iSlate Hacked

Entourage has entered the e-reader market with a very profound, new and innovated concept for an all around useful device combining several devices into one.  The enTourage eDGe is a dualbook, with an e-reader, netbook, notepad, and an audio/video recorder and player all in one.

The market that they have aimed for is the typical student.  The goal of the Edge, the company has said, “is to offer a device that can replace the textbooks and notebooks carried around by typical high school students.”

Entourage Systems, Vice President Doug Atkinson said, “We just thought here was a way to take technology and apply it to what they carry around. The initial goal was to put a 30-pound backpack in a device.  I think we’ve achieved that.”

The eDGe was originally designed with students in mind, but with the Wi-Fi and optional 3G module, it could appeal to a variety of professionals, as well.   There’s also an embedded webcam and microphones for recording chats or meetings.

The EnTourage eDGe is a two touchscreen device, the E-reader is a 9.7-inch E-ink touchscreen, with the second screen being a 10-inch LCD touch screen.  The eDGe uses the Google Android operating system.  It has 4GB of RAM, 3GB of usable built-in storage, BlueTooth 2.1, an SD card slot, two USB ports, standard-size headphone and microphone jacks, built-in stereo speakers, and a Lithium-ion polymer battery. The eDGe is a bit smaller than a piece of paper and just under an inch thick when closed and  weighs 3 pounds. There is over 16 hours of battery life when using the E-Link display, or 6-hours usage when using both displays.

Several unique qualities that this device offers are for one, the netbook functionality for web browsing using the built in WiFi, with full email functions, contact lists, taking digital notes, watching movies or listening to music.  It also includes a calculator, alarm clock and a library function for managing all of your books and files.

The microphones can be using for recording lectures, meetings, sharing notes, textbook annotations and multimedia content while simultaneously having access to class schedules, campus maps, an online e-book store and announcements. This device for the student or professional can easily fit in a backpack, briefcase or tote bag.

Another use is the netbook in portrait or landscape mode, but then you can flip everything around 180 degrees. When you do this, the e-reader, where you keep your journals or take notes on books, will be on the right side, and the netbook will be on the left.  Between the two screens is a hinge that allows users to fold the device completely flat or bend it all the way back for working on one screen at a time.  Both screens will rotate in every direction, allowing botheDGe any way that they like, as a traditional notebook with one screen up or lying on a flat surface.

left and right-handed users to operate the

The LCD screen lets users highlight or annotate text and then navigate between highlights by touching on the color screen, using automatically created bookmarks. The device works with both EPUB and PDF files and has USB ports and SD cards for moving data back and forth, as well as a built-in Wi-Fi connection. It’s also one of the first devices to come with the new chip from Marvell.

The battery options are also unique, you can use the lithium ion battery for up to 16 hours of reading without recharging, and you also have the option of having a spare one on hand.

The difference between the two screens is that you can use the color side for browsing the web by using your finger, stylus or keyboard to scroll though menus and apps. On the reverse screen e-ink users can draw or write handwritten notes on their eBooks or in their journal application.  This side is strictly for documents supported by the eReader application and EPUB and PDF documents.

The enTourage eDge has a powerful Library application, which is linked to the Blackboard Learn Content Module, a leading e-learning platform.  Entourage has also aligned with publishers McGraw Hill, Oxford University Press and John Wiley & Sons, which will bring a number of academic texts to their eDGe book store.

McGraw-Hill alone is making nearly 100 top-selling education titles available for purchace through the enTourage System e-book store.  With content for business, economics, science, math, humanities, foreign languages and social sciences. Some key titles include Managerial Accounting (Garrison, 13th edition); Principles of Economics (Frank, 4th ed.); Biology (Mader, 10th ed.); Elementary Statistics (Bluman, 5th ed.); Puntos de Partida (Knorre, 8th ed.); The Art of Public Speaking (Lucas, 10th ed.) and American History (Brinkley, 13th ed.).

The Oxford press is offering the Oxford American College Dictionary directly into the device’s dictionary application.

Specifications
8.25″ x 10.75″ by 1.0″ (closed)
Weighs 3 lbs.
4 GB RAM
LCD Touchscreen Display 1024 x 600 (10.1″)
E-paper Display Size: 9.7″ e-Ink®(1200 x 825), 8 shades of gray
E-paper Input: Wacom® Penabled
Operating System: Linux with Google® Android®
Screen Rotation: 90 and 180 degrees
WiFi 802.11 b/g, Bluetooth capability
Lithium-ion polymer Battery, 16 hours e-reader, 6 hours LCD screen
External Memory: SD card slot, 2 USB ports
Internal microphone and speakers
Audio playback: MP3, WAV, 3GPP, MP4, AAC, OGG, M4A
Video playback: 3GP, MP4, Adobe Flash Lite (H.264)

PRICE AND AVAILABILITY

The enTourage eDGe comes with an amazing color choice of Midnight Blue, Piano Black, Ruby Red, Glacier White and Ice Blue.

The basic starting price is $499.00, extra for optional colors and extras.  It is to be available in March 2010.