It looks like this past holiday season, Apple and Amazon moved a lot of iPads and Kindles, respectively. At least that’s what some new data from Pew Internet suggests. Ownership of tablets and e-readers both hit 19 percent in the U.S. by the end of 2011, according to the results of a survey of 2,000 […]
Are Mirasol e-readers doomed already?
I so wanted Qualcomm to hit it out of the park with its Mirasol display technology. Here’s tech that blends the readability of e-ink while able to reproduce color and handle video. It’s a win-win-win, particularly now that e-readers and tablets are burning up mobile marketplace. Sadly, the first Mirasol products are failing to excite […]
Harry Potter coming to e-readers
Big e-book news today, though a little too late for the many, many trees that were claimed by J.K. Rowling’s best-selling series (450 million copies!). Harry Potter’s coming to an e-reader near you. And in a move that’s sure spark breathless analysis of the book publishing industry, Rowling is publishing the e-books herself. The buzz […]
Kindle tops Amazon’s bestseller list
It takes some doing to unseat the final Hogwarts adventure, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, as Amazon’s top selling item in its history. And its own Kindle 3 e-reader was just the gadget to do it. In what’s become tradition, Amazon is once again reporting gangbusters sales of its Kindle e-reader. This is in […]
Kindle’s kinder to the environment
Are e-readers really all that much better for the environment than books? The answer to that question is a resounding yes, at least according to Cleantech. The numbers break down thusly: A typical book has a 7.5 kilograms (~17 pounds) of carbon footprint. The iPad’s weighs in at 130 kilograms. The Kindle is estimated to […]
Qualcomm bets $2B on Mirasol – Color Kindles on the horizon?
Qualcomm is investing $2 billion to manufacture its low-power Mirasol display technology thanks to a new “major client”. It’s also a signal that it’s confident that it will make a huge splash, particularly as tablets and e-readers become staples of consumers’ gadget bags. Mirasol takes a cue from nature — specifically butterfly wings — for […]
Snapshot of an e-Reader market in flux
The e-reader market is heating up but there are also signs that the industry is trying hard to pin down what’s next. What’s next is color, social networking and for some, video and interactivity. FoxIt, a maker of wonderfully bloat-free PDF software, is ditching its e-reader efforts and retiring the eSlick. Sure, it’s a sign […]
It's Official: Nook Lands at Best Buy
It’s true! Barnes & Noble’s Android-powered e-reader, the Nook, is officially available at Best Buy. Unfortunately, the in-store pickup option is a no-go, so that means you’ll have to trek over to your local big-blue-box for instant gratification. And while…