Technabob » e ink

Phosphor World Time Sport E-Ink Watch Slims Down

Range — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 17:00:24 +0000

The new Phosphor World Time Sport uses an E-ink display in its face, which isn’t something new, however this watch is quite sleek. It’s also waterproof and since the display doesn’t use much power, you won’t have to change the battery anytime soon.

The watch is only 9.3mm thick at center, and just 5.0mm at the edges, so that’s pretty svelte. It can also display two separate time zones simultaneously on its face. You can switch time modes by swiping the bottom of the case. It’s available in black, white or orange.

You can pre-order it over at Phosphor’s website for $79 (USD) – $20 off regular price – which is quite reasonable. It will ship on December 11th. Phosphor already sells a curved display E-ink watch that sells for $165.

[via designboom]

Dot-to-Dot Watch Concept: Time to Connect the Dots

Technabob — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 00:44:58 +0000

You can always count on the TokyoFlash design blog to surface some unique and intriguing new digital watch concepts, and this is one of the cooler designs to turn up on the site lately.

The Dot-to-Dot watch tells time exactly the way you’d think from its name – by drawing lines between dots on its display. Designed in collaboration between a guy in England named Peter, and a guy in Germany named Sam Jerichow, the Dot-to-Dot would feature four small, segmented display sections, each of which initially display a series of dots on their faces.

If you’re in a puzzle-solving mood, you can use the touch-sensitive E-Paper display to connect the dots and see what number is hidden on each, or just press a button and the display automatically connects the dots on your behalf, making it both a cryptic display and one that can be easily read if you’re not feeling up to the challenge.

In addition to the cool black-on-white display, the concept calls for a white-on-black variant, as well as a variety of modern watch bands to go with. Personally, I like the all-black version with the carbon-fiber look.

While the design is still just a concept, TokyoFlash often takes popular designs from their design blog and figures out a way to get them produced. If you’re a fan of the Dot-to-Dot, be sure to head over to the site, and cast your vote. Someday, you could actually be telling time with a connect-the-dot puzzle on your wrist.

E ink Crams Screen into Tip of Snowboard

Shane McGlaun — Sat, 21 May 2011 12:30:05 +0000

E ink has some cool tech, and its screens have turned up in everything from eReaders to watches over the years. The cool thing about its screens is that they have tons of contrast and are easy to read in direct sunlight. They also use little power so the battery in the device using the E ink screen can last longer.

At SID 2011, a new concept design for a snowboard with an E ink screen in the nose was spied by the guys at Engadget. The screen is really cool and big enough that the user could read it while doing all those crazy tricks snowboarders like. The screen appears to have a compass, temperature gauge, clock, and an altimeter built-in.

I am betting that based on the email icon and the signal strength indicator that the screen would connect to the users smartphone for the connectivity needed to show the dynamic content on screen. The screen can be changed from black with white font to white with black font. There is no word on price or if this will ever come to market, but I can see people really liking the device.

[via Engadget]

Jonathan Frey’s Horodron E-Ink Watch Looks Awesome

Range — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 15:54:59 +0000

E-ink has been around for a while, but there aren’t that many watches which use it as a way of displaying the time. Jonathan Frey seeks to change this with his E-ink watch that he calls the Horodron.

This watch concept would use E-ink in both its form and function. The E-ink allowed the Frey to incorporate some radical lines into the case and face design. The overall watch is made out of glossy black metal with some smaller chrome parts as well.

The display can be changed with two buttons which are along the left side of the watch. The top bands of E-ink would display day and date information, while the time would be displayed on an inverted display concealed in the black at the bottom of the case.

All in all, I wouldn’t mind having one of these on my wrist if it ever gets made.

[via Yanko Design]

Nook eReaders are Barnes & Noble’s Best Sellers Ever

Shane McGlaun — Fri, 31 Dec 2010 17:41:49 +0000

I wanted an eReader really badly until I got my iPad. I like to read in spurts. I will go months where I read a book each week and then I will lose interest and not read for a month or so – and I find trips to the book store to be annoying. Before the iPad, I really wanted a Nook because it had that cool color screen on the bottom.

Despite the iPad’s popularity, a lot of other people out there bought a Nook. Barnes and Noble has gone official with the announcement that the Nook line are the best selling items ever in the 40-year history of the store. It’s interesting that Amazon, the main competitor to B&N in the book business also recently announced that the Kindle was its best-selling item ever.

B&N is strangely mum on exactly how many of the Nooks have sold since the device launched. You would think they want to tout that fact, perhaps they are embarrassed by how few they have moved compared to the Kindle. The only hard number the company offered was that on Christmas Day almost a million NookBooks were sold.

E Ink Triton Colored Epaper has Us Excited for E-Comic Books

Lambert Varias — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 16:08:32 +0000

The Kindle and other reading devices make use of E Ink Corporation‘s ePaper, which not only displays text almost like it appears on paper, it also consumes low power and it has zero glare. But because nothing in perfect in this world, ePaper can only output black and white. Until now.

E Ink recently introduced their Triton color ePaper, which has all of the advantages of the black and white variant, plus the ability to display colored images and text! Watch the video below for a basic explanation of E Ink’s Triton technology, and how it could lead to umbrellas with maps on them:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

According to Akihabara News, Triton technology is actually already in commercial products, like Seiko’s Active-Matrix watch (I don’t know why the watch only displays in black and white though). It’s only a matter of time before we get devices that display magazines and comic books!

[via Akihabara News]

Seiko Active-Matrix Epd Watches Offer 300dpi Display

Technabob — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 04:01:04 +0000

I’ve always got my eyes peeled for unique watches for you guys, and this is definitely one of the cooler high-tech timepieces I’ve seen in a while.

Seiko Japan’s new SDGA001, SDGA002 and SDGA003 watches feature the world’s first active matrix electrophoretic display (EPD). This display technology is similar to what you might find in a high-end e-reader, capable of producing sharp, 300 dot-per-inch images with a 180-degree viewing angle.

Thanks to the ultra high-res display, the watches can display time in a variety of fonts and on-screen styles – my personal favorite being the deck of cards style:

The watches offer a 32-city world time capability, and can automatically be synchronized via radio signal. Each one comes in a sturdy stainless steel case, with a durable sapphire crystal. Battery power is recharged through an integral solar panel, offering about 30 months of display time on a full charge. There’s also LED illumination for viewing the time in darkened rooms.

Prices for the watches range from ¥94,500 to ¥105,000 (appx. $1127 to $1253 USD), so unless you’re loaded, you’re going to want to wait for the 2nd or 3rd generation versions before you start cashing your dollars for yen.

[via Makoto Style (JP) via Digital Gadgets Freak (JP)]

Play NES Games on Your Kindle, Sorta.

Range — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 15:14:18 +0000

I wondered how long it would take for someone to hack the Amazon Kindle in order to play games. Unfortunately, from what I’ve seen, the games don’t look all that cool on that monochrome e-ink screen.

In this video, the Kindle plays Super Mario Bros and it’s got no sound, it’s slow, and it’s only available in black and white. On top of that, it’s also buggy and you can’t control Mario all that well, but it’s a start, I suppose.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

This emulation was made possible by KLab, a Tokyo-based company. Tetris and Load Runner are also available.

[via Asiajin via Crunchgear]

http://www.crunchgear.com/2010/04/16/video-japanese-company-shows-super-mario-bros-on-kindle-emulator/

Tokyoflash Binary Flow Watch is Extremely Hard to Read

Range — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:29:39 +0000

I don’t know about you guys, but when I glance at my watch, I need to know the time pretty quickly. I don’t have time to try and figure out what exactly my fancy new Japanese timepiece is trying to tell me.

Well, this isn’t a problem for the guys over at Tokyoflash. Their latest concept design laughs in the face of easily telling the time. It’s called the Binary Flow watch and it has an e-ink display, which in itself is pretty cool. The e-ink display is partially wrapped around your wrist, and so are the components of the time and date.

The watch uses a strange combination of pseudo-binary code to display the time, making it more like a fun piece of wearable art instead of a practical watch. Good luck reading this one.

[via Tokyoflash]

Tokyoflash E-Ink Concept Watch Will Become a Reality if You Vote for It!

Range — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 15:00:39 +0000

I went through a phase where I loved Japanese watches. I still do, but for now, I use my cell phone as a watch. That being said, those guys over at TokyoFlash continue to come up with some great ideas. This time, they’ve created this cool curved E-ink display watch, which might become a reality.

The E Clock can tell the time using normal numbers, or through patterns of dashes and lines that you have to decipher. That’s not all. It connects to your phone via Bluetooth, and will alert you via vibration to tell you when you’ve got incoming calls or text messages.

The band is made from flexible stainless steel, which forms a neat-looking bracelet. This is the part I really like. If this design gets enough votes, TokyoFlash will actually produce this thing. Now that’s cool. So head on over there to vote for it!

[TokyoFlash via DVice]

Skiff Reader: Specs Revealed for Biggest, Thinnest E-Reader Yet

Technabob — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 01:32:57 +0000

I love CES week. So many cool new gadgets, never enough time. The latest drool-worthy bit of electronic gadgetry comes to us courtesy of a little company called Skiff. The Skiff Reader definitely caught my attention when I saw the photo below.

The Skiff Reader has a huge 11.5″ diagonal touchscreen, and a native resolution of 1200×1600 pixels at an astoundingly sharp 174 pixels-per-inch. Just how sharp is that? The screenshot below is only at 72 pixels-per-inch, and it’s already pretty impressive.

The next-gen metal-foil e-paper display (made by LG) is also shatterproof and crackproof. With a screen like that, this is truly the first e-reader that I’ve seen that could give newspapers and magazines a run for their money.

While it has a great large screen, it still has a super svelte thin profile magnesium body that’s every bit as nice as anything you’ve seen on any e-reader before it. The reader can run for about a week on a single 2 to 3 hour charge, and has built-in Wi-Fi connectivity and 4GB of on-board storage (and an SDHC slot for additional memory). In addition, Skiff has signed a deal with Sprint to provide 3G network access for downloading content, and they also will sell Skiff Readers in Sprint stores.

No word yet on pricing or a release date – only “later this year”, but the Skiff is definitely one to watch.

E-Book + Netbook + Android = Entourage Edge

Technabob — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 03:17:55 +0000

You know that shiny new Nook or Kindle you just got for Christmas? Looks like it’s already time to upgrade to the next hot new gadget. The enTourage eDGe combines the best of e-Book readers and Netbook computers into a single package.

The so-called “dualbook” gives you everything you’d expect from an e-Book reader, but includes a complete netbook computer, running on Android OS. The left-hand panel of the folding computer is a touchscreen e-Ink display, while the right side is a full-color LCD touchscreen. The e-Ink panel measures in at 9.7″ diagonal and 1200 x 825 resolution, while the LCD is 10.1″ diagonal, with 1024 x 600 resolution. When folded, the eDGe measures a compact, but pragmatic 8.25″ (h) x 10.75″ (w) x 1″ (d). At 2.75 pounds, it’s definitely not as lightweight as other e-Readers, but it’s comparable in heft to most netbooks. Battery life for the e-Ink side is rated at 16 hours, while you’ll only get about 6 hours of use with the LCD screen turned on.

The netbook side includes a web browser, media recording and playback, e-mail, and contact management among other things. Initially, the eDGe will work only on WiFi networks, but you’ll be able to use it on 3G networks with and EVDO or HSDPA modem down the road. You can read books in ePub or PDF formats, watch videos in 3GP, MP4 or H.264 formats, or listen to audio in MP3, WAV, AAC, OGG and M4A among other formats. What I really like about the screens is that they also support pen-based input, making them great for quick note taking and doodles too.

You can check out a web-based demo of the eDGe’s interface here, but the hands-on video from netbooknews below gives you a glimpse at a working prototype in action:

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The enTourage eDGe ships in February 2010 with prices starting at $490 (USD), with a $40 upcharge for premium colors. They’re accepting pre-orders now over on the enTourage website. This is definitely one to watch.

Barnes & Noble Nook Price and Release Date Announced

Technabob — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 03:39:56 +0000

Look out Kindle, there’s a new e-Book reader in town and it’s about to rain all over your electronic paper parade. Old-school bookseller Barnes & Noble is set to release a serious shot across the bow of Amazon’s Kindle with their new e-Reader, the nook.

The Nook sets itself apart from the pack with an innovative dual display, one part electrostatic ink book screen, and the other part a thoroughly modern 3.5-inch full-color touchscreen for navigating between menus and book covers.

Much like the Kindle before it, the nook can download books via Wi-Fi or 3G connections, and it offers a high-contrast 16-shade E Ink display for reading books. Free 3G coverage is provided by AT&T, while you’ll get free Wi-Fi whenever you’re visiting a B&N store. And it can read open standard files like PDF and e.pub documents -yay! Did I happen to mention the Nook runs on Google’s open source Android OS? Ruh-oh. Kindle’s on the ropes now.

Barnes & Noble will even let you sample a little bit of each book before you buy – sorta like the music previews on iTunes. The nook even lets you “lend out” books to your friends for up to 14 days at a time. They don’t even need to have a Nook – you can share them to a cell phone or computer too. You can even sync your books own to your iPhone, iPod Touch, BlackBerry, Mac or PC and pick up wherever you left off reading.

Barnes & Noble plans on offering over 1 million download-to-own eBooks, and a variety of subscription magazines and newspapers in its electronic bookstore, and the nook has enough storage on board to hold up to 1500 of ‘em. And if you’re a real bookworm, you can stick in a 16GB MicroSD card and carry around a your own mobile Library of Congress with up to 17,500 books.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

The nook will ship starting in late November, and will sell for $259.99 (USD). You can pre-order one now over at the Barnes & Noble website.

Blinking E-Ink Name Badges on the Way. Why? Why Not?

Technabob — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:18:43 +0000

The only thing more unnecessary than a name badge that says “Hello, my name is…” is one that blinks. Sorta like the old HTML tag that most of us had the good sense to stop using about a decade ago.

Thanks to the fine folks at Korea’s Neolux, we’ll soon be staring at blinking badges that use the same E-Ink technology you might find in a book reader, or a superfluous ad in Esquire.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

No word at this point when the E-Ink name badges will be available for purchase, and I suppose that’s a good thing. If anyone can think of a good use for these, let me know.

[via E Ink Info]

Phosphor E-Ink Watches: Kind of Like a Kindle That You Wear on Your Wrist and Doesn’T Read Books

Technabob — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:55:38 +0000

These modern digital watches don’t use LED or LCD screens. Instead, they use E-Ink screens to tell the time.

Phosphor’s E-Ink watches have a bold modern design, and feature highly readable electrostatic displays.

The Phosphor DH01, DH02 and DH03 all feature a display that combines a dramatic modern numeric display for minutes, along with a simulated analog dial for the current hour. You can also swap the analog dial for a numeric one if you so desire.

The DC01, DC02, and DC03 calendar watches offer a complete monthly calendar on the watch face, with the time displayed above it. Like the other models, the diplays can be inverted from grey-on-black to black-on-grey to suit your fancy.

You can find the full collection of Phosphor E-Ink watches over at Watchismo. All models are priced at $194 (USD), and are available with black leather, polyurethane and stainless steel band options.

Foxit Releases Kindle Rival Eslick

Lambert Varias — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 13:00:39 +0000

After going against Adobe with their own lightweight PDF reader, Foxit are now taking on Amazon’s Kindle with the release of their own e-book reader called eSlick.

Foxit took a long hard look at the Kindle’s specs and said, “Hmm. Pork.” No. They one-upped Amazon on so many levels that it’s amazing they ended up with a device that’s $100 cheaper than the Kindle. Like the Kindle, the eSlick also connects via USB, and it also plays MP3 files. But it can also open and create PDF files via the packaged Foxit software. Whereas the Kindle has 256 Mb of internal storage, the eSlick comes with a free 2 Gb SD card to boost its 128 Mb internal memory. And at 0.4″, it’s 50% thinner than the Kindle.

One thing the eSlick concedes to the Kindle is the latter’s wireless connectivity via Whispernet, and of course Amazon’s online library. Here’s hoping that Amazon considers support for the eSlick, because everyone will benefit from that. Also because the eSlick is a $100 cheaper. Mostly because it’s a $100 cheaper.

Soon Foxit will be taking pre-orders at their website, with a special initial offer of $230, $30 off from the ordinary price.

[Foxit via electronista]

Esquire E-Ink Display Proves Nearly Indestructible

Technabob — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 02:18:59 +0000

While the October 2008 issue of Esquire magazine got lots of buzz in the marketplace with its E-Ink cover, I have to say I was pretty underwhelmed by the less than exciting visual produced by the blinking display. That said, the real magic of the electronic ink display tech could be its sheer durability.

In this video clip by the guys over at Phone Losers of America, the E-Ink display is subject to various torture tests, including bending, flexing, knife cuts, drilling, water, and fire. Amazingly, the display continues to operate throughout much of the destruction.

Click to View Embedded Video Clip

Color me impressed. I can only imagine this technology powering a bendy digital newspaper which could be rolled up, thrown in your bag, read in the shower, and even carried around in my dog’s mouth just like the real paper.

The only question I have is… but will it blend?

Seiko Epson Creates Hi-Res E-Ink Display

Technabob — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 03:33:44 +0000

This new electronic paper display from Seiko Epson crams an astounding 1600 x 1200 resolution into a 6.7-inch diagonal screen. That’s nearly 2-million pixels in a device that’s about the size of a letter-sized sheet of paper folded in half.

According to my rough math, the display cranks out over 230 pixels-per-inch, about 3 times that of the typical LCD computer screen. Perfect for use in electronic book readers, the flat panel measures in at just 3mm thick, and can display 1400 pages on a single button-cell battery.

While Seiko Epson hasn’t revealed any products which use the new display, it’s only a matter of time before we see these in real world devices.

[via MobileRead]

Cybook 3 E-Book Reader Price and Launch Date Revealed

Technabob — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 13:51:01 +0000

I’ve been seeing early pictures and rumors of this new electronic book reader floating around for a couple of months now, and now the final specs, launch date and price have finally been announced.

Bookeen’s Cybook 3 reader will hit shelves this September, with prices starting at $350 USD. The Cybook 3 is a super-slim electronic book reader that’s only about as thick as a magazine and weighs in at just 6.1 ounces. Powered by a crisp 6-inch 166dpi E-Ink electrostatic display technology, the device can display up to 8,000 pages on a single charge.

The Cybook 3 is compatible with Amazon’s Mobipocket book distribution technology, meaning that you’ll have access to around 50,000 books when the reader is released. The device can also read a variety of other non-DRMed content formats like RTF, HTML, PDF and PRC files without any conversion software. It can also handle JPG, GIF, PNG and MP3 file formats. Just transfer the files you want to read via USB, and they’re ready to go. In addition to a small amount of on-board storage, the device has an SD slot, so you can store a huge number of books for those really long journeys.

This is definitely one to watch for when it comes out this Fall.

Sony E-Book Reader Now Less Than $100

Technabob — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 16:23:11 +0000

It seems like it wasn’t very long ago that Sony released their first ever electronic ink book reader for around $350. For a limited time, you can pick up one of these nifty devices for just under $100.

TigerDirect is offering the Sony PRS-500 E-Book Reader for just $99.99, which is a savings of over 70% from the original price. And yes, the PRS-500 has a nice 6.9″ x 4.9″ display, not a 5-inch display as listed on the product page (Sony never made a 5-inch model.)

The reader can hold about 80 digital books in its internal memory, and can be expanded to hold plenty more if you add an SD card. It can also read PDF documents you download to it from your computer. Battery life is pretty amazing too, letting you read up to 7,500 pages on a single charge.

To sweeten the pot even more, if you happen to pick one up before July 31, 2007, Sony CONNECT is offering $149 worth of free eBooks making this one really amazing deal. Let’s hope that the price isn’t a typo.

[via MobileRead via pocketables]