Amazon has been working on a glow in the dark device will before Barnes and Noble ever released their Glowlight e-reader earlier this month. Anonymous sources in the company told Reuters today that Amazon is working on an e-Reader with glow in the dark function that is set for a July release, and a new version of the Kindle Fire for the holiday season.
“I do see demand for a front-lit Kindle,” said Jennifer Colegrove, Vice President of Emerging Display Technologies at DisplaySearch, an NPD Group company, which monitors trends in the display sector. There is a trade-off, she said: “Front-lit will consume battery power and [it will] run out… quicker.”
Last year Amazon acquired a Seattle based company Oy Modilis that prides itself as a world leader in light-guide technology. The reason Amazon was a bit late to the game is because they tend to patent all of their technologies before a commercial release is possible. It normally takes six months to a year for patent applications to be approved and finalized, which is why their new device has taken so long to hit the market.
All signs are pointing to a July release using the same e-ink Pearl display that their previous models have used. It is also said to be six inches and feature a fully interactive touchscreen display.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
