Every year about 250 people assemble for a 1 day conference known as IDPF (International Digital Publishing Forum). Here we hear what will be facing the eBook and Reader industry for the next year. Big names like Adobe, Google, Apple, Sony, Kindle, and more will all give their views on the state of EPUB as a format, new devices, the Agency Model, DRM and Non-DRM strategies, iPad, MIDs (Mobile Internet Devices),new eBook Stores, and a lot more. The Statistics alone that are released are amazing.
BUT... this year this little conference joins with the giant BEA (Book Expo America show). Now the show runs about a week long and brings in about 200,000 book lovers. This means that the publishers will be in full force at the event. Every author you can imagine will be represented there as well as hundreds of independent authors and publishers. Astak will be meeting with the actual publishers and authors... trying to build for the future.
The first thing that will come out of this combined event is statistics on the industry. What is working and what is not. We will start to hear from websites that are NON-DRM and how they are doing with that. Every genre from erotic to politics to espionage and crime will be talked about and new titles shown. Hundreds of publishers will be planning their first foray into eBooks and away from Printed Books.
Two years ago we went to BEA and found almost NO support from anyone for eBooks. We were dismissed as a nuisance. This year most of the hour long sessions are on eBooks with advice on how to get involved to new titles in Spanish and other languages. You would not belive just how major the impact of eBooks is on the Printed World.
Yes, the iPad will be there... all two pounds of it with 8-10 hours of battery life. Think the end of the Dedicated eBook Reader is at hand? Think again. Changes are coming to eBook Readers to make them more interactive and the dawn of the MID (Mobile Internet Device) may make the bulky tablet obsolete. Imagine a device that does MORE than the iPad, has a web cam and a camera, gets a few days to a charge, is color, weighs about 14 ounces tops, and costs quite a bit less.
So where will this leave Dedicated eBook Readers? Better, faster, stronger, lower priced, and the light weight champion for reading by far.
Anyway, from May 24-28, I will not be blogging but will be getting info for some great new stuff.
I will try to give you a better perspective soon on this show and what is coming up soon!! It will effect you and you should know about this!!
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Dictionary Support in the hopper
In answer to a comment sent to me, I am responding with good news. We finally have the factory in the process of adding Dictionary Support to the Pocket PRO and we hope the 6 inch EZ Readers also. It is going to take a while... guess is 6-8 weeks... but it finally is moving forward.
I know that this has seen a lot of stops and starts before... but this time it really looks like it is for real.
Meanwhile, I would love to invite all on this blog to join our new discussion forum (Astak Dedicated Forum) at:
http://www.mobileread.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=204
Also, be aware that we now have the ideal place to get eBooks: www.EZread.com
This new eBook Store is different. The search engine is more specific, the prices are lower, it has 200,000 "pay" titles and the entire Google FREE 1 Million library. Soon, it will also have a forum on eBooks that is interactive. You can request eBooks and authors, read eBook reviews, and read "Meet The Author". You can complain or post thanks! You can chat with others who share your interests! Plus, we are going after Independent Authors and Publishers at Book Festivals all over the nation to get their titles on our website! It is a very different eBook Store and a great one. Why not give it a try?
I know that this has seen a lot of stops and starts before... but this time it really looks like it is for real.
Meanwhile, I would love to invite all on this blog to join our new discussion forum (Astak Dedicated Forum) at:
http://www.mobileread.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=204
Also, be aware that we now have the ideal place to get eBooks: www.EZread.com
This new eBook Store is different. The search engine is more specific, the prices are lower, it has 200,000 "pay" titles and the entire Google FREE 1 Million library. Soon, it will also have a forum on eBooks that is interactive. You can request eBooks and authors, read eBook reviews, and read "Meet The Author". You can complain or post thanks! You can chat with others who share your interests! Plus, we are going after Independent Authors and Publishers at Book Festivals all over the nation to get their titles on our website! It is a very different eBook Store and a great one. Why not give it a try?
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
New eBook Store announced!!
Tired of worrying about finding the right books at the lowest price in the right format? Spending more time hunting for eBooks than reading? Worried about DRM?
Join Astak at the newest eBook Store: www.MyEZread.com. You will find most of our eBooks are either FREE (Google Free Library) or pay titles at the lowest price. We have 1 Million Google Titles and 200,000 PAY titles. IF your device uses Adobe Digital Editions (and most do with the exception of stubborn Kindle)... this site has it. We simplified everything: all titles are in either PDF or EPUB (both ideal for Adobe Digital Editions).
The site has a very sophisticated search engine, sub-category search, and search by Title, Author, or BOTH! One button gives you the latest BESTSELLERS straight from the New York Times charts. Not positive if you have Adobe Digital Editions? The site lists all applicable devices PLUS has a link for free download of Adobe Digital Editions.
You can either stay worried about hunting up sites OR join the crowd at: www.MyEZread.com!!
Simplify your life! Get the best price, the perfect format, and a huge selection at this new eBook Store! Coming soon to this site: a full-fledged forum with eBook Reviews, chatting, and making requests!
Join Astak at the newest eBook Store: www.MyEZread.com. You will find most of our eBooks are either FREE (Google Free Library) or pay titles at the lowest price. We have 1 Million Google Titles and 200,000 PAY titles. IF your device uses Adobe Digital Editions (and most do with the exception of stubborn Kindle)... this site has it. We simplified everything: all titles are in either PDF or EPUB (both ideal for Adobe Digital Editions).
The site has a very sophisticated search engine, sub-category search, and search by Title, Author, or BOTH! One button gives you the latest BESTSELLERS straight from the New York Times charts. Not positive if you have Adobe Digital Editions? The site lists all applicable devices PLUS has a link for free download of Adobe Digital Editions.
You can either stay worried about hunting up sites OR join the crowd at: www.MyEZread.com!!
Simplify your life! Get the best price, the perfect format, and a huge selection at this new eBook Store! Coming soon to this site: a full-fledged forum with eBook Reviews, chatting, and making requests!
EZ Reader PLUS a hit already, wait 4 weeks.
Demand for the EZ Reader PLUS is already building. It will be available first at: www.theEZreader.com and www.astak.com. This will be in about 3-4 weeks when the devices arrive. Astak does not like to promise something and not be able to deliver. So, we are waiting to post full info.
This PLUS will be a major player. The original EZ Reader Basic is a tried and true design known as having incredibly problem-free life, far less returns than other products on the market, more than 20 formats, great MP3 capability, and a USER-Replaceable Rechargeable Battery. Nobody that owned the Basic ever said it was not fast enough and they loved the E-INK screen giving 8,000 pages of text to a single charge!!.
The EZ Reader PLUS takes that same perfect design and interface and ruggedness and puts it in steroids! The fastest controller on the market (EPSON) is mated to a 400MHz processor. The speed increase is amazing and rivals or beats ANY OTHER eBook Reader. It still has all the goodies mentioned above... but now the screen is 16 level Gray Scale. The USB is now 2.0!! The memory is a cinch to increase (SD card slot to 16GB). The SD RAM is doubled to 64MB. Internal Memory is 512MB. PLUS, it still comes with a leather crush-resistant case and free ear buds!!
Compare this to anything else on the market! This is lighter (under 6 ounces), far faster, and handles 20 formats and includes Adobe Digital Editions for DRM! If the battery fails: no need to wait 6 weeks and send it off to the factory. Astak will have spare batteries for sale at no mark-up and it takes about 50 seconds to change. The MP3 is fabulous AND you can listen to music while you read!!
The price? Same as the Basic: about $229.
Worth the wait?? You aren't kidding. This is going to be a real blockbuster!!
This PLUS will be a major player. The original EZ Reader Basic is a tried and true design known as having incredibly problem-free life, far less returns than other products on the market, more than 20 formats, great MP3 capability, and a USER-Replaceable Rechargeable Battery. Nobody that owned the Basic ever said it was not fast enough and they loved the E-INK screen giving 8,000 pages of text to a single charge!!.
The EZ Reader PLUS takes that same perfect design and interface and ruggedness and puts it in steroids! The fastest controller on the market (EPSON) is mated to a 400MHz processor. The speed increase is amazing and rivals or beats ANY OTHER eBook Reader. It still has all the goodies mentioned above... but now the screen is 16 level Gray Scale. The USB is now 2.0!! The memory is a cinch to increase (SD card slot to 16GB). The SD RAM is doubled to 64MB. Internal Memory is 512MB. PLUS, it still comes with a leather crush-resistant case and free ear buds!!
Compare this to anything else on the market! This is lighter (under 6 ounces), far faster, and handles 20 formats and includes Adobe Digital Editions for DRM! If the battery fails: no need to wait 6 weeks and send it off to the factory. Astak will have spare batteries for sale at no mark-up and it takes about 50 seconds to change. The MP3 is fabulous AND you can listen to music while you read!!
The price? Same as the Basic: about $229.
Worth the wait?? You aren't kidding. This is going to be a real blockbuster!!
Monday, March 22, 2010
New 6 inch EZ Reader PLUS unveiled.
A major surprise, the new Astak EZ Reader PLUS was announced by the factory. We do not have a release date yet butexpect it to be selling within 6 weeks.
Everyone LOVED the Astak EZ Reader Basic. It was of decent speed but had only 4 level gray scale and was held back a wee bit by USB 1.0. This device was rock-solid, though, and was one of the best six inch devices on the market. Many reviewers praised it as a direct competitor to the Kindle 2.
Well, the factory looks like they took an old suggestion of mine and dramatically improved it.
First, they added blazing speed. With a new state-of-the-art Epson Controller and 400 MHz processor... page turns are immediate and books come up quickly. This, by itself, made it better that almsot any other 6 inch.
Then they added 16 levels of Grey Scale for fabulous illustrations and images, USB 2.0, and 64MB of SDRAM!! Now we are talking world class,folks!! Oh, and they also went to 16GB on the SD card slot (enough for 8,000 eBooks and your MP3 music).
Lastly, they left the price the same!! WHEN have you ever heard of a device being changed this much without a price increase?? This will still sell between $229 and $249!!
So, now you get the same rock-solid reliability and easy controls on a device that is a speed demon! Think of your Chevy Cobalt being greatly increased in amenities and receiving the hottest 600 horsepower Corvette Engine!! This new PLUS really moves.
I will post when it starts selling. Save your nickels and dimes and get the ideal 6 inch!! Yes, it now has Hyperlinks and a Search Engine! It now has a Visible Clock too! It also has, as always, twin page-turn stations, a by-the-numbers control system, the crush-resistant case and ear buds included, and the same Grade "A" perfect screen. No corners were cut! The MP3 is still on the Music Zone for wonderful sound quality and yes, it still plays music WHILE you read! OH, and it still has 20 formats on it, Adobe Digital Editions, 26 languages, NINE font sizes in ePub and PDF, and a USER-REPLACEABLE rechargeable battery.
Now, let us see Kindle begin to measure up!!
Everyone LOVED the Astak EZ Reader Basic. It was of decent speed but had only 4 level gray scale and was held back a wee bit by USB 1.0. This device was rock-solid, though, and was one of the best six inch devices on the market. Many reviewers praised it as a direct competitor to the Kindle 2.
Well, the factory looks like they took an old suggestion of mine and dramatically improved it.
First, they added blazing speed. With a new state-of-the-art Epson Controller and 400 MHz processor... page turns are immediate and books come up quickly. This, by itself, made it better that almsot any other 6 inch.
Then they added 16 levels of Grey Scale for fabulous illustrations and images, USB 2.0, and 64MB of SDRAM!! Now we are talking world class,folks!! Oh, and they also went to 16GB on the SD card slot (enough for 8,000 eBooks and your MP3 music).
Lastly, they left the price the same!! WHEN have you ever heard of a device being changed this much without a price increase?? This will still sell between $229 and $249!!
So, now you get the same rock-solid reliability and easy controls on a device that is a speed demon! Think of your Chevy Cobalt being greatly increased in amenities and receiving the hottest 600 horsepower Corvette Engine!! This new PLUS really moves.
I will post when it starts selling. Save your nickels and dimes and get the ideal 6 inch!! Yes, it now has Hyperlinks and a Search Engine! It now has a Visible Clock too! It also has, as always, twin page-turn stations, a by-the-numbers control system, the crush-resistant case and ear buds included, and the same Grade "A" perfect screen. No corners were cut! The MP3 is still on the Music Zone for wonderful sound quality and yes, it still plays music WHILE you read! OH, and it still has 20 formats on it, Adobe Digital Editions, 26 languages, NINE font sizes in ePub and PDF, and a USER-REPLACEABLE rechargeable battery.
Now, let us see Kindle begin to measure up!!
Seeking help for any problems
Astak has a Dedicated Astak Forum at MobileRead Forum. Here you can go to have tons of fellow Astak device owners help you with problems. It is a great way to get things done and I monitor the forum much of the time. The link to go to that Dedicated Astak Thread is:
http://mobileread.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=204
You can also contact Astak direct at: 1-866-368-8788 or by sending an email to: support@astak.com
I am not a tech person... we have specialists for that, of course. We ARE here to help! But, in any case, the forum is a wonderful and easy way to get advice and make reading on an Astak device a real pleasure!
Also, thank you for all those who wrote about the User Replaceable Rechargeable Battery that Astak puts in all their devices. We see this as a HUGE plus as dealing with a faulty sealed-in battery is very expensive and time-consuming!
http://mobileread.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=204
You can also contact Astak direct at: 1-866-368-8788 or by sending an email to: support@astak.com
I am not a tech person... we have specialists for that, of course. We ARE here to help! But, in any case, the forum is a wonderful and easy way to get advice and make reading on an Astak device a real pleasure!
Also, thank you for all those who wrote about the User Replaceable Rechargeable Battery that Astak puts in all their devices. We see this as a HUGE plus as dealing with a faulty sealed-in battery is very expensive and time-consuming!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
User Replaceable Batteries and type of battery
Once again I have received word that another person made the choice to buy the Astak over the Sony because of the User-Replaceable battery. People should realize (and that means REVIEWERS also) that this is growing more important.
Here is why. As prices for quality eBook Readers have broken the $199 barrier... the projection is that new chipsets now in development and new screens now starting development will bring the price down to the sweet spot of $150 for a basic E-INK machine. I don't know when... but likely later this year. This makes the User-Replaceable rechargeable battery that Astak has in ALL their models a major decision maker.
WHY? Let us suppose you buy a Fernley eBook Reader with a sealed-in battery. I use that name as purely fictitious BUT most of the major brands have sealed-in. This Fernley has sealed in. After a year the Fernley starts to hold a poor charge and the battery charge life gets awful. The end user calls Fernley and is told he must pay to mail it to Fernley. Fernley will charge him $80-$100 to replace the battery for their trouble. Fernley than charges him to send it back. The poor end user is left without a device for six weekls! Now he hates Fernley and he understands WHY USER-Replaceable rechargeable batteries make the Astak a great idea.
Now, every eBook Reader has different power requirements. It has to do with providing a long battery-charge life and powering all the features. One battery (maybe a Nokia phone battery) may not work well in all situations. Astak stocks spare bateries which cost very little. And they pop in and out with one screw. Maybe it is a 2 minute job to replace the battery. This allows two things: the swift and cheap replacement of a bad battery and the carrying of a fully-charged spare battery the user can pop right in for long trips. But, my point is that Astak also wishes all batteries can be as readily available online as the 6 inch EZ Reader. Unfortunately the wonderful Pocket PRO has Text-To-Speech and numerous other features that required a battery other than a phone battery. That is the way the factory designed it.
One end user did urge me to please try to use phone batteries in the future. This is an intelligent request; and we will try. But, fundamentally, the factories design the unit and its insides and they decide what battery is needed. Astak only can recommend and we will.
But, whatever Astak model you buy (or REVIEW) it has a USER-REPLACEABLE rechargeable battery and that makes economic sense. The Fernley and its real sister devices are out of step with economics!
Here is why. As prices for quality eBook Readers have broken the $199 barrier... the projection is that new chipsets now in development and new screens now starting development will bring the price down to the sweet spot of $150 for a basic E-INK machine. I don't know when... but likely later this year. This makes the User-Replaceable rechargeable battery that Astak has in ALL their models a major decision maker.
WHY? Let us suppose you buy a Fernley eBook Reader with a sealed-in battery. I use that name as purely fictitious BUT most of the major brands have sealed-in. This Fernley has sealed in. After a year the Fernley starts to hold a poor charge and the battery charge life gets awful. The end user calls Fernley and is told he must pay to mail it to Fernley. Fernley will charge him $80-$100 to replace the battery for their trouble. Fernley than charges him to send it back. The poor end user is left without a device for six weekls! Now he hates Fernley and he understands WHY USER-Replaceable rechargeable batteries make the Astak a great idea.
Now, every eBook Reader has different power requirements. It has to do with providing a long battery-charge life and powering all the features. One battery (maybe a Nokia phone battery) may not work well in all situations. Astak stocks spare bateries which cost very little. And they pop in and out with one screw. Maybe it is a 2 minute job to replace the battery. This allows two things: the swift and cheap replacement of a bad battery and the carrying of a fully-charged spare battery the user can pop right in for long trips. But, my point is that Astak also wishes all batteries can be as readily available online as the 6 inch EZ Reader. Unfortunately the wonderful Pocket PRO has Text-To-Speech and numerous other features that required a battery other than a phone battery. That is the way the factory designed it.
One end user did urge me to please try to use phone batteries in the future. This is an intelligent request; and we will try. But, fundamentally, the factories design the unit and its insides and they decide what battery is needed. Astak only can recommend and we will.
But, whatever Astak model you buy (or REVIEW) it has a USER-REPLACEABLE rechargeable battery and that makes economic sense. The Fernley and its real sister devices are out of step with economics!
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