Asus Says It Will Ship Inexpensive Dual-Screen E-Reader This Year

I could write hundreds of words trying to explain why a dual-screen e-reader is a hot concept worth testing in the market. Or you could look at the above photo and grasp it instantly.

The Times of London reported Sunday that Asus is working to launch a two-screen e-book reader for a guesstimated price of 100 British pounds, or around $150, before the end of this year. Here’s the feature rundown:

Unlike current ebook readers, which take the form of a single flat screen, the Asus device has a hinged spine, like a printed book. This, in theory, enables its owner to read an ebook much like a normal book, using the touchscreen to “turn” the pages from one screen to the next. It also gives the user the option of seeing the text on one screen while browsing a web page on the other. One of the screens could also act as a virtual keypad for the device to be used like a laptop. Whereas current ebook readers have monochrome screens, the Asus would be full colour. The maker says it may also feature “speakers, a webcam and a mic for Skype”, allowing cheap phone calls over the internet.

Just as important to the product’s design is its low price, which could undermine the $300-500 price range of e-readers from Sony and Amazon. Asus, known for its sub-$400 Eee PC that changed consumers’ preconceptions of how much to spend on a laptop, hopes to repeat its performance in the e-reader market. “Any such product has to have the right combination of functionality and price,” an Asus spokesperson told the Times. “No one is going to buy one for £1,000.”

Will Asus be able to deliver a quality reading experience for $150? My take is that it doesn’t need to be the best display ever. Like iPod audio and YouTube video, it only needs to be good enough.

Don't you just love it when a plan comes together? You betcha. After catching an up close and personal glimpse at ASUS' dual panel touchscreen concept at CeBIT this past March, we soon forgot ASUS even had such a beast in the R&D lab. Just over a week ago, however, all those fond memories came rushing back with an off-the-wall rumor that the company just might push out an Eee-book reader later this year. Fast forward to today, and the Times Online has it that such a device is very real, and it should be out and about before the year's end.

According to president Jerry Shen, the Eee Reader will become the planet's cheapest e-book reader, though a premium model could also be launched to satisfy those craving higher-end features -- probably amenities like inbuilt 3G, a web browser and expandable storage. The dual screen form factor would enable users to read books as books were intended to be read, or they could use the secondary panel to surf the web, type on a virtual keyboard or whatever else ASUS dreams up. We're told that the firm is aiming for the £100 ($163) mark on its low-end model, and based on the affordability of its Eee PCs, we'd say it'll probably get awfully close. Hey Kindle, you skeered yet?

[Photo: Engadget]

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