Color E-ink and flexible display : The next-gen ebook readers

[Labib Rahman]

As I wait to get my refurbished PRS-505, I've been thinking about possible innovations in E-book reader technology. I've come up with two highly desirable features:

1. Flexible displays - this one is more or less already developed, but just isn't seen in any commercially available ereader. The arrival of flexible e-ink screens would open up the market to younger customers and schools, and to people holding off because they are afraid of breaking glass screens.

2. Color e-ink - This is the big one. Right now ebook readers exist in niche markets, with small exclusive clientele of people who read regularly. Color e-ink would open up the textbook market to the general market, replacing paper based magazines and newspapers to a large extent, and even textbooks in schools if the device is cheap and the government is willing to subsidise.

Those are two features I'm waiting for, what would you like to see in an e-book reader that isn't already there?

[sassanik]

A color screen would be nice. But other than that I think my little ereader does its job really well.

Good user interface design is a must of course but beyond that I don't think that in general a ereader needs to be that complicated. If I was planning on emailing or texting someone I have a cell phone and desktop for those things.

I suppose a built in mp3 player would be nice so I could listen to music while I read.

So I guess my list would be:
1. mp3 player built in
2. good user interface design
3. color screen

Amy

[Sweetpea]

Touchscreen and at least 256 gray colours (more preferred).

I don't see a need for colour screens myself. I never read books with colour pictures in it now, why would that change? (and I'm reading on a colour screen...) And the textbook market has more profit by a tablet like device. You have more processor power and thus more possibilities.

[dmaul1114]

I'm fine with my Kindle for novel reading.

What I am interested in, as I've said many times, is some kind of 10" or larger color touch screen device that I can carry in place of a laptop/netbook and use for net surfing, movie watching etc., and also read and mark up PDFs with a stylus just like I can the printouts.

But I have no interest in another dedicated reader. The 6" readers serve my reading purpose outside of academic PDFs which I need to display as intended and mark up like printouts--and I don't need that latter feature enough to buy a dedicated device.

[Andybaby]

Originally Posted by dmaul1114

I'm fine with my Kindle for novel reading.

What I am interested in, as I've said many times, is some kind of 10" or larger color touch screen device that I can carry in place of a laptop/netbook and use for net surfing, movie watching etc., and also read and mark up PDFs with a stylus just like I can the printouts.

That lasts all day, has web browsing everywhere for cheap, has a webcam, can replace a cell phone, can work as a remote for full size TVs, has cloud computing.