Back in December, I wrote about an ebook reader called eSlick from PDF software specialist Foxit Software. The reader, which uses the same e-Ink screen technology as the Sony Reader and the Amazon Kindle, was set to debut about now at the introductory price of US$229.
Apart from the low price – about a third less than the Sony – what was interesting about the Foxit eSlick unit was its focus on the PDF format, Foxit’s area of specialty. This included its ability to convert most common document formats and HTML, to a reflowable PDF format, opening it up as a reader for magazines, newspapers, websites and business documents as well as books.
Foxit eSlick ebook reader
I just checked back to see how it’s been going. They’ve sold out their first production run so you’ll have to wait until April for the next lot (at the extended “special offer” of US$259 plus taxes and shipping, $299 after the special expires). The good news: they’re specifically listing New Zealand and Australia as destinations they’ll ship to.
If you’re Downunder and determined to get an e-Ink reader device with maximum flexibility to load custom content (let’s face it, we still don’t have a lot of local ebook content for you), this might be a pretty good option to consider. It looks good too, as you can see from the pic – and, as a bonus, you can listen to your MP3 music collection while you read.
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A very interesting device.
I know the trend seems to be to pack more and more functionality in to PDA phones. This of course has many key advantages, but also greatly increases the cost and complexity of the device.
I wonder if perhaps a bluetooth capable “media device” like this could link to a data capable phone. Physically separating the cost and functionality.
Anyway, it will be interesting to see how the device market pans out.
Hi Curtis. I think this sort of thing could certainly happen and I suspect over time that we’ll simply have more specialised gadgets that we use, depending on the application. At least one of them will no doubt be packed with a little bit of everything but the trend to cloud computing and the ability to get to your stuff from multiple devices (and have it follow you around, which we see, for instance, with readers that open your book on a new device at the same page you last read), should make it feasible for people to do this. You want a dedicated paperback-sized reader too? Or a home-theatre quality audio/video device in the lounge to access the same songs and movies as your iPod on the move? Or for that matter, the online recipe book for the kitchen. When it’s relatively cheap and interconnected, you can have it all. Just not today.