e-Book Echo — Readers Are Popping Out All Over

ReaderOur platform focus continues this fine Sunday with the e-Book Echo, our take on the week in the digital publishing world. There’s no question that the electronic book reader space is heating up, with new devices announced seemingly daily. This week iRex lifted the veil on its newest reader, the DR800SG, an 8.1-inch reader that’s short on frills but long on content possibilities. The DR800SG will be able to get e-books from the Barnes & Noble e-book store as well as from libraries à la the Sony Reader. It will also work with a number of DRM systems, meaning it can handle a wide range of content from various online sources. Interestingly, the $400 reader uses a Wacom digitizer to drive the screen, meaning pen interaction only.

With the appearance of so many e-book readers it’s becoming a chore to determine what sets one apart from the others. The folks at CrunchGear feel our pain and have prepared a comparison chart to help us figure out which reader does what. Currently it only features four different readers, but maybe they’ll add other readers as they become available.

Whatever happened to Microsoft Reader? Back in the day, it was the biggest, if not the only, platform for e-books. All the recent hoopla in the space got me to thinking about MS Reader, which only made me realize how long it’s been since I’ve heard anything about it. Now that e-books are here to stay, will this be another business Redmond tries to re-enter?

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