iLiad's new 'Book Edition' e-reader

(Credit: Irex)

It may seem hard to imagine after much news of late, but there are actually e-book readers being produced that aren't the Amazon Kindle. Irex is living proof of that.

The company has updated its "iLiad" reader with a "Book Edition," a less expensive version that doesn't include the Wi-Fi receiver found in the original, according to SlashGear. The first iLiad (not to be confused with Homer's) has been used for wireless newspaper delivery in Europe, where that practice has gained some popularity among readers. But the new model, as its name indicates, is designed for book lovers and includes 50 classic works already installed.

Expected to be go on sale today, it has an 8.1-inch touch screen, a 400MHz Xscale processor, a USB connection to load additonal books, and 128MB of built-in memory that can be expanded through an additional card up to 8GB. But even with its lower cost the Book Edition still goes for about $768, which is nearly twice the price of the $399 Kindle.

[Mindstyle06]

These guys are dumb, really dumb. Why on the earth somebody should buy their device that has less features than kindle and costs double? These guys are totally ignoring student population who is tired of paying for expensive books and many rather would prefer to buy e-book. Piracy will be an issue but still, even now, students make photocopies of the books or share the books so why crib about it?
I just hope that some Taiwanese manufacturer comes out with such a book that costs no more than USD 100 or max 200 and does exactly what is needed i.e. reading pdfs or chms or djvus and students can highlight in the files or save notes on them. We don't need any video player or mp3 player or Wi-Fi etc. (Why not use your phone for all these?) Just a basic e-book reader. Do make fancy models for those who have deep pockets and want those useless things..

[tdg109]

Mindstyle06,

I suppose if your "Mindstayle" is one that is only interested in buying, or ripping off, cheap versions of textbooks, then the budget Taiwanese eBook reader you crave will definitely be the way to go. Oh - and on't worry - I'm sure it will be coming along soon enough.

If you actually like to read for leisure (I mean things other than blogs and websites), you might like to be able to download your materials on the move and write notes on the margins of the paper in your own handwriting. You might also like to listen to some music while you read (without having to bring 4 or five devices along with you, then I can see why the Iliad would appeal. I think it could only be better better if they put a cell phone right in it - you could have a conference call, listen to tunes, browse the web and download materials all from your Iliad. All in a very convenient package that is smaller and lighter than a laptop and more efficient (in battery consumption) and versatile than a typical cell phone/PDA. Sounds good to me.

[aaronvanderwal]

A co-worker of mine has the wi-fi iLiad so I've had a chance to play with it. On reading about the Sony and Amazon e-readers in the American press, I always wondered why the iLiad doesn't get more hype. It's a way more open device (they run linux) and minimise the vendor lock-in (Does Amazon still charge you for each PDF you put on the Kindle?). It might be more expensive, bit I'd say the iLiad is better value for the money.