e-books

Barnes and Noble e-reader app coming to all Windows Mobile devices soon?

March 22, 2010 | By Surur

MobilityDigest reports that the Barnes & Noble eReader app, with a library of more than a million ebooks and known to appear on the T-Mobile HTC HD2 is expected to be released widely for all Windows Mobile handsets.

They notes the app features:

Automatic downloads of your latest Barnes & Noble eBook purchases and samples
Access to download eBooks from your Online Library anytime
Bookmarks, note taking & highlight functionality
Lookup function for dictionary, Wikipedia or Google
Portrait or landscape display modes
Customizable font, margins and page gestures

and comes with 2 free classics.

The Last of the Mohicans
Sense and Sensibility

While Windowss Mobile already have both free and store-bound e-readers it is always welcome to see support from a major presence in the market.

Read more about the rumour at MobilityDigest here.

0

HTC HD2 to get eBooks?

February 7, 2010 | By l3v5y

Some interesting things are occurring in the HD2 ROMs!

In some of the latest ROMs (2.05 and 2.07 have it) HTC have added an eBook reader built in to manila in much the same way as the documents tab.

There’s also apparently a torch application (though I’ve not found any screenshots yet).

Maybe HTC are feeling threatened by the iPad (I highly doubt that) or they’ve just seen a new revenue stream, and a way to make the HD2 even better than it is already! Either way, this is looking good!

If anyone out there happens to have either the 2.05 or the 2.07 ROMs, shoot us a message, and I’ll add this stuff into the WMPU HD2 ROM!

Via 3gin.net.

13

HTC considering making a “unique value” netbook?

November 6, 2009 | By Surur

In an interview during the HD2 launch yesterday Peter Chou revealed, despite early protestations, that HTC was still interested in the netbook segment.

In some ways HTC has been a pioneer in the area, but forgot the “cheap” part of the cheap and limited equation with the HTC Shift, their Vista PC with an integrated Windows Mobile smartphone.

Similar to that device, HTC does not just want to make another me-too device, but rather something with "unique value". The HTC CEO did however say they were "carefully looking into that category and how it can be part of that".

HTC has in recently published a number of patent applications for a new user interface which appears very likely to see the light of day and may be the new take of a netbook the company chief has been alluding to.

Microsoft Reader rises from the dead with .1 update

September 14, 2009 | By Surur

Microsoft, at least in the mobile world, has a habit of starting something and then leaving the job half-done.

Microsoft’s Reader with its .lit format was an early competitor in the eReader market and was especially well known for its amazingly well rendered fonts and good formatting. It was also known for its cumbersome DRM however.

Microsoft Reader was long thought to be dead, but MediaBistro noted the corpse stirring however, with a .1 update to 2.4.2 arriving to make the software compatible with Windows Mobile 6.1. The update became available in the 10-9-09, 4 years after the last one.

Amusingly the Reader page makes plenty of references to Windows Mobile 2003, and cone can just see the cobwebs littering the page.

MediaBistro speculates that Microsoft intends to bring to software to the ZuneHD, but it could as easily be targeted at the new Marketplace for Windows Mobile or a very late attempt to tackle the Kindle.

If you are feeling like reviving your old .lit books, download the update from here.

0

OverDrive Media Console for Windows Mobile is out – get free library content on your smartphone

September 8, 2009 | By Surur

OverDrive Media Console is a media player developed by OverDrive, Inc. for use with its download services for library, schools, and retailers. The Windows Media Player-based software allows users to download, organize, and listen to audiobooks, music, and video either borrowed from a library that uses OverDrive download services or purchased from an online retailer whose content is supplied by OverDrive.

OverDrive has announced the OMC software now available for Windows Mobile.

With OverDrive Media Console for Windows Mobile, users can:

Install OverDrive Media Console for Windows Mobile on devices running Windows Mobile 5 or 6. Now, Windows Mobile users can enjoy OverDrive Audiobooks, Music, and Video on an application designed specifically for OverDrive media. Patrons will enjoy a ‘look and feel’ that mirrors the OverDrive Media Console interface they are familiar with on the PC–including features like bookmarking and navigation via MediaMarkers™. Users can download the application directly to their devices or, if preferred, download OMC WM to their PC and synch it to their device.

Download OverDrive media titles directly to Windows Mobile (5 & 6) phones and devices. More and more of your patrons are constantly online via portable devices. With this release, Windows Mobile users can download OverDrive media directly to their devices–anytime, anywhere!

Continue to transfer OverDrive media to their device from a PC, if preferred. Some users may prefer to download OverDrive media to their PC, then transfer the media to their device. This functionality is still supported; content downloaded via PC can be transferred to the device.

Count on OverDrive Media Console for Windows Mobile to alert them of software releases and news about the software–automatically. The settings to automatically check for messages and updates are enabled by default. With these settings enabled, users will be kept up to date with the latest software updates and news.

Download the client from Overdrive here.

3

HTC to make connected e-book reader

August 19, 2009 | By Surur

HTC has joined Microsoft and CHT, a Taiwanese carrier, in bringing e-book content not only to smartphones but also dedicated connected e-book readers.

Part of CHT’s Hami book City initiative, the plan is to bring Chinese e-book content to not only the local audience but world wide.

CHT plans to make Hamibook software compatible with a variety of OSes, including OS X iPhone, Google’s Android and Microsoft Windows Mobile, but also to have dedicated devices supporting the venture.

With dozens of Taiwanese magazines, news groups and other publishers listed as partners on CHT’s statement, the project is set to come to market by the the first quarter 2010.