The new Apple iPad

A few short weeks ago, the [UPDATE: It's confirmed that the iPad won't be compatible with Adobe ePub books. That means no library books, and it takes a lot of the shine off the new iBooks. For some reason, Apple hates Adobe, and Adobe hates them back.]

The new Apple iPad

A few short weeks ago, the Plastic Logic QUE ($650 WiFi/$800 3G) and the Spring Design Alex ($400 [EDIT--the Alex is now $360, I missed that]) debuted at CES, and immediately crushed my interest in them with exorbitant price points.

Today, Apple unveiled their new tablet computer, the “iPad,” (Gizmodo’s full coverage here) and made the QUE entirely irrelevant. The iPad is cheaper ($500 WiFi/$630 3G), faster, and more functional than the QUE, and it will actually be available earlier.

Not only does the iPad have a new, Apple-branded ereading program (iBooks), it can do video, internet, maps, and everything else that an iPhone can, on a grander scale. The only advantages the QUE has left are its ability to hand-write notes, and its E-Ink screen which makes for less eye strain and longer battery life. Still, the iPad has ten hours of battery life, so that last point is moot.

Basically, this spells doom for the $650 QUE, and if you were thinking about getting the Alex for $400 $360, or (God forbid) a $490 Kindle DX, how can you not scrape up a little extra for an iPad instead?

The iPad’s debut highlights the folly of “luxury” ereaders like the QUE and the Alex, which have gone in the wrong direction, trying to have an ereader that’s half laptop, with a price tag to match. Simple, affordable ereaders like the Kindle, Astak Pocket Pro, and Sony Pocket Edition are the only ones worth looking at now, at least until the Alex’s price drops by $150.

A few more tidbits, and links to more iPad coverage, after the jump.

• The 3G iPad features pay-as-you-go, $30/month, unlimited internet (or 250 MB/month for $15)—but with AT&T. So AT&T can’t handle iPhones’ data usage, but they can handle full tablets with videos? Uhhh, I don’t believe that. $30 a month will stack up quick compared to the Plastic Logic’s free 3G, but the vast difference in hardware specs and functionality makes the iPad the clear choice for even those looking to use bandwidth on the go.

• iPad has a 1 Ghz processor, and the standard model has a 16 GB flash drive (upgradeable up to 64 GB). By comparison, the Alex’s chip is 624 Mhz, and its flash drive is 2 GB; the standard QUE has a 4 GB flash drive, and doesn’t specify its processor (but it’s definitely slow—here’s a video wherein a Plastic Logic salesperson says page refresh takes a full second).

• However, the non-3G iPad also doesn’t seem to have GPS (no dedicated ereader has GPS, of course).

• Books on the iPad will cost a few dollars more ($13-$15) than Amazon’s $9.99 price point. But if the iPad is really compatible with open ePubs, you can jt buy books elsewhere and load them up on the iPad. (That’s a big “if.” It’s also the difference between getting library books and not.) [Confirmed. No Adobe ePub books. No library books. Sigh.]

• Like it or not, the iPad will give more people access to ebooks than all the other ereaders put together. Is it crazy to think Apple could sell five million of these this year? Ten?

Some links: the official iPad product video; the iPad website; full Gizmodo coverage; Wired’s coverage; Ars Technica coverage. And here’s the whole keynote.

[UPDATE: Also, some ebook-centric iPad links: Random House is not yet an iPad partner; GalleyCat gets reactions from publishing experts; the Guardian gets reactions from all kinds of experts; and here's a proof-of-concept video about magazines on such a device.

More useless blather:

There's been serious backlash since the keynote, mostly taking Apple to task for making a giant iPhone, with all the iPhone's limitations intact (namely, no multitasking, no flash, no outside apps). It also feels like Apple's ePubs won't be compatible with the rest of the world's ePubs (which makes it disingenuous to call them "ePubs," no?).

Personally, I don't own an iPhone because of all those mentioned limitations, but I'm considering this device in spite of them. I frequently want to, say, listen to Pandora while I check a few emails on my phone, or use a real keyboard to type an email error-free. But the iPad seems more like a multimedia powerhouse, not a multitasking workstation.

You can show people your pictures, engagingly read full-color (and multimedia) newspapers and magazines, watch movies (presumably Hulu and Netflix will step up with apps soon), and read books [but no library books]. Once the second generation comes out and the price drops—maybe by Christmas—this might be a pretty good deal for a high-tech coffee table toy.]

You can buy a Nook, a Kindle, and a Sony Reader Touch for the QUE's asking price

So CES officially opened today and, sure enough, prices were announced for the Spring Design Alex and the Plastic Logic QUE. Up until today, I would’ve classified the Alex and the QUE as the two most exciting new ]]>

You can buy a Nook, a Kindle, and a Sony Reader Touch for the QUE's asking price

So CES officially opened today and, sure enough, prices were announced for the Spring Design Alex and the Plastic Logic QUE. Up until today, I would’ve classified the Alex and the QUE as the two most exciting new ereaders. Then I saw how they’ll cost: The Alex is going for $399, and the QUE is $649 with WiFi, $800 (!!?) with 3G.

Yesterday, I guessed that the Alex would go for $350, and the QUE for $500. I considered those conservative estimates; i.e., I was ready to be pleasantly surprised. Eesh, was I ever wrong.

The big takeaway from these price announcements is simply that ereader manufacturers don’t care about the casual reader. These devices are getting more expensive, not less, and that’s not a trend that’s going to steal the Kindle’s thunder anytime soon.

But there’s more to glean from six digits and a couple dollar signs.

The Spring Design Alex

The Alex’s price point hurts it, but it’s not dead yet

The Alex has a similar interface to the Nook, but it’s nearly 150% of the Nook’s cost. For that money, the Alex had better be fan-freaking-tastic. Early reports say it’s better, but not mind-melting. Gizmodo said the Alex’s user interface is “no less awkward then the Nook, and capable of a lot more.” It does feature what’s basically an Android phone in its bottom half, so the potential is there.

Personally, I haven’t been sold yet, and I was a guaranteed customer if this thing cost $100 less. Keep your eye on this one, but I can’t help feeling Spring Design made their sales team’s job harder with such a high price. It also doesn’t seem to have 3G, which takes the shine off the “online reading” feature. The Alex goes on sale February 22nd; perhaps by then Spring Design will show us something that justifies the price tag. Find the Alex here.

The elusive QUE

The QUE costs a month’s rent; this is a toy for rich people

If the Alex needs to be fantastic, the QUE needs to change ereaders forever for the ducats it’s asking. $800 is iRex territory, reserved for the kinds of customers who buy overpriced gadgets because they’re really expensive, instead of in spite of their cost, or stealing them from others. This is clearly not a device for students, or casual readers, or newspaper lovers; it’s only—as the QUE website states in no uncertain terms—for businesspeople.

Fine. It’s not for me, I get it. But $800 is not gadget money; $800 is laptop money. And what can the QUE do that a smartphone/ereader combo can’t? Moreover, what can the QUE do that the upcoming Apple iSlate won’t do better? Anybody who has to think about spending that money probably won’t spend it on a QUE.

Worst of all, Gizmodo says the QUE’s slow, which is an absolute killer for a device like that. This video from Engadget does not assuage those fears either, as the QUE rep tries to explain away the slow refresh rate by saying the software is still in beta (it’s been a year and a half since a workable demo—and it’s still in beta?); hopefully, it’ll be ready to go by April, which is when the QUE will actually make its way in your hands. Not your hands, per se, but, you know, the hands of that rich jerk next door who leases a Lexus. Find the QUE here.

The enormous Skiff

Still no perfect ereader

In C4′s early days, almost a year ago, I wrote a post on “the perfect ereader,” one that would include a really fast processor, handwriting recognition/document editing features, and tight Bluetooth integration so you could work on papers and then toss them to your computer. We’re effectively no closer today than we were eleven months ago. The QUE seems to be working toward that goal, but wants to build a luxury brand, not a useful, widely appealing tool.

Here’s my new idea of a perfect ereader: one that does reading perfectly. The Kindle doesn’t do library books, the Sony Reader has serious software problems, the Nook is kludgy and half-finished and probably stolen, and the Alex and QUE have yet to prove they’re worth the money. Why can’t one device make buying, borrowing, and reading books easy and enjoyable? At this point, I’m not hoping for perfection, just a lack of obvious drawbacks.

The Samsung E6

So what can we get excited for now?

The Skiff, I suppose. And the new Samsung ereader looks quite interesting, though it also suffers from price-itis. And then there’s the looming specter of the iSlate. I genuinely hope that the iSlate dominates the QUE’s market, and shows companies that ereaders need to be readers, not fancy calendars.

My own plan is to wait until summer. I’m predicting (or hoping for) a sharp Alex price drop in the first few months after it comes out, and—like I said—I’m a guaranteed customer at $300.

A couple of weeks ago, I summarized new and recent ereader additions. This week, let’s look forward at some upcoming devices. If there’s a trend emerging, it’s that touchscreens and 3G access are ]]> (You might have seen the outline for this post pop up in your RSS feed last week; my apologies for the oversight.)

A couple of weeks ago, I summarized new and recent ereader additions. This week, let’s look forward at some upcoming devices. If there’s a trend emerging, it’s that touchscreens and 3G access are quickly becoming standard features, which is great news.

A quick note before we start: take the information here with a grain of salt. I’ve tried to cite my sources when possible, but even cited information should be considered rumor until these devices actually come out.

The Plastic Logic Whatzamawhoozit

Even though it doesn’t have a name yet, this is the device I’m most excited about. Even the earliest videos of the PL in action (this one was posted a year ago) showed a slick touchscreen with no contrast compromise and a sleek form factor.

Barnes & Noble hopped on as the primary book provider, and AT&T’s involvement combined with the large screen suggests newspapers will be a big target.

It’ll be crucial to see exactly how the touchscreen works. Is it fast? Is the contrast still as good as it looks? Can you write freehand on it? If this video features the same screen used in the ereader, it looks pretty much unbreakable, so that’s nice.

The other big question is price. Some have reported that the PL will be competitive with the Kindle, which we’re hoping means a $300 price point. Realistically, I think that’s a little too good to be true. I’m guessing closer to $500, but I’d be happy to be wrong. I also heard a rumor about a smaller size somewhere, but I can’t find any evidence of that now.

Last, B&N is reportedly developing “their own flavor” of ePub for the PL. I’m not sure why. Incompatibility kind of defeats the purpose of using a universal file format.

Sign up for Plastic Logic updates at their website.

The Apple iTablet: not its real name, not a real picture

The Apple iTablet

Apple’s iTablet (not, I don’t think, its official name) has generated more buzz than Japanese honeybees nuking a hornet. Predictably little is actually known about the device. It’s been rumored for more than a year, originally being called a large-screen iPod. Ostensibly, this device will be a touchscreen slab with somewhere between a 5- and a 20-inch screen. It’ll probably be Apple’s take on an “ultramobile PC,” essentially an extremely portable internet portal.

And we can safely assume two things, since this is an Apple product. First, they won’t even be tempted to price it competitively; $800 is the rumor. Second, it’ll probably be a good idea to wait for the second generation.

The problem for readers of ebooks is that there’s nothing to suggest the iTablet will feature an E-Ink screen. Which means that battery life will presumably be dreadful.

One other interesting rumor: that of truckfuls of books being secreted into Cupertino HQ.

Other similar devices: the Toshiba JournE for (hypothetically) $356, and the Viliv X70 for $599.

Sony “Daily Edition”

The Daily Edition is Sony’s name for their upcoming 7″ Reader, which features a 3G connection and a touchscreen. It’ll price at $399, and presumably (given the name) will have a lot of tie-ins with newspapers.

Sony’s also partnering with the New York Public Library, and might make it possible to check out library ebooks over wireless, which would be pretty slick. (Remember: most ereaders can check out library ebooks. Check our ereader comparison for details on which ones.)

One of the most interesting new features is the Daily Edition’s two-page view (pictured), which is what its oddly elongated form factor seems designed for. It should also be interesting to see how open and flexible the 3G Internet access is.

I really like the interface of these Readers, and I think Sony makes great hardware in this department (even though I am saddened and confused by their software). The thing to watch for here is the quality of the screen. The original Sony touchscreen ereader, the PRS-700, was notoriously glare-prone and low-contrast. I had one until it broke (from touching it); it was readable, but leagues below the average E-Ink screen.

Reports (and videos) have it that the PRS-600 (the new touchscreen version) is better contrast- and glare-wise, but still isn’t close to the non-touchscreen version. This isn’t a complete deal-breaker (there’s a spirited debate about it at MobileRead), but it should be enough to convince you to go into the Sony store and compare the touchscreen and non-touchscreen versions to decide for yourself.

A possible look for the BeBook 2

BeBook 2/BeBook Mini

I was pretty excited about the new BeBooks when they were announced about six months ago. Unfortunately, there’s been little to stay excited about since then.

These devices were supposed to be released at the beginning of the summer, but there’s scant evidence of them on BeBook’s website, and still no official release date or price point.

As for features, the Mini looks like the same Hanlin as the BeBook original, with a slightly smaller screen.

The BeBook 2, on the other hand, is purportedly a complete redesign ( and early reports say it features WiFi, a scribble-anywhere touchscreen, and 3G out of the box, all in a 6-inch device.

That’s all well and good, except for the price. The Mini will reportedly retail for $270 (!) closer to the $280 price tag for BeBook plain than the $199 you’ll pay for either an Astak EZ Reader Pocket Pro, or a Sony PRS-300. BeBook 2 could cost $476, according to the same source, which is $77 more than the upcoming Sony Daily Edition, with a touchscreen and wireless.

Those price quotes are relatively old, but there’s been nothing since to suggest that they’ll be any lower.

If money’s no object for you, the BeBook 2 could be intriguing. But the Mini simply isn’t worth $80 over the other 5-inch ereaders out there now, it’s nearly identical to the Pocket Pro. Literally. Both are Hanlins, so if you’re tempted by the Mini, just get a Pocket Pro now.

The current iRex premium model, the 1000SW

iRex B&N ereader

In the wake of the news that iRex was teaming up with Barnes and Noble comes a rumor that iRex is developing a new ereader that will feature a touchscreen, 3G, and a 8.1-inch screen. The problem? It could cost a thousand dollars.

iRex has the only currently available scribble-anywhere touchscreen, but their base model is $599, over a hundred bucks more than the nearest competitor’s top-of the-line device. Their current premium model (pictured) costs a staggering $859.

I wouldn’t have a problem with this if iRex’s devices had anything else besides touchscreens. In this video (of the $699 model), the screen looks glare-prone and low-contrast, and the page-turning seems slow. In basic page-turning drills, the iRex is equivalent at best to the Sony PRS-505, which is less than half the price. For the most expensive ereader available, I’d also want the fastest ereader available, at least.

txtr

Wizpac’s txtr Reader, supposedly debuting in Germany in October, is a 6-inch device with a few interesting features. It’s got WiFi, Bluetooth, 3G, and a built-in accelerometer.

From the video of it in action (in German), it doesn’t look like a touchscreen, but it does have an odd cross-shaped touch zone on the left margin.

Ultimately, this looks like a relatively run-of-the-mill ereader, but if it can provide a budget option for those seeking wireless, it might find a home. And it has a product page, which is more evidence of its existence than the iTablet.

The txtr webpage.

In the past few weeks, several companies have announced sheet-of-paper-sized ereaders, a trend which no doubt reflects a growing desire to crack into the lucrative business/student ebook market. The problem is that, while bigger screens are necessary for students and businesspeople, bigger screens alone will not make for a ]]>

The Brother SV-100B has a 9.7" screen

In the past few weeks, several companies have announced sheet-of-paper-sized ereaders, a trend which no doubt reflects a growing desire to crack into the lucrative business/student ebook market. The problem is that, while bigger screens are necessary for students and businesspeople, bigger screens alone will not make for a suitable device.

The fragility of the screens, the still nascent state of E-Ink, and the inadequacy of all current content interaction systems are just a few flaw that ereaders need to address before these devices become a commonplace sight on college campuses. Simply enlarging the display (and the price) won’t by itself create a perfect ereader for students and business users.

That said, though, I think this trend toward big ereaders could spell great news down the line for the state of ereading.

Here’s what’s happening, why it won’t be mind-blowing in the short-term, and how it could finally take ereaders mainstream.

The players

Most recently, CrunchGear posted news that Brother will release an ereader with a 9.7″ screen in Japan on June 1st (pictured above). The price? A staggering $1450, and from the looks of the interface in the early pictures, it won’t even have a touchscreen. PCWorld reports:

Brother intends the e-reader to be used in situations like factories, offices or by salespersons who typically need to access and refer to manuals and other data during their working day.

That seems like a slender niche market; I doubt it’ll catch on.

Then, there are rumors everywhere that Apple’s purported large-screen iPod Touch, which might actually be a netbook, might actually really be a large-screen ereader of its own. Largely, this kerfuffle seems to have been generated by a quote from Chicago Sun-Times contributor Andy Ihnatko in Newsarama:

“There’s something I keep hearing, and I don’t think I’d rank it as high as a rumor, but it’s an interesting story that I keep hearing, that for awhile, trucks loaded with books would arrive at a loading dock on the Apple campus, and offload big, big, big, big, huge load of books, and then the trucks would leave empty. … There’s been a long-standing rumor that Apple has been silently preparing to open a bookstore on the iTunes store…”

I’m in favor of Apple getting into ebooks, even if I doubt the new device will be an ereader.

Plus, we already know about Plastic Logic’s plans to release a sheet-of-paper-sized ereader, and the iRex 1000s is the only ereader actually out now that has both the large screen size and an interface that lets you write on ebooks as you would 0n paper. But the 1000s’s price tag, nearly $900, pretty much prohibits it from being widely adopted by student (even though it now pales in comparison to the Brother’s).

All this marks a substantial movement toward large displays. However, there are a few issues that need to get resolved on the way to business/student ereader ubiquity.

The problems to solve

The most pressing problem is that E-Ink simply isn’t fast enough, agile enough, or colorful enough for students to use for textbooks. This is just going to be a matter of time and development, driven by the fact that looking at an E-Ink screen is much more pleasant than looking at an LCD. Eventually, all our screens will be E-Inks screens, but, for now, the technology isn’t ready for anything that must be dynamically interacted with.

Secondly, there’s content interactivity. No current ereader interacts with text the way you can with a book. Early adopters might be a little forgiving of this functionality and so might the manual-toting factory workers that Brother seems to be targeting. But anybody who does anything with a book other than stare it simply cannot find an ereader that will replace the functionality of a pen and paper.

A final problem, but by no means the least troublesome, is that most E-Ink screens are quite fragile. My first Sony Reader’s screen broke disastrously, and it was in its case, in my backpack at the time. That’s a fragile screen, especially for a device with a touchscreen interface. I had a devil of a time getting my money back, and I’ve read many accounts of customers not getting any money back at all.  Making the screen four inches bigger will do nothing but exacerbate this problem.

Hopefully, something like Plastic Logic’s prototype flexible display will become commonplace eventually. In the meantime, somebody has to start making hard cases for these things. I was worried enough about my new ereader’s screen that I bought a metal box and felt strips on eBay, in order to make my own hard case (more on that soon).

In sum: large-screen ereaders should help, but will not be mass-adopted anytime soon

The very fact that companies are designing these big devices is a heartening sign that people are starting to realize the broad potential of ebooks beyond what ereaders currently offer. However, it doesn’t seem like they yet know exactly what that potential is.

The race isn’t simply to make bigger screens, the race is to adequately mimic—or even improve upon—the current functionality of paper books.

However, in the interim before E-Ink platforms become suitable for textbooks, some stiff competition could definitely help drive the development of more capable, more interactive interfaces.

I’m on record saying that ereaders aren’t ready for students, and I’ve seen nothing in this latest ereader trend that shows me anything to the contrary. Right now, reading textbooks on laptops is more useful than any dedicated reading device. The first company that can upset that balance (and deliver a reasonable price point) will be the winner, and there’s no winner yet.

You’ve got to crawl before you walk, though, so I’m considering the Brother and its cousins a pretty decent crawl.

Northwest Missouri State is in a unique position to go ]]> According to a story from NPR, a small college in Missouri is testing out etextbooks this semester, in anticipation of using exclusively digital textbooks soon, presumably next fall. Evidently, the groundwork was partially laid by the school’s policy of issuing laptops to all incoming students. In addition:

Northwest Missouri State is in a unique position to go entirely digital: In addition to the laptops, students rent all their textbooks from the college. So when a comprehensive selection became available digitally, [President] Hubbard decided to make the switch.

I’ve got to admire their bravery, especially without even using dedicated ereader devices. I can’t imagine doing all my studying in front of a computer screen, but perhaps this is simply a matter of adjustment.

The article mentions good and bad feedback from students, and in addition to some obvious drawbacks, etextbooks also have some very nice advantages; I’d put searching inside them and embedded video at the top of the list.

Hopefully this news will serve to light a fire under Plastic Logic and other companies. There’s a whole lot of money to be made on students, and once colleges start working out ways to make their bookstore ducats and simultaneously go paperless, the switch might just happen with or without dedicated devices.

[via NPR]

Amidst all the kerfuffle over the Kindle 2.0, Plastic Logic’s announcements today have been relatively overlooked by most blogs (TeleRead being the notable exception).

The biggest news was the variety of formats the Plastic Logic ereader will support, including ePub, PDF, and “Adobe DRM/eBook support,” ]]>

Click on the "Find Out More" button at PlasticLogic.com

Amidst all the kerfuffle over the Kindle 2.0, Plastic Logic’s announcements today have been relatively overlooked by most blogs (TeleRead being the notable exception).

The biggest news was the variety of formats the Plastic Logic ereader will support, including ePub, PDF, and “Adobe DRM/eBook support,” which I think, and hope, means that Plastic Logic ereaders will be able to borrow library books. The device will also support the usual suspects like .rtf and .txt, and eReader format, which might take the wind of the eSlick’s sails.

In addition, Plastic Logic announced a “Publishers’ Program,” which will allow third parties to distribute ebooks directly through Plastic Logic, instead of dealing with either paper publishing houses who botch ebook distribution, or sites like Smashwords, which are just digitized self-publishers.

This platform opens the door for small presses to circumvent the models of Luddite publishers like Random House, and release cheap ebooks without paper press overhead. Hopefully, it will also spark some drive in those Luddite publishers to get on the ebook wagon and agressively push the development of ebooks and ereaders, which will get us closer to the Great eReader Adoption.

Plastic Logic seems to be aiming for a primarily business-oriented market, with its emphasis on business content, and paper-sheet, 8.5″ by 11″ form factor. Hopefully they’ll branch out to incorporate more casual users also, as, from the looks of this video, they seem to have balanced a good contrast ratio and a touchscreen interface, a combination which has so far eluded Amazon and Sony.

TeleRead is also reporting that Plastic Logic will have wireless, which, if it’s open wireless, will be a huge step in the right direction for the epublishing industry.

I said yesterday that I was more excited about this than the new Kindle. Plastic Logic has indeed delivered the more ground-breaking news, and the better news for the future of the epublishing industry. Upstage successful.

It’s the runup to the Kindle 2.0′s announcement (I hope) during the big press conference next Monday. Over the next week, I’ll be doing a series of posts about the new Kindle and how its reality stacks up to the potential of ]]>

Don't be frightened by the perfectReader's awesomeness. It is a force for good.

It’s the runup to the Kindle 2.0′s announcement (I hope) during the big press conference next Monday. Over the next week, I’ll be doing a series of posts about the new Kindle and how its reality stacks up to the potential of ereaders.

Today: my vision of a perfect ereader. Tomorrow, my predictions for Kindle 2.0. Next week, I’ll compare the real new Kindle to what I hope for, and what I expect.

Today’s criteria for the perfect ereader are not realistic, mostly because intercorporate feuding is hampering the development of these potentially phenomenal devices. But also because it takes time and money to develop technology.

This list assumes an unlimited budget and unlimited time frame, with the lone goal of creating the best, most useful ereader possible for ebook readers. A tall order, but the benefits are not just a great ereader but a genuine candidate to replace paper the way Plastic Logic looks to be attempting. (In fact, the Plastic Logic reader could well be the device that outshines the Reader and Kindle, except that it’s not slated for aggressive release for another year.)

Let’s get on with it! The perfect ereader….

• Perfect readability: This means an anti-glare, matte screen, and perfect contrast. This is the Sony Reader’s Achilles heel, but no ereader has the contrast of a paper book yet. They should.

• Form factor: Plastic Logic has a great-looking design, but it’s the size of a cafeteria tray. I’d like something like that, but with an option for a smaller version, too, unless your primary market consists of cartographers and architects. And metal is the way to go, as any Sony Reader or iPod (not iPhone 3G) user will attest to.

• Color display: This would be phenomenal, but it should probably wait until someone masters black and white E-Ink.

• Frontlight with no sacrifices: Not a backlight; I want it to look like I switched on a lamp, not a screen. Not easy, but that’s why it’s the perfect ereader. (Sony’s frontlight is on the way, but not there yet.)

• Open wireless: It must be convenient to get instant content anywhere with Kindle’s whispernet, but I’d hate to be lashed to proprietary, DRM content from one provider. Open the whispernet up to third-party retailers, and let them pay the fees, instead of passing them to customers. According to TeleRead.org, Sony’s working on this.

• However, firm limits on wireless: Cory Doctorow makes a great point about internet-capable machines being unsuited for long-form reading. So I don’t want a reader that’s also a portable internet station, I can use a netbook or an iPhone for that. Instead limit the wireless to content subscription and distribution, like an Apple App Store for books. The reduced bandwidth necessary will also make the freeness of it possible.

• Touchsreen interface: Consider this and the next three items the usability package: the steps on the path toward completely replacing paper. We start with a touchscreen interface like the Sony Reader PRS-700 already has. Another few iterations will smooth out the minor flaws and make ereaders as easy and intuitive as iPhones. A physical keyboard is simply too cumbersome to be worth it; aim to make a touchscreen interface for people who are constantly writing notes, and it’ll be perfect for everybody else, too.

• Word processing by hand: I want to see the ability to write in (virtual) margins and edit open documents with gestures and even handwriting recognition. This would not only make note-taking more seamless, it would open up ereaders to a whole host of practical applications from filling out forms at the doctor’s office to doing the crossword during your commute. Not to mention, you know, working.

• Bluetooth: For students, it would be pretty slick to be able to toss quotes to your laptop, complete with citations custom-formatted from books’ metadata. For a whole lot of people, if you could throw a report on your reader, edit it by stylus on the train, and then toss it back to your laptop (or a projector, or a printer) when you got to work or school, the device would become an integral part of your working life.

• Serious processor: PRS-700 has 800 MHz, which is pretty good. But I want 2 GHz at least, and probably a dual-core processor. I want enough muscle to make all this interacting with content as easy as it would be on a laptop. The first company that gets all this usability stuff right could tap into an enormous student/business market, and rope in a lot of people who don’t even read books.

• Two Three sizes: A paperback size, for people who read mostly novels, and a plus-size for textbooks and magazines. And let’s say a mid-size for the paper replacement model.

• Completely backward compatible: No matter what ereader you had before, this one will read the books you got for it. Again, corporate foolishness is in the way.

• Price: Let’s say $200 and ebooks cost 75% as much as regular books. Keep it at around $400 and I want ebooks for half the cost of paper books, plus no DRM.

Anyway, I could see someone releasing a device with all of the above–and the perfect price point–in about five years. This should be the goal: a powerful ereader that doesn’t make sacrifices in interface, content acquisition, or readability. While it would have serious features like word processing, it doesn’t need to try to be a whole computer, at least not yet. A document specialist device would be fine, and pretty popular, I think (I’d get two).

None of these things are particularly groundbreaking, what’s missing is just the combination of well-executed features, and versions of most of these feature are available either in ereaders or tablet PCs. That’s what’s so frustrating about current ereaders: it would be simple to make an outstanding one from existing designs and functions, and yet Sony and Amazon make it look so hard.

Let’s hope it’s the E-Ink learning curve that’s holding these companies back, and that, within another generation or two, the features will start to improve exponentially.

Next week: we’ll see how Kindle 2.0 stacks up.

Plastic Logic makes a hell of a slick-looking ereader, but you won’t be able to get your hands on it for another year.

However, they are getting the pieces in place: according to MobileRead they’re announcing their content provider during the same press conference that we’re assuming will include the announcement of Kindle 2.0.

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Plastic Logic makes a hell of a slick-looking ereader, but you won’t be able to get your hands on it for another year.

However, they are getting the pieces in place: according to MobileRead they’re announcing their content provider during the same press conference that we’re assuming will include the announcement of Kindle 2.0.

The video above looks great, but this thing is the size of a sheet of paper, much bigger than a regular book. This would be like the MacBook Air of ereaders (not very useful for normal people).

It’s designed to replace paper in offices, so that you can email reports to people’s Plastic Logics, and read them wherever you are. Nifty. Can we have a small one for books please?

[via SlashGear via MobileRead]