Peripherals News

Flying in the face of news that Samsung would be pulling out of the E-Ink based E-book reader market, Sony has just added two new models to its lineup. The new Touch Edition (PRS-650) and Pocket Edition (PRS-350) have 5in and 6in displays respectively and can store up to 1,200 books on their internal storage.

Despite the names, both feature touchscreens that you can use to turn pages, navigate the menus, and double tap on a word to bring up its definition on the in-built 12-language dictionary. The screens are also slightly higher contrast than previous models and have apparently glare-free surface, though our brief test suggested they were still more relfective than the pages of a real book.

Both models also have up to a 10,000 page turn battery life. Where the two differ, then, apart from size is the larger model has music playback, SD and MemoryStick Pro slots for expanding storage, and is availale in black, red and silver whereas the Pocket Edition comes in pink, blue, and silver and has neither music playback nor memory slots. worth noting is the very fetching and rather practical leather case for the PRS-650 that inlcudes an in-built reading light – very snazzy.

No prizes for guessing that pricing hasn’t been announced yet but expect these to be brought in at similar prices to current models.

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If you were holding off on the new Kindle in the hope that Samsung would provide a better E Ink alternative, think again. Unfortunately, the company has dropped all plans for eBook readers based on the paper-like screen tech due to cost reasons. It’s a pity as the six inch E6 and 10in E101 were looking mighty interesting, with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and pen-capabilities on board.

Does this mean that the Korean giant is getting out of the e-reader business altogether? Well, not quite. Instead, it will launch a reader next year purportedly based on LCD. We’re sincerely hoping this includes some form of non-backlit mode, as otherwise you might as well get a Galaxy Tab or iPad now. After all, the whole point to e-ink is its stunning battery life (measured in weeks rather than hours or days) and lack of eyestrain, neither of which a backlit display can match. If, like us, you spend all day staring at an emissive LCD screen, the last thing you want is to stare at one some more to read your books.

With the excellent-value, E Ink-sporting Kindle still maintaining its proprietary AZW format and eschewing ePub (which is the most widely used format for freely available eBooks and used by many UK libraries), we’re holding off until alternatives like the BeBook Neo come down in price or until Asus brings out its tempting proposition.

Via: Engadget

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The futuristic lines of Microsoft�s latest mouse have been revealed by German online retailer Notebooksbillger, though the eye-catching product has since been pulled from the site.

Still, the cat is out of the bag as Engadget snuck in and raided its virtual shelves for a full close up look at the striking looking mouse, before it was taken down.

Whatever, you say about Microsoft, you can�t criticise its hardware design team for not being adventurous.

The idea of the mouse is that it will be curved for use in the hand, but will lie flat when not in use. It is designed to track on nearly any surface thanks to Microsoft�s BlueTrack technology and connects to your computer via a 2.4GHz transceiver.

It won’t support gestures like Apple�s Magic Mouse but it does feature a touch sensitive surface for scrolling, with nary a wheel in site. There’s an integrated battery controller visible too.

Truth be told, it’s the design rather than the technology that’s interesting about this, but we’re keen to get our hands on one and see if it really works as a product as well as a piece of art.

We expect we’ll be able to do so shortly when this goes official, with an expected list price of �69.99.

Via: Engadget.

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Vodafone has launched its own branded MiFi device, the second UK network to do so after 3, calling it simply Mobile Wi-Fi.

3 launched its device over a year ago, giving it a head start in the mobile Wi-Fi hotspot market. You can also buy MiFi�s without a contract from online retailers, though it will cost you around �180.

The Mi-Fi is a small battery powered router containing a mobile SIM that enables you to connect multiple devices to it via a local Wi-Fi hotspot, making for an affordable, and simple way to get devices online. It�s a popular choice to combine with an iPad online, without having fork out extra for a 3G enabled version and buying another data plan that you might rarely use – especially as you can use it to get other devices online as well at the same time.

As with Three, the device is manufactured by Huawei. It supports a potential 7.2Mbps HSDPA, and 5.76Mbps HSUPA � though on our congested, overloaded mobile networks, those will be very much be theoretical maximums.

It weighs a mere 90g, and claims a battery life of four hours with five users connected, and a standby time of 100 hours. You can of course leave it plugged in, with it charging via USB.

Shelling out �25 a month will garner you one for free on an 18-month plan with a 5GB data cap, or for �15 a month you�ll get a 3GB data cap � but will have to pay �49 for the MiFi. Finally, �20 a month gives a 4GB data allowance at a cost of �29.

The Vodafone Mobile Wi-Fi is available now.

Link: Vodafone Mobile Wi-Fi.

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I�ve been predicting an eBook revolution for more than a decade, so I should applaud the fact that eBooks are finally taking off. The hardware problems are being solved, and as Gordon Kelly wrote here recently, a �100 Kindle could be the gateway to an eBook revolution.

But there�s still a major drawback that stops me from jumping on the bandwagon, and that�s our old friend DRM (Digital Rights Management). Good luck to Amazon if it can sell more eBooks than hardbacks, but I�m not buying any protected eBook files under the current terms and conditions. I certainly don�t go along with Nicholas Negroponte, the founder of the MIT Media Lab, who has just claimed that the physical book will be dead in five years – or at least, no longer the dominant way we read things.

Sorry, the world doesn�t change that quickly. For example, the audio CD is obviously in decline, but it�s still not dead a decade after millions of people got their first taste of free music from Napster. Books have been around hundreds of years longer than audio CDs, and I think they will be much harder to displace.

For one thing, it�s still much nicer to read a physical book than an eBook, whereas there�s no real advantage to listening to a physical CD rather than an MP3. For another thing, the music industry is increasingly giving up on trying to protect music with DRM; the publishing industry isn�t.

When I buy a book or a CD, I own it. I can lend it to a friend, sell it on eBay, or I can keep it forever. It�s unlikely to vanish into thin air. If I buy an eBook, I don�t really own it, I can�t lend it to anyone, and I can�t resell it. It could disappear for any number of reasons: I could lose it to a disk crash, or the seller could delete it remotely or stop supporting the DRM needed to read it.

A year ago, Amazon actually did delete copies of eBooks from people�s Kindle eBook readers. Before that, Google decided to stop supporting the DRM system used by its failed Google Video service, telling buyers: �After August 15, 2007, you will no longer be able to view your purchased or rented videos.� Microsoft did the same thing a year later, telling unfortunate customers: �As of August 31, 2008, we will no longer be able to support the retrieval of license keys for the songs you purchased from MSN Music or the authorization of additional computers.�

If I�m not going to trust fly-by-night companies like Google and Microsoft, I�m not going to trust Amazon either.

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Plastic Logic has announced that it will not be bringing its long awaited Que e-reader to market.

The British company piqued our interest as far back as October last year when it announced that it was to be the first to bring to market an e-reader with a capacitive touch-screen, which would hopefully have made it responsive and possible to write on.

It was demoed at CES in January, but simply took too long to get to market and it was rumoured to have carried a price premium of $650, which made little sense once the iPad arrived on the scene.

“We recognize the market has dramatically changed, and with the product delays we have experienced, it no longer makes sense for us to move forward with our first-generation electronic reading product,” Plastic Logic�s chief executive Richard Archuleta said in a statement. “This was a hard decision, but is the best one for our company, our investors and our customers.”

It also could not compete with other e-readers, particularly as Amazon�s Kindle has now set the quality bar high, and the entry-level price low, at only �109.

It�s a shame as Plastic Logic was a British Company, and it would have been good to have a tech product to have raised the flag over, but it proved not to be, at least for now.

Archuleta said that the company would now focus on the second generation product, but perhaps sensibly, would not commit to any timeframe.

�We plan to take the necessary time needed to re-enter the market as we refocus, redesign and retool for our next generation ProReader product�.

Link: Plastic Logic.

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Livescribe has announced a new addition to its Smartpen range called the Echo. The device ups the on-board memory from 2GB to either 4GB or 8GB, which it says will enable up to 400 hours or 800 hours of audio notes to be recorded.

The new pen sports a new design with a rubberised grip. Standard connectors are now offered via micro USB and a 3.5mm audio jack, so owners can use their preferred earphones for listening and share cables with other devices they might have.

We were pretty keen on the Pulse, the previous version of the Livescribe. For those of you wondering how the device works it’s essentially a pen with a microchip in the nib that records everything you write and all audio that�s spoken at that time � though you have to use the Livescribe Dot Paper, a 100-page ruled pad that�s provided.

You can then transfer your written notes and drawings to your computer, and via the Livescribe software they are fully searchable. Alternatively, tap on any written note on the pad, and the audio recorded at that point in time will be replayed via the pen. Think of it as a form of augmented reality. Clever stuff.

Livescribe has also improved the software, adding password protection, the ability to customise your smartpen name and to share Pencast files with anyone using the free desktop software.

We also like the new Pencast PDF feature that enables you to annotate a PDF drawing with audio and have it playback for anyone using Adobe Acrobat Reader 9.3 or above.

The following new accessories are also being introduced:

�The Echo 3-D Recording Premium Headset (�29.99): featuring an embedded microphones that enable 360 degree binaural recording – ideal for recording in lecture halls or conferences.
�Smartpen Portfolio (�24.99): this fits Livescribe journals or A5 notebooks, and provides extra storage for a smartpen, business cards and extra ink cartridges.
�Deluxe Carrying Case (�24.99): a protective zippered case, with plenty of room for a smartpen, ear buds and other cables and accessories.

The 8GB Smartpen Echo is available exclusively from from Amazon UK for �189.99.

We�re reliably informed that as it features a ball with a chip in it, Sepp Blatter refuses to use the Smartpen, whereas it�s the only pen that Frank Lampard will use for fear that otherwise no one else will believe anything he writes.

Or so we�re told.

Livescribe

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Forget smartphones and tablets: they are just the focus of yesterday�s technologies. Real gadget freaks are now developing things that will become much more important over the next two decades. What�s more, they�re not about trivia like tweeting that you�re mayor of your local Starbucks. Tomorrow�s gadgets will help you live longer, if not forever.

One of my newer toys, for example, is a USB stick that could be mistaken for a 3G dongle. Actually, it�s a Contour USB blood glucose monitoring system from pharmaceutical giant, Bayer HealthCare. Plug it into a personal computer, insert a contour strip with a tiny drop of blood, and you get a read out in a few seconds. You could track and graph your blood sugar levels before and after meals to find out what effect they have. For people with diabetes, this could be a life-changing and potentially life-saving technology.

Bayer’s Contour USB blood glucose monitoring system

The next great wave of technology will bring dozens of health-monitoring gadgets that make us much more aware of what�s happening to our bodies. You may already own early examples such as high-tech bathroom scales, pedometers, and heart-rate monitors. A sign of the times is the success of the Nike + iPod Sport Kit, which lets you track things like your pace, distance, time, and calories burned, and also integrates with compatible gym equipment such as treadmills and exercise bikes.

Wouldn�t you buy something that warned you if you were about to have a heart attack, especially if it was small, cheap and very shiny? I�m looking forward to Star Trek-style Tricorders that you can point at something — an apple, perhaps, or a double cheeseburger — and find out by how many minutes it is statistically likely to extend or reduce your life.

There are many factors behind the trend to Health 2.0. One is that the developed countries have ageing populations, who are starting to think more about their health. Another is that healthcare is becoming very expensive: it makes financial sense to stay as fit as you can. And, of course, healthcare is becoming increasingly technological. Patients in what we now call high-dependency units (formerly known as “intensive care”) are connected to lots of expensive electronic monitors. As computer chips get cheaper and more powerful, home-user versions become more practicable.

Also, times change. If you grew up in the 1950s, you probably worried about which radio to buy: mobile phones, video recorders and games consoles hadn�t even been invented. The 1960s were about TVs and hi-fis, and in the 1980s and 1990s, a lot of gadgets were based on the new CD and DVD discs. The last decade was mainly about flat-screen TVs and mobile phones. But once everybody owns something, what else is there to say?

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Apple did its thing today, taking down its websites and posting a teasing notice. As ever the internet went into a kind of mild frenzy, a little bit like a wasp that’s been given a heavy backhanded swatting. It has announced a few updates to various products (details coming soon), but the addition to Apple’s range is the Magic Trackpad.

As you might have guessed, it’s meant as an alternative to a mouse and is modelled on the MacBook Pro trackpads, but it’s much bigger. How much bigger? 80 per cent to be exact, and the design complements Apple’s own keyboards in its dimensions and styling.

All the usual gestures apply, including click (where you press down anywhere on the pad), scroll (using two fingers), swipe and rotate. It’s wireless, using Bluetooth, and the combination of inactivity detection and “an on/off switch” have the novel effect of conserving battery life.

All this trickery will cost you dear, though, with the Magic Trackpad retailing for �59! What do you think Apple fans, worth the money? Apple haters? Well, no need to ask you chaps, but try to be polite.

Link:
Apple Magic Trackpad

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Most of yesterday’s Apple announcements were relatively predictable, simple updates to existing products. There were two products, however, that were all-new. One was the Apple Battery Charger, an expensive solution to battery charging if ever there was one. Its Magic Trackpad, however, while also sporting a sizeable �59 price tag, was rather more interesting, and today we had a little time to play with it.

Let’s start with the basics. In essence the Magic Trackpad is simply a trackpad from a MacBook Pro, but one made 80 per cent larger. It connects wirelessly via Bluetooth, and uses two AA batteries � not necessarily Apple’s own.

It’s designed in such a way as to match Apple’s own keyboards. It has a cylindrical stand section, into which go the batteries, and there’s a power button on one end of it. It features all the same characteristics of a MacBook Pro trackpad, including its smooth glass finish, aluminium construction and the clickable trackpad area.

In Apple’s press photography, the Magic Trackpad looks a little larger than in reality. In person it’s around a third of the size of Apple’s number pad-less keyboard, and it’s extremely light. Just like on the MacBook Pro’s, its surface is wonderfully smooth and lacking in friction, and the various multi-touch gestures work perfectly. Despite the larger size of the pad, we had no problems with the clicking action either.

Apple has added one new gesture option; a three-fingered swipe can now move windows around when the cursor hovers over the taskbar. It works extremely well, but you must choose between this gesture and the three-finger navigation gesture in the software setup. Given the choice we’d go for the former, though, as it’s a lot easier to drag windows around like this than to click and hold down while dragging a window.

From our brief time with it we’re certain the Magic Trackpad won’t kill the mouse, but it’s easy to see why people might prefer to use it. It’s bound to be a boon for those who suffer RSI, as it’s far more natural and comfortable to use. Clearly you won’t play games with it, not serious ones anyhow, but it’s no less usable for other tasks and enhances many. It would make a great option for an HTPC (Home Theatre PC) as well, albeit an expensive one. We could easily see Apple adopting it as a way to interact with future Apple TVs, should such a product arrive.

It will also work with Windows, but with limited functionality. You’ll be able to two-finger scroll and click to recreate the right button, but the more complex three-finger gestures aren’t supported.

Is it expensive? Obviously it is, but we’ve reviewed many a mouse that cost a similar price, so it’s not quite as outrageous as it initially seems. Whether it holds up to prolonged use we’ll have to see, and we’ll be getting our own to try out very soon.

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