Posts Tagged ‘Amazon’

Entourage Edge Linking E-ink Display and LCD Screen

Posted in E-book Readers on March 22nd, 2010 by melody – 5 Comments

Entourage Edge

A unique feature that Entourage Edge has is linking E-ink dispay and LCD screen. Both of them work well but with more complicated operations than a Netbook with the same price and dimensions. However, if you don’t care its weight as much as five Amazon Kindles and complication to operate, Entourage Edge is a feature-packed device that offers you experiences both as a Netbook and a E-book Reader that you usually see in the market.

Now look at the two side of the Entourage Edge. On the left, it is a touch-screen E-ink display that allows you to scribble notes, highlight text, and copy and paste selections. On the right, you have a Google Android-based tablet computer with Wi-Fi e-mail, Web Browser, Microsoft docs support, Webcam, dual USB ports, Multimedia Playback, and support for third-party apps.

Each of the two screens are outfitted with four buttons that control features specific to each panel. They can supply you with convenience to access to some user interfaces, but at first, you may be confused over the difference amongs those buttons. Nevertheless, it is sure that eventually that you’ll get familar with them.

Sony’s First E-Reader to Include Built-in 3G Wireless

Posted in E-book Readers on March 18th, 2010 by melody – 3 Comments

Sony PRS 900BCWith built-in 3G wirelss service, you can easily get access to e-books from Sony’s Reader Store. And EPUB file compatibility lets you access thousands of free classic Google Books and loaner files from many local libraries. Built-in dictionary, charger and protective case are also included. This is Sony Reader Daily Edition PRS 900BC, Sony’s first e-reader to include 3G wireless service.

The move to wireless is a big deal for Sony, because it allows the company to compete directly, with the Kindle and other e-readers like the Barnes & Noble Nook, which bundle in “free” cellular connectivity. Mix in a touch-screen interface and the Daily Edition’s markup and note-taking capabilities and you should have one of the more appealing e-reader options out there, particularly when you factor in the aforementioned elegant design. However, a few shortcomings–including a high $399 price tag–keep this e-reader from truly outclassing the competition.

Sony PRS 900BC has a 7.1-inch touch screen instead of the more standard 6 inches. That makes it almost exactly the same length as the Amazon Kindle in terms of pure physical dimensions. But there is a physical keyboard that takes some space, so that Sony PRS 900BC could display sevral more lines of text on its longer screen.

Microsoft Zune HD Finally Released to Shake Apple iPod’s Dominant Status

Posted in Portable Players, Video Players on February 9th, 2010 by melody – 2 Comments

Microsoft Zune HDMicrosoft finally released its zune player that can be competed with Apple iPod that had always been in the dominant status. The new Zune HD, priced at $219.99(16GB) and 289.99(32GB), will cost you $10 less than iPod if you buy the same capacity of 32GB. But I think if Zune HD is not good enough as iPod, people who decide to buy a high end player will not care to spend $10 more compared with tha price tag that has already been nearly $300. Then, how does Zune HD works?

Zune HD is a very good-looking gadget. When you compare it side-by-side with the iPod touch, what’s most striking about the Zune HD is its smaller, lighter frame with 2.6-ounce weight and 4.0-by-2.1-by-0.4-inch size, while the 480-by-272 resolution is slightly lower than the iPod’s 480 by 320. Still, the screen is bright and sharp-due in part to Microsoft’s decision to use OLED and keep it smaller.

For a clean design, physical controls of Zune HD are kept to a minimum: There’s a Power button up top, a Home button underneath the LCD, and a button on the right panel calls up playback and volume controls. There are no actual Volume buttons, only on-screen controls, which means you have to look down at the player to adjust the volume, which is a bit of a drag. The back panel is a blank canvas that can be adorned with one of several free designs available at the Zune Web site. Included with the player: A pair of mediocre earbuds with three pairs of colorful eartip covers and a proprietary cable for wired PC syncing.

Zune HD video support includes HD and SD versions of WMV, MPEG-4, and H.264. The Zune HD can handle 720p HD files, but on the player, they’ll play back in standard definition. HD playback is only achieved on an HDTV or a PC, using the optional dock’s HDMI connection. The Zune HD & AV Dock is sold separately for $89.99.

———–

The latest news is that Zune HD at Amazon was sold at $189.99(16GB) and $249.99(32GB), which is respectively $30 and $40 less that the initial price. That’s a large reduction!

Amazon Conceding to Publishers over E-book Price

Posted in E-book Readers on February 4th, 2010 by melody – 4 Comments

amazon-best-shopping-seasonUntil January 31st, Amazon sold its digital book titles for $9.99, which was a driving force behind the Kindle’s faithful consumer all the time. However many book publishers did not care for this approach. Publishers believed that Amazon was undervaluing the eBooks. And at last, Amazon conceded to price the eBook at up to $14.99 and low to $12.99. This news made us know that market developments have brought about unavoidable challengs that threaten Amazon’s once untouchable eBook market share.

Apple announced its iPad may be one important factor that force Amazon into this decision. The iPad is a portable media tablet that will serve as eBook reader amongest many other features. As a result, the iPad is considered a direct competitor to the Amazon Kindle and has received a lot of media coverage building up to its recent debut. Apple also disclosed that it will allow publishers to set their own eBook prices in the Apple store. And if Amazon doesn’t do the same as Apple, publisher will not release their new book titles to Amazon.

Amazon once was the dominant force in the eBook industry, with which Amazon can drive down price. But now things have changed since Apple announced its iPad and iBookstore. I had thought more an more manufactures enter into rivalry over eBook, which can bring down the price of eBook reader, but now the price of eBook has been raised unexpectedly.

When to Buy E-book Reader?

Posted in E-book Readers on February 1st, 2010 by melody – 5 Comments

2010 may be a booming year that E-book Reader could be much popular in our common life. We must have no doubt E-book reader is a successful concept as MP3 player did the few year ago. But the expensive price has made most of us wait and see E-book reader for a long time. What I now want to recommend you is that you’d better not hurry to buy one but continue waiting.

More and more manufacturers have unveil their planning on competing in the E-book reader space. One of them even said they just spended two days to finish out a E-book reader. That is to say there is no high technology in E-book reader, which may be not completely right but we can expect price will go down.

By July, Acer, the number two supplier of PCs, will release an e-book reader with a 6-inch monochrome screen, that can go up against devices including the Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Inc.’s Nook and Sony’s Reader. Several days ago, Apple announced their new iPad which is also a product that can be compared with Amazon’s Kindle lines.

As a consumer, I expect there is going to be a rat race among those manufacturers. And I deeply believe that we can get a E-book reader on our hands with a suitable price. If you are crying out for a E-book reader, I’d like to make a calculation for you. A E-book reader may cost you $350 at least, but until the end of this year, the lowest price may be down to $200. Well, you can save nearly $150, with which you can buy lots of books that you want, and I think you will not read out all of them. So if you have a big desire for a E-book reader, just buy some books you are eager to see right now.