Daily Bits

e-book readers

E-Ink in Color Coming Soon!

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Proponents of Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes & Noble’s Nook will always tell you that the E-Ink display trumps its LCD counterpart any time. You’ll hear arguments revolving around “no glare issues,” “it’s just like reading a real book,” “it’s like looking real paper,” and more. Of course, one cannot overlook the fact that E-Ink has one drawback – it is in black and white.

If the lack of colors on e-book readers is your main reason for not getting one, then you might just change your mind in the near future. Last week, Hanvon Technology, a company based in Beijing, announced the first ever color E-Ink display. The announcement was made during the FPD International Trade Show in Tokyo.

Now you may be thinking that this is old news as we just heard about the color Nook. You have to bear in mind, though, that the new Nook is going to use LCD instead of E-Ink – something that old timers have been shaking their heads about. Then there’s the Apple iPad, which is great as a color e-book reader as well, but it also makes use of LCD.

This new development from the Chinese company just might give e-readers a boost, although it might not be anytime soon. As good as E-Ink is for reading, it does have limitations such as lack of sharpness. It is also not that colorful as compared to LCD. More so, E-Ink is not able to fully handle video. Still, its developers are confident that the technology will be embraced by consumers in the future.

For someone who is in the market for an e-book reader, this development is certainly something to monitor, although I might have to stick with the good old black and white displays for now. What do you think? Does the color E-Ink have potential?

Kindle Singles to Make Debut

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I have been spending hours and hours talking about and thinking of the Kindle and the Nook recently.  I know I promised myself that I wouldn’t buy any new gadget for the rest of the year, but the impending (major) change in my lifestyle is prompting me to take a good look at e-book readers.  As I always am when obsessing over a gadget, I have been reading up on the Kindle and the Nook a lot.

Today, I just learned about a new format that Amazon is introducing for the Kindle.  Dubbed Kindle Singles, these e-books are going to be shorter and cheaper than is the current norm.  What prompted this development is the fact that content does come in varying lengths.  Just like in traditional print, books can be thick novels, really thin paperbacks, or even pamphlets.  In Kindle terms, e-books can come in the form of long novels, short stories, magazine articles, blog posts, or even Twitter updates.

Materials that are going to be labeled Kindle Singles are going to be anywhere from 10,000 words to 30,000 words.  In terms of traditional print, this would be around 30 pages to 90 pages.  The really good news is the pricing structure will be more attractive to consumers.

For now, the new section of the store is not yet up and running, but with the official announcement having been made, we should see it pretty soon.

While I am not a Kindle owner as of yet, I consider this development as a plus point for the device.  Now for some advice…which e-book reader would you recommend that I get?

Photo credit: gillyberlin

Graphic Novels Specifically Designed for the iPad

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Hardcore graphic novel lovers just might be shaking their heads. I know a number of people who will not even consider reading their graphic novels in digital format, and I totally respect that. However, there are also people who get quite excited about the idea of graphic novels being available in digital format.

With the prevalence of e-book readers (e-book reader wars, remember?), it is not a surprise that graphic novels are soon going to be staple content. This is actually not a new idea since there are graphic novels that have been converted to digital format. Two groups are looking to change that now.

Cognito Comics and Tall Chair, two start ups based in San Francisco are working on creating comics specially designed for the iPad. The New York Times recently covered this development, and shared how David Burwen (Executive Producer of Cognito) showed his graphic novel Operation Ajax. This is based on the nonfiction book All the Shah’s Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror by Stephen Kinzer.

Their verdict?

“Animated transitions give the comic a cinematic feel, and also give the artist more control over how the page unfolds. The format provides an opportunity to make supplementary material such as photos and documents available within the relevant comics panel.

It’s different from anything I’ve seen in digital comics. Technologies like ComiXology’s “guided view” create a smooth experience by moving the reader from panel to panel, but you’re still reading your basic, old-fashioned comics page.”

I believe that this will introduce a new age in graphic novels. Pretty soon, I think we will be seeing more titles available for download.

Amazon Launches Kindle DX

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So you thought the wars were limited to computers, gaming consoles, and mobile phones only. If so, you are wrong. It looks like there is a war between e-book readers going on, and it is getting exciting.

Three years ago, this wouldn’t have been happening. With the onslaught of various e-book readers in the market, it is not surprising that manufacturers are trying to outdo one another now. Amazon just announced that it’s souped up Kindle is going to be available on the 7th of this month – that’s today!

The new Kindle is called Kindle DX and it is supposed to be the high end version of the original. What can the Kindle DX offer avid e-book readers out there?

One, it has a lower price. It’s still several hundred dollars at $379, but that’s a considerable drop from the original. Then again, that’s still almost $200 more than the standard version.

Two, it has better screen contrast. Figures say that this has been upped by 50 percent.

Three, documents in PDF may now be zoomed in and out.

Four, users can now share selections from books and periodicals via 3G. This comes free with the unit.

Five, the software that comes with the Kindle DX has also been improved, allowing for better organization of one’s collection.

Is all that worth it for the relatively high price of the new Kindle? Perhaps. In any case, head on over to Amazon to check it out.