm deep, it’s compact enough to slip into your jacket pocket as well, or a handbag, yet don’t be fooled by its slim styling – this is a serious piece of work.
Ideal for the person who likes to read a lot of books, the Sony Reader allows you to store complete manuscripts and books directly onto the internal memory, which at 64MB, allows for the storage of hundreds of your favorite books for you to read at your leisure.
It does this by using its CONNECT software to browse for popular and current books online, and then allowing you to buy them for downloading onto the Reader. And with the growing popularity of that medium for books nowadays, the choice of reading material is virtually endless.
However, it’s not just books that can be stored on the Sony Reader – you can also download PDF files, RSS news feeds, blogs and JPEG pictures and images, as well as audio files in the standard MP3
What is e-Ink?
One of the reasons that Sony’s Reader is a big improvement over similar models is the way that it uses e-Ink, as opposed to LCD or CRT technology. Whereas LCD is fine for high-definition televisions and computer monitors, for something that is going to be used in direct sunlight such as reading a book a different technology is needed.
This is why e-Ink is Sony’s preferred choice for its eBook Reader. Made by an American company of the same name, e-Ink uses dedicated black and white ink particles to give a far sharper picture or display, even in direct sunlight or at an angle of 180°, and it doesn’t eat into the battery power either. This technology, combined with its memory and looks, make Sony’s Reader the logical progression when it comes to reading books.
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