Asus to launch 9in eReader with touchscreen to rival Amazon's Kindle DX

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Posted on 22 Jan 2010 at 16:42

We've got new photos of Asus's DR-950, a 9in touchscreen eReader launching at the end of March or early April, according to company sources.

The DR-950's screen has a 1,024x768 resolution uses SiPix technology, unlike most eReaders on the market today which use E-Ink. SiPix is based on the same electrophoretic display technology as E-Ink, and is also bistable, which means that it doesn't need power to maintain an image on the screen.

At 9mm, the DR-950 is slimmer than an iPhone, and puts the Kindle DX to shame, with 35 per cent less surface area and 30 per cent less weight. It will include a virtual keyboard and handwriting recognition, and automatic text reflow as you change font size.

There's also a web browser and RSS feed reader, and our sources claim the browser will be interoperable with web services. A built-in dictionary will translate in real-time, with updates available to download, and TTS (text-to-speech) technology will even read books to you.

The DR-950 will ship with either 2GB or 4GB of internal memory, plus an SDHC card slot for expansion. There's a micro-USB port for data transfers and power, and a 3.5mm headphone jack as well as internal stereo speakers. Its 802.11g wireless support can be supported by an optional 3.5G HSDPA/WiMax module. It supports a number of eBook, audio and image formats, including PDF, unprotected ePub, HTML, TXT, Audible, MP3, JPEG, GIF, PNG, and BMP.

The best thing is that we're told the DR-950 will cost about £250, which will make it extremely competitive.

Author: Barry de la Rosa