e ink

When most of us think of e-ink devices, we probably think of something small like one of Amazon's Kindles. Sony took a different approach with its DPT-RP1 tablet, which features a display as large as a standard sheet of A4 paper and is meant for more than reading eBooks. This tablet was instead meant for the professional world, targeting occupations that handle a large number of documents, such as lawyers or doctors.

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The Light Phone is back, and it's loosening its "naught but calls" policy to embrace the fact that not everybody likes to talk. Freshly announced today, the Light Phone 2 sets minimalistic simplicity as its lodestar: a black & white E Ink touchscreen, a few simple services, and a design more akin to a stack of credit cards than a phone. Rather than trying to replace your iPhone or Galaxy entirely, the idea is that there'll be times you don't want everything a smartphone can offer tempting you from your pocket or purse.

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You’d have to be crazy to announce a new smartphone at the same time as a high-profile Samsung product. But, then again, Russian smartphone maker Yota was already deemed unorthodox when it slapped an e-paper display on the back of one. Now the company is back with the third gen YotaPhone, just YOTA in some markets, and its squarely aiming the two-faced smartphone at a younger generation that is happily discovering the joys of reading. Even if it’s on a minuscule screen.

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This week I've been working with both versions of the InkCase i7 - one for the smaller iPhone, one for the Plus. Both are from the newest generation of e-ink case from the folks at Oaxis, who've made these cases for the following people: "adventurers, bookworms, the businessperson, selfie-takers, and everyone else." Thus far I've found the case to be not only interesting, but helpful and downright fun, too.

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The Meizu PRO 7, when it comes out in the next or so months, is going to be one strange phone. That's going to be true whether this latest bit comes to pass or not. Putting a second screen on a phone's back isn't exactly new. There's even a Kickstarter for offering something similar for the iPhone 7 pair. But whereas previous implementations put a full-sized e-ink screen on the back, the Meizu PRO 7 will supposedly have a "mini" screen instead. And it might not even be grayscale e-ink at all.

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The YotaPhone seems to have struck a chord among some smartphone users. The ability to have some information, or picture, always on display even when the phone's screen itself is off definitely useful. And having a handy ebook reader with you all the time is something bookworms would love. But the problem with the YotaPhone is not only was it limited to Android, it also meant having to buy a new phone, even if you were already an Android user. iPhone users, on the other hand, were out of luck. Now, however, they have fighting chance with the InkCase i7 finally launching on Kickstarter.

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You may remember back to 2015 when you heard about an odd device called the YotaPhone 2 featuring not one but two full-size screens, with the rear being an E-ink display. Well, the Russian company behind the phone, Yota Devices, has announced it's making a successor called the — wait for it — YotaPhone 3. Unfortunately, this announcement, made at a conference in China this week, was very slim on details.

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One of the biggest complains about smartwatches is how quick they are to die during the course of the day. What if you had a watch that could at least last for days while still have some of the fashionable options of smartwatches? That's what Sony subsidiary Fashion Entertainments sought out to do with its e-paper wearables. Now in its second run, the new Sony FES Watch U is now available for purchase, in Japan at least, offering a smartwatch that is really more a fashion accessory than a geek toy.

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Ebook readers use e-paper displays for two reasons. First is the innate nature of such screens, which are easy on the eyes and batteries. Second is the cheaper costs of such components, which translate to a more affordable retail price. If you thought the latter would be true of the Gvido music sheet "tablet" and its two 13-inch e-ink screens, you'd be shocked to find out the truth. Because when the Gvido launches later this year, it will cost just as much as two 12.9-inch iPad Pros.

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2-in-1 tablet/laptop hybrids are in fashion these days. In fact, analysts like IDC tout them as the saviors of the PC industry. But the form factor is also seeing some interest in more than just PCs. They've also come to tablets and even e-ink readers. Yes, you heard that right. A company by the name of Onyx International has just revealed its Onyx Boox Typewriter prototype that is, for lack of a better term, a 2-in-1 e-ink laptop. And that's not the only interesting, or strange, thing about it.

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Like it or not, it seems that companies are beginning to rethink the venerable keyboard, especially when it comes to mobile devices, both laptops and tablets alike. Microsoft started it with the Surface covers and then Apple jumped on board with the cloth-like Smart Keyboard. Things came to a head with the Lenovo Yoga Book's "Halo Keyboard". Now it seems that Microsoft might be on the verge of yet another invention, one that combines a few of those ideas together into one e-ink keyboard cover.

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Crowdfunding is always risky business, not too different from investing in something that doesn’t exist yet. Some don’t deliver on time, others not at all. Some disappear like the wind, while others try to make a graceful exit, whether or not refunds are offered. popSLATE 2, a redux of an iPhone e-ink case, is somewhat all of the above. The company behind it has made one last update on Indiegogo, announcing its bankruptcy and dissolution and, to add insult to injury, the lack of funds to refund more than 12,000 backers who helped it raise $1.1 million last year.

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