The Plastic Logic eBooks Reader Set to Enter the Large Screen Digital Book Readers Market

With it's disappointing design and lack luster features, it seems Amazon have settled on the KindleDX e-books reader being just an oversize Kindle2. The Fujitsu is still in beta (I think 'cause all has gone quiet over in Japan) and the iRex 800SG has hardly received a mention since it launched, leaving room for the Plastic Logic Que to slip into the number one position for the A4 sized screen, business digital book readers market.

Although still in the development stages, but endlessly closer to the market than the elusive Flipia, additional details do keep mysteriously surfacing-enough to keep us interested and talking about it.

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The first sighting of the device was when a prototype, but fully functioning device, was unveiled by the company at the All Things D Conference, letting us into some - prior - secret specifications. It has been a while since Plastic Logic promised us the large screen model so it was good to see things were moving forward in it's development.

With the size of the large screen devices, I don't put too much onus on the minor dimensions but for those who must know, the Plastic Logic beats the DX on thickness being an incredible.27" against the KindleDX's.33". The screen will give close on a 1:1 reproduction of an A4 sheet of paper being 8.5" x 11". It utilizes the latest touch screen technology, which allows the Logic to dispose of the Kindle's much criticized keyboard and replace it with a virtual keyboard, and is in addition shatter proof. The last feature should prove to be a major selling point over other e-book readers, for businesses that employ remote workers. The touch screen design feature means this device is far prettier and less clumsy looking than models currently on the market. The same touch screen will also come in useful when doing the crossword in the daily paper (the company say that talks are at an advanced stage, with some titles anyway, to deliver newspapers to the device) or more importantly for field operatives to make on screen notes.

As expected it will have broadband connection, 3G of course, with on board Wi-Fi and rapid page rendering from the eInk display. As we get closer to the intended unveiling, set to be at CES in Vegas during January 2010, hopefully more information will emerge on the file formats the e-books reader will finally support. The stated support for Microsoft Office docs like Word, PowerPoint, Excel plus.PDF is just not enough as I would personally expect support for the new ePub standard. With the Barnes and Noble announcement, that the Que would be sold along side their Nook e-books reader both instore and online, I fully expect ePub support to be included.

So the bottom line has to be that the Plastic Logic has a fantastic opportunity to deliver customers looking to large screen digital book readers an ebook reader that not only looks better than the DX, as we have seen it does, but performs better and has the file format support that today's customer expects. Any thing less will not be good enough to dislodge the KindleDX from it's position as number one business e-books reader.

The Plastic Logic eBooks Reader Set to Enter the Large Screen Digital Book Readers Market

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