Spring Design Alex eReader Now Available [Android Based Alex eReader with Dual Display Hits US for $400, 3G Alex to Follow]

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Spring Design have confirmed that their Android based, dual screen eReader, known as the Spring Design Alex, is now available to order in the US via their own web portal.

The Spring Design Alex, which comes with a 3.5” touchscreen LCD paired with a 6” EPD display – the former allowing for web browsing, the latter for displaying eBook pages (though both can be used simultaneously with the Alex’s ‘Touch and Extend’ facility – comes with 2Gb of integrated storage capacity whilst, in terms of connectivity, you can factor in both WiFi and a USB port. There’s no 3G connectivity on offer with this particular model but Spring Design have confirmed that a 3G touting Alex will be made available later this year.

The Spring Design Alex is available to order now in the US, in either white or charcoal, and will set you back just shy of $400.

Press Release:

Spring Design Launches U.S. Web Store for Ordering Alex eReader

International Versions to Launch through Worldwide Partners Q2

FREMONT, Calif. – March 16, 2010 – Spring Design today announced that the dual screen multimedia Alex™ eReader will be available online at www.springdesign.com today. Customers may visit the online store to pre-order their Android-based Alex eReader supporting eBooks in EPUB, PDF, HTML and TXT formats. With Alex’s full Internet browsing using WiFi connectivity, users can read and download books, access online audio and video content including YouTube videos, communicate using Gmail and chat and use a number Google Android applications. Due to localization of international versions with partners, pre-orders placed on the Web in the U.S., will be shipped no later than mid-April.

Alex connects to Google’s bookstore with over one million titles, and other bookstores that support Adobe DRM. Spring has engaged multiple international partners to jointly deliver multi-language versions of Alex for countries speaking Chinese, Spanish, Russian, Korean and Hebrew. Alex is the first eReader to offer international versions of the product through its local country partners connecting to local bookstores.

Alex features a 6″ EPD (Electronic Paper Display) screen and a full color 3.5″ Android based touchscreen LCD enabling users to multi-task over the Internet while reading their eBooks. A touchscreen virtual keyboard supports easy searches as well as creation and access to interactive hyperlinks.

Users can move content from the color LCD screen to the 6″ EPD screen for easy reading and vice versa. The LCD screen complements the EPD text to support more dynamic functions such as annotating and highlighting what they are reading, or linking to relevant audio, video, and web links. Content can be viewed on both screens simultaneously with the Duet Navigator™ where the LCD screen is used to control the navigation of the EPD screen.

Maximizing the Power of Links

The power of Spring Design LinkNotes™ opens up a whole new dimension in publishing. Authors may insert hyperlinks in their books that show up on the EPD reading screen indicating that there is linked-in web-based content available. Users can click on hyperlinks in eBooks, corporate documents, or periodicals that lead to relevant web-based information or to multimedia content stored on the Alex eReader that will enrich their reading experience. Spring Design anticipates that this feature will be highly valuable in the education market where professors will be able to provide their own study notes, video illustrations, and audio enhancements to augment already-published textbooks.

“By combining a full multimedia browser with the efficiency and flexibility of an EPD screen supported by our open Android-based Alex eReader, we have truly placed a powerful tool in the hands of authors, publishers, professors, and institutions to create interesting interactive eBooks `” said Dr. Priscilla Lu, CEO of Spring Design. “Whether for entertainment, education, or corporate communication, Alex offers the most dynamic and powerful multimedia eReader in the marketplace for creating new media text.”

The Alex eReader weighs only 11 ounces and measures 4.7″ by 8.9″ and less than a half inch deep. Users may add their own content or download content to the microSD card offering expansion of user libraries up to 32GB. The Alex may be updated over WiFi and USB 2.0 and comes with headphones, AC/USB power connector and a padded cover.