Related Articles
A new Sony Reader is on the way, according to documents pertaining to compliance testing on the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) website.
(Credit: FCC)
It’s official: e-reader season is now open. Kobo and Amazon have announced their 2013 offerings, and now we’re only waiting on Sony as the last of the local “big three” e-reader triumvirate. Apparently, it’s coming tonight at IFA, if documentation found on the US FCC website by Spanish website Librista is any indication.
Called the PRS-T3, the new e-reader follows last year’s PRS-T2, with a few notable changes. The first is what is called an “integrated snap cover” — the e-reader and cover come as an all-in-one unit.
Its 6-inch Pearl E Ink display has been given a resolution upgrade — it’s now 1024×758 compared to the T2’s 800×600, bringing it up to the 212 dpi high definition boasted by the new Kobo Aura and the new Kindle Paperwhite. Unlike those devices, though, Sony has still not included a built-in light — on purpose. In March this year, Stephanie Lang of Sony France said in an interview with Clubic, “We believe that the integration of a lighting system on the sides is not necessarily useful, and may even degrade the reading experience.”
(Credit: FCC)
In the past, Sony has included an external light on its e-reader cases for those who want portable illumination — that will no doubt be the case with the PRS-T3, as well.
Other features include two months of battery life based on 30 minutes of reading per day with the Wi-Fi switched off (again, the same as Kobo and Amazon), Wi-Fi (obviously), quick charge whereby three minutes of charging can provide enough power to read 600 pages, four hours between full-page refreshes and built-in dictionaries — English, French, Spanish, German and 10 bilingual dictionaries.
According to photos spotted on German e-reader website Alles Ebook, the software looks pretty similar in terms of how you use the e-reader, including how the libraries are organised and Sony’s excellent note-taking function. Hopefully, we’ll also see a return of features such as Evernote integration and public library support. Interestingly, we didn’t spot a stylus for the device.
Sony has been pretty good at keeping its pricing relatively low. With the PRS-T2 priced at AU$179, and the new Kindle Paperwhite coming in at US$139, we estimate that it will be somewhere between these two price points — probably around AU$150.
We expect to have more information tomorrow, so stay tuned.
