steve kwan user experience designer

Paper-based books may soon be obsolete

(January 5th, 2006 - 10:29AM)

Sony is geared to release their E-Book soon. The E-Book is an electronic handheld device for reading digital text and media. Although we've had this capability for many years, anyone who's ever tried to read a book on their PDA understands quite well why the trend never really caught on. LCD screens are simply inadequate for long periods of reading.

The E-Book uses proprietary technology that relies on charged particles instead of an LCD display. Long story short: The E-Book's has clearer text and has less glare, so reading on its screen should be a similar experience to reading on paper.

I'll be glad if the E-Book catches on. For a long time, I've wondered why paper-based books haven't been completely replaced. This could be the start.