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The Sony PRS-T3 will feature a 6-inch E Ink screen with a resolution of 1024×758 pixels. Sony is really not giving a full HD experience like many other devices that are being released this year. A number of e-Readers are all going to be using a new HD Pearl e-Paper screen that has a resolution of 2048×1536 pixels. The one thing I find odd is that Sony plans on going with a infrared display from Neonode, instead of a capacitive touchscreen display.
The restiveness to incorporating a front-lit display stems from one of their old e-readers, the PRS-700. Sony actually released a very terrible reader with a side-lit display in 2008. This has put a sour taste on the whole concept, Stephanie said. "We had concluded that the reading lights are aimed really heavy readers who seek an experience close to the paper, and light alter the experience. So we focused on other features that the book is not, as the ability to enlarge the font to enhance reading comfort." She went on to say "Studies we conducted have shown that the presence of an integrated lighting system was not a criterion: it is a popular feature from time to time, but that's all. We prefer to focus on the rest of the reading light to provide a highly efficient device, without this feature, it offers optional via accessories. This is the bias that we take." One of the ways Sony has a bit of advantage over other companies is the software they run on their line of readers. They have a relationship with digital library juggernaut Overdrive, which allows readers to borrow and read books directly within the app. Sources at Overdrive have informed us that Sony still has a relationship with them and has an existing licensing agreement. What this does, is put Overdrive on Sony e-Readers exclusively and Overdrive then markets the e-readers to all of the libraries that do business with them. This is all done under the guise of the Overdrive Test Drive program, which recommends and markets certain devices to libraries all over the world. Publishers are quite happy with Sony, because they do not have the cut-throat reputation that Amazon has. Sony has been revising their online Reader Store over the course of the last year. They have invested a ton of money into their eBook Discovery programs and unique features to recommend books. They have also undergone a huge website relaunch, which saw the old style done away and a more intuitive reading interface. There is no word yet on how the new store looks on the T3, but I would expect that it visually looks different then on prior models. The new Sony PRS-T3 e-Reader does not change any of the current paradigms of what an e-Reader is. They are not using anything that would draw in people with existing e-Readers that are looking to upgrade. There does not seem to be a compelling enough reason to switch to this device, unless you want some free Harry Potter Books. Sony is basically just going through the motions at this point and keeping in-line with their yearly product release cycle. Sony PRS T3 has a September 19th Release Date is a post from: E-Reader News |
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Sony PRS T3 has a September 19th Release Date
Sony is releasing their next generation e-Reader on September 19th 2013. The exact date comes from a 
Sony is forgoing the front-lit display that the Kindle Paperwhite, Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight and the Kobo Aura employ. Instead they are going with a super slim lighted cover. Sony were the first to experiment with touch screens and front lighting and these were not always successful. Stephanie Lang, head of group IT division of Sony France, said in a 
Good e-Reader Radio – B&N Earnings Call, Future of the Nook, eBook Discovery and e-Paper News
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Welcome to another exciting edition of the Good e-Reader Radio Show! Jeremy Greenfield of Digital Book World joins Michael Kozlowski to talk the latest news in digital publishing. Today on the show we talk about Barnes and Noble’s latest earnings call and how the company isn’t giving up on Nook tablets just yet. Nook Video just launched for iOS and Android, and we talk about the likelihood of consumer adoption. In other news, e-Ink released their latest financial earnings report and are down almost $33 million dollars in the last quarter. Things should pick up towards the end of Q3 and Q4, as Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Bookeen, Kobo and a number of other companies are releasing new e-Readers. Finally, we talk about eBook discovery and a recent post Digital Book World made on the subject. Good e-Reader Radio – B&N Earnings Call, Future of the Nook, eBook Discovery and e-Paper News is a post from: E-Reader News |
Piracy a Major Threat to Digital Publishing in China
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As it has been the case anywhere else in the world, publishers in China too are waking up to the impact that digital publishing is expected to have in the domestic publishing industry in future. However, publishers fear the rampant piracy prevalent in the country could cast a pall of gloom in the segment. No mean words these are considering China has already grown to emerge the second largest ebook market in the world. China's digital publishing industry has been showing impressive growth off late, with ebooks, digital newspapers and digital magazine growing by 52.6 percent in 2012. China though considers online cartoons, online gaming, mobile phone gaming, online advertisements and online music as well as part of the digital publishing industry. However, it's no less than 200 million Chinese who have taken to reading digital publications in recent times. However, even with ebooks coming much cheaper than their printed counterparts, a survey to ascertain the people's reading trend has revealed that the majority two third of those polled read books online only if they are free. “It’s unavoidable to have so many pirated books on the market. I think all local publishing houses should cooperate to combat piracy and build a market with a more rational order.” Said Wu Hong, vice editor-in-chief, Shanghai Translation Publishing House. It's a tall order no doubt, given the cheap clones that the Chinese come up with on a regular basis. In fact, it's a parallel industry that thrives in China where they take pride in coming up with exact clones of the original, be it electronics or anything else. There have even been instances of an entire Apple store being replicated in China, which should be a clear pointer of how seriously they value their replicating skills. Coming back specifically to digital publishing, Kan Ninghui, vice director of Shanghai Press & Publication Admin, said, “The e-publication has nothing supportive so far. What we do is just something on the surface. If we can better develop e-books, that is, let e-books better elaborate the contents of the traditional books, it’ll be better for the entire industry.” As Mei Xuelin, president of a publishing house that deals with educational content puts it, making an ebook that is an exact replica of the original printed version is a way to fuel piracy. Instead, an ebook that contains a lot of audio and visual material that helps explain the content better can be a nice example of what an ebook should be like. However, such a makeover for the ebooks can also rob them of the price advantage they have over the printed ones but can deter piracy. "The book can hardly be replaced. From a technical perspective, videos or explanations attached to the e-book may not match well with the content in a pirated version. And when it comes to education, readers will tend to believe the legal copies in terms of content. Such e-books are much more complete than the traditional versions. So, we can make the price the same as the paperback," said Xuelin. In the end what can be said is that with piracy so rampant in the country, it won’t be an easy job to get rid of it quickly and completely. But an effort like the one mentioned above is surely a step in the right direction.
Piracy a Major Threat to Digital Publishing in China is a post from: E-Reader News |
Leaks Reveal That New Sony Reader PRS-T3 Doesn’t Have a Frontlight
| Today I’ve got some unfortunate news to report. Some new information has leaked online about Sony’s new upcoming PRS-T3 ebook reader and it doesn’t look good. In fact I’m so disappointed that I almost decided not to write an article about this at all because quite frankly there’s so little new information revealed that it […] |
Free Content for New Nook App Customers
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Barnes and Noble is celebrating the realization that more and more reading consumers are using tablet-based e-reading apps for their digital reading needs. To that end, the book retailer is offering free ebook content to new users in the UK who download the Nook app for their devices and register a new user account. "This great offer of free eBooks and magazines for new customers that download a NOOK Reading App is another part of NOOK's strong commitment to make reading more affordable and accessible in the UK," said Jim Hilt, Managing Director, Barnes & Noble, in a statement on the free books. "We are excited about the impact we are making on literacy in the UK this summer with our sponsorship of the Get Reading campaign and the corresponding discounts on the award-winning NOOK devices." News came out this week that Barnes and Noble, long rumored to be discontinuing production of its Nook line of devices, would actually continue manufacturing and marketing its e-readers and tablets, although in smaller scale production. At the same time, this venture recognizes that a growing number of consumers want the variety of options that are open to them as tablet consumers, while still benefiting from their customer relationships with specific book and ebook retailers. Of the titles selected in this promotion, Philippa Greggory’s title has a sequel that has recently been launched and Cassandra Clare’s title’s movie adaptation arrives in theaters shortly. Two magazine titles are also available for free under this promotion, T3 and The Simple Things.
Free Content for New Nook App Customers is a post from: E-Reader News |
School digital library search metadata
| In early August we announced the rollout of OverDrive's new digital library for schools. A number of features have been added to the improved interface including updated help materials, visual theme options and expanded title information. Perhaps the most exciting addition, however, is the search metadata now available to users.
Students, teachers and parents alike can now use ATOS and Lexile scores to locate titles based on reading level and difficulty. This opens up endless possibilities for students to not only find titles to read based on their reading levels but it also provides them with a road map for what titles to read next. For schools that use the Accelerated Reader (AR) program having the ATOS scores available on the title page eliminates the need for students to have multiple screens open to compare OverDrive titles and AR scores. Students are also provided with recommended titles based on the information pages they're looking at.
Another group who will benefit from the metadata enhancements is the staff members who select what titles are added to your digital collection. Selectors can use the reports in Marketplace to see what titles are being checked out the most and then purchase new books that fall into similar ATOS and Lexile ranges. This new search metadata provides deeper engagement with your students by enabling them to spend less time searching for a title and more time actually reading!
Adam Sockel is a Marketing Communications Specialist with OverDrive
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Parents and teachers can now get involved in their students reading habits more easily as well. They can quickly see the reading level their students are currently at and make sure they are being challenged by the titles they're selecting. Additionally, they can recommend other titles in the student's reading range. This will keep the students engaged with the materials and get them reading both in the classroom and at home.Finding Images for Your PowerPoint Presentations
A picture is worth a thousand words, especially when it comes to PowerPoint. Learn about some of our favorite resources for high-quality stock photos and graphics. |
Adobe Reader Update For BlackBerry 10 Introduces New Features
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The Adobe Reader for Blackberry 10 has been provided with an update which introduces two new cool features, signature support and text annotation. With the former, users will now be able to create their own signature and save it, which can then be used in documents. It's not only that for users will also have the option to change color, size, opacity as well as the thickness of the signature as well. The other feature, that of text annotations allows users to insert any text and will also have the option to change color, thickness and opacity of the annotated text. The annotations can also be moved and deleted as well. Overall, two very nice features added to the Blackberry 10 platform which should appeal to both the business and general users alike.
Adobe Reader Update For BlackBerry 10 Introduces New Features is a post from: E-Reader News |
Wearables: Google Glass, and something quite different
| Last week, Adafruit published a tutorial on how to get Google Glass to communicate with hardware and the internet via the Pi. Using XMPP (which the decrepit and elderly, like me, may recognise as what used to be Jabber), you can use Google Glass to talk to a Pi, which can then send instructions external devices, or stuff on the internet.
We love this stuff. I had the chance to play with Hexxeh’s Google Glass back in May just after Google IO, and it’s great to see the thing working with external hardware. If you’re not a lucky Google Glass owner, you can build one of these instead. Domestic Hacks has made a 3d-printed, steampunk inspired, fabulous, wearable Pi. It’s a bit spesh – stitched leather with brass fittings, gold PLA, an analogue wristwatch, a lovely clicky wrist keyboard, some handsome lenses for you to peer into as a display…and while we’re not entirely sure what we’d do with one, we want one all the same. The video below the pictures is in German, but that doesn’t detract from its magic sparkle, and should help you to put together your own if you choose to use the 3D printer files that Domestic Hacks has made available on Thingiverse. Vorsprung durch Technik! (That’s the sum total of our German, although Clive does also know some swear words.)
 We understand that you are meant to strap this bit to your head. |
Penguin Australia Launches New Teen Website
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Penguin Australia has been running a fairly popular teen website for the last six years. The main draw about the website is the blogging platform that wrote a number of articles on books to film and fashion. Penguin has just launched a totally new website and really takes blogging design to a new level. Penguin Teen Australia features a very compelling design and has heavy HTML5 elements. I have really never seen a blogging website with this type of design and recommend everyone to check it out. The writing is all done internally by dedicated Penguin writers and focuses on the same type of content they had before, just more of it. They have best seller charts, when famous actors are visiting Australia and an overall heavy emphasis on celebrity culture, with a book twist. Felicity Vallence mentioned in a statement “We hope teens will embrace the site in a number of ways including discussing their favorite books. We know from our research that the desire to not only learn about new YA reads, but discuss teens books with like-minded readers is incredibly important and with a vibrant and active online Australian YA community, we wanted to offer readers another avenue to do so.” Penguin Australia Launches New Teen Website is a post from: E-Reader News |
