Sony Reader PRS-T3 won't be launched in US due to market changes

On September 5, Sony rolled out the red carpet for its latest Sony Reader, the PRS-T3 with a built-in snap cover and touchscreen display. Since then, the Reader has gone up for sale in Europe, Canada, and elsewhere while interested buyers in the US were left waiting for more information. Unfortunately, that wait has been in vain, with Sony saying it won't be for sale in the United States.

It would seem the ereader was originally planned to be released in the US, with a poster publishing a statement from Sony a couple days ago over on the MobileRead forum. In the brief message from the Sony PR, it was said the device isn't "coming to the US anymore," and such a notion is backed up by an FCC filing that surfaced for the device giving it the go-ahead.

Such an announcement raised the ire those who had been waiting for the device so they could upgrade, prompting Sony to release an official statement on the matter:

Said Sony: "Sony will not be offering the Reader PRS-T3 in the United States. In response to the region's market changes, Sony will be focusing instead on mobile and tablet devices, including the Xperia Tablet Z and Xperia Z smartphone. Digital reading and eBooks remain an important priority for Sony. Reader Store will still help book lovers find and read their next story, anytime and anywhere, and customers can continue to expect new and exciting features and discovery tools."

The company went on to state that previous versions of the Sony Reader will still be supported by the Reader Store in addition to devices running its mobile apps. For those located where the slate is available, the PRS-T3 features a 6-inch 16-level grayscale touch-enabled display, as well as Quick Charge, WiFi, 2GB of internal storage, and an integrated snap cover that also functions as an on/off switch.

SOURCE: The Digital Reader