Sony News

Sony announced that it is closing its Reader store in the US and Canada towards the end of March, and all Reader accounts (including their library content) will be moved to Kobo's platform. Sony says the migration process will be painless, and hopefully it will be so.

Sony PRS-T3

Sony will also install Kobo's application on select Xperia devices. This sounds like a good deal for Kobo. It's a shame to see Sony taking this step - they were once the leaders in e-readers (back before Amazon launched their Kindle).

Sony has decided to abandon the US e-reader market and they will not sell the PRS-T3 e-reader in the US. Sony instead will focus their efforts on Canada, Europe, and Japan.

The PRS-T3 (an upgrade to the PRS-T2) is a 6" 758x1024 touch E Ink reader. It includes an integrated snap cover (with a built-in LED light) and Quick Charge which should charge your reader within 3 minutes (but not to full 100% power). Other features include Wi-Fi, 2GB of storage (and a microSD slot), ePub and PDF support.

Sony's PRS-T3 isn't official yet, but the E Ink e-reader just passed the FCC validation, meaning that this device is ready to be launched soon. We still do now have a lot of details - just that it's got Wi-Fi and a 3.6Wh battery.

A few weeks ago we reported that Sony is set to release a new e-reader (the PRS-T2). Today we learn (via a J&R pre-order page) that the T2 will include a 6" touchscreen E Ink (800x600) display and Wi-Fi. The T2 will also include a stylus.

The T2 will also include a Facebook application, and a free copy of Harry potter and the philosopher's stone. It will launch "soon" for $130.

The FCC's site published information that a new device from Sony is coming soon - the PRS-T2 e-reader. There isn't any technical information yet, but it seems that more will be revealed in September 29th. All we do know is that the new e-reader will have Wi-Fi b/g/n.

The PRS-T1 (also known as the Reader Wi-Fi) was released in August 2011, and features include a 6" 600x800 Pearl E Ink display, Infrared touch technology, 1.3 Gb of internal memory, a microSD slot and Wi-Fi.

There are reports that Sony sold over 500,000 Reader Wi-Fi (or T1) devices in Europe since introducing it in September 2011. Sony are quite pleased with that number. According to some estimates the Kindle sales in Europe are not much higher.

Sony announced a price cut on their Reader Wi-Fi e-reader: $129.99 down from $149.99. They also offer a $50 off the price if you trade in your old e-reader. 

The Reader Wi-Fi (or PRS-T1) has a 6" 600 x 800 E Ink Pearl display with a Clear Touch Infrared technology (supporting multitouch and a stylus). Other feaures include 1.3GB of internal storage and a microSD slot and Wi-Fi. It supports ePub books and contains library lending software.