14 DAY TRIAL // Fujitsu's FLEPia eReader is one of those devices that had a pretty tough road in front of it, showcased for the first time in 2007 shortly after Amazon introduced the Kindle, the FLEPia color e-Book reader managed to go on sale in Japan only last year for an impressive $1,200 price tag, but Fujitsu is not prepared to let things go and it recently showcased its successor, dubbed the FLEPia Lite.
As it was the case before, this device also comes with a e-Ink “cholesteric LCD,” that reflects only some specific wavelengths of light in order to produce color images while also coming with an improved contrast ratio when compared to the previous FLEPia model.
Furthermore, brightness was also increased, the Lite's 8-inch display supporting an XGA resolution while also coming with a 7:1 contrast ratio (3 times higher than the present day FLEPia), a 0.7 seconds refresh time (that should help page turn speeds quite a bit) and 32% reflectivity.
As the name suggests, this is also slimmer and more lightweight than the previous model, the enclosed video disclosing just how thin the FLEPia Lite actually is.
Also, judging by the enclosed video, you can say that the FLEPia Lite is actually extremely responsive, the page turns taking just a second or so, while its interface appears to be particularly smooth, no sort of stuttering making its way into the demo.
Color reproduction as well as brightness seem to be pretty good for such a device, a Fujitsu representative actually claiming this technology “is said to be the brightest type of display for color.”
If this is actually true it remains to judge for yourself as I am going to step out now and let you take a closer look at the prototype that was showcased during a recent tech exhibition held in Tokyo, but not before letting you know that Fujitsu says the FLEPia Lite will become available in stores as early as next year. (via CrunchGear)