# Sony's new tablet



## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

Sony has unveiled a new tablet... this one has an eInk screen instead of LCD. Interesting.










Article at BBC News:

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-26818112

Expensive, but claims to go three weeks on a battery charge.

Mike


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

Interesting.  Presumably the same flexible eink technology used in the mythical-so-far new eink Kindle that is perennially going to be announced next Thursday.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

So it's the modern version of a DX size eInk screen.  Being able to make notes with a stylus will be attractive to many, though . . . . . .


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## The Hooded Claw (Oct 12, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> So it's the modern version of a DX size eInk screen. Being able to make notes with a stylus will be attractive to many, though . . . . . .


My iPad Air suits me admirably as an ersatz DX. More flexibility and less battery life than this, of course.

I wonder if the notes with the stylus are simply images, or if it translates them into letters using handwriting recognition? Many Samsung phones and tablets are using handwriting recognition. If this tablet does that, it means it has quite a bit of processing power, which at least means the screen should be really snappy. This weekend I loaded a bunch of books onto my mother's Kindle Keyboard (hand-me-down from me),which gave me a new appreciation for snappy processing.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Interesting!  Thanks for sharing!

Betsy


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## kwajkat (Nov 6, 2008)

Interesting that they would come out with a new ereader after they announced they are getting rid of their bookstore.  Specs are interesting. Will be interesting to see what Amazon comes up with on their next round of readers.  Just got the samsung 12.2 pro note and am loving it. Weights close to what the ipad Air does so isn't too bad. The large screen is great for reading and working with. I like the s pen capabilities. And yes you really need a case that has a hand strap to really hold it comfortably at least I do.  With the features this thing has, Apple really needs to step up their A game if they want to lead the pack.  Am actually thinking of going with the note 3 for my next phone if the iphone doesn't have the 5.5 inch screen. I find that the larger screen 5-6 inch works the best for my old eyes to read and see other things with.  Also like the user exchange battery and sd card. Anyway that is my two or three cents worth!


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## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

kwajkat said:


> Interesting that they would come out with a new ereader after they announced they are getting rid of their bookstore.


According to the articles I've read, it's for general use as a tablet, not as an ereader. I'll be watching to see how that plays out, considering the relatively slow screen refresh.

Mike


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

jmiked said:


> According to the articles I've read, it's for general use as a tablet, not as an ereader. I'll be watching to see how that plays out, considering the relatively slow screen refresh.
> 
> Mike


Exactly -- I can't see it as a 'general use' tablet when it's b&w eInk. But it kind of makes sense that they're marketing it for business -- d/l the massive report you have to read and you can make notes with a 'pencil' as usual. 'course, that's really only useful if those notes can be saved with the document for sharing with others.


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## Toby (Nov 25, 2008)

I read that they first targeted the device for Lawyers, in a show in Chicago, as a way for them to take notes on, instead of using legal pads. It's supposed to be very expensive, like over a thousand dollars.


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## luvmykindle3 (Dec 5, 2010)

Very expensive for an ereader.


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## HappyGuy (Nov 3, 2008)

You can take notes on a color tablets. Unless they've perfected color e-ink I don't see where this brings anything new or innovative to the table(t); why would you want to limit yourself so much.


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## SamanthaWheatley11 (Jan 13, 2013)

This tablet is pretty cool and sleek.


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## MariaESchneider (Aug 1, 2009)

Sony is getting out of the e-reader business entirely.

http://the-digital-reader.com/2014/08/01/official-sony-reader-kaput/#.U9zeEo7D_MJ

The one talked about in this thread is a tablet, obviously, albeit an e-ink one.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Not too surprising. As the article says, they pioneered the idea. Initial devices were WAY too expensive for me, however. The EInk was a breakthrough, but they didn't do enough with it soon enough, in my opinion. When the Kindle came out in 2007, the big attraction for me was the wireless book delivery! When I was seriously shopping 6 months later, I looked long and hard at Sony as well. It was a much more aesthetically pleasing device and worked well. BUT -- to put anything new on it you still had to hook it up to a computer.  AND it was more expensive than the Kindle -- even when the Kindle was $359.

Seems like Sony does this a lot -- thinks up a neat new device -- like a music player or ebook reader -- and then some _other_ company tweaks the idea, adds a few key features, is able to bring down the price, and before you know it, they're completely out of the market. So, the real question is: what's the new device they're developing now?


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## MariaESchneider (Aug 1, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Not too surprising. As the article says, they pioneered the idea. Initial devices were WAY too expensive for me, however. The EInk was a breakthrough, but they didn't do enough with it soon enough, in my opinion. When the Kindle came out in 2007, the big attraction for me was the wireless book delivery! When I was seriously shopping 6 months later, I looked long and hard at Sony as well. It was a much more aesthetically pleasing device and worked well. BUT -- to put anything new on it you still had to hook it up to a computer.  AND it was more expensive than the Kindle -- even when the Kindle was $359.
> 
> Seems like Sony does this a lot -- thinks up a neat new device -- like a music player or ebook reader -- and then some _other_ company tweaks the idea, adds a few key features, is able to bring down the price, and before you know it, they're completely out of the market. So, the real question is: what's the new device they're developing now?


Totally agree. I think the ease of delivery is key for a lot of people. I've tried helping people download free books that require moving from the computer to the Kindle--and they decide not to bother.

It is a shame though because they seem like very nice devices. A few months back they moved their entire Sony Bookstore to Kobobooks to "run." If you bought from their bookstore your account was moved to Kobo (so you could still access books). I hear it went pretty well for that kind of thing!


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

MariaESchneider said:


> Totally agree. I think the ease of delivery is key for a lot of people. I've tried helping people download free books that require moving from the computer to the Kindle--and they decide not to bother.
> 
> It is a shame though because they seem like very nice devices. A few months back they moved their entire Sony Bookstore to Kobobooks to "run." If you bought from their bookstore your account was moved to Kobo (so you could still access books). I hear it went pretty well for that kind of thing!


Well their newer models did have wifi -- pretty sure they never had any sort of 3G wireless -- but Kindle had it first. And Sony devices were always just a little more expensive.  Basically they decided to compete on device quality, but lost on price and convenience -- especially as kindle quality improved to where it was near Sony's consistent high level.


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## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

Ann in Arlington said:


> And Sony devices were always just a little more expensive.  Basically they decided to compete on device quality, but lost on price and convenience --


Weren't they just? I looked at the Sony reader before Amazon hopped into the market. Not only were the readers pretty expensive, but even worse: the ebooks were pretty much all selling for close to hardcover prices! There wasn't much incentive to go that route.

Mike


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## Akira22 (Sep 8, 2014)

The LCD result is pretty awesome...


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## luvmykindle3 (Dec 5, 2010)

Has anyone purchased this device from sony!


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