Features – Hardware and Software

At 8.1 inches, the screen display of the iRex DR 800SG is 2 inches wider than the Kindle 2 and the Nook. Even so, the actual iRex device is shorter than its rivals and only heavier by half an ounce. The secret lies on its streamlined, minimalist design; it is mostly screen with no physical keyboard and no extraneous spaces. To maneuver through menus or turn pages, there’s a flipbar unique to the DR 800SG and menu button on the left side of the device. You can also use the stylus to run on-screen tasks such as activating hyperlinks or searching your library. The DR 800SG measures 7.6″ tall x 5.9″ wide x 0.4″ thick only.
Its built-in ebook mall, along with support for open format, is one of the best things about the new iRex reader. You can easily browse and purchase from a comprehensive range of content sources directly from the device. Irex has teamed up with Barnes & Nobles, Libre Digital, and Newspaper Direct. B & N alone has over 750,000 titles. However, the periodicals and magazines on the e-bookstore are exclusive for the Nook only. For choice of broadsheet publication, people can go to Newspaper Direct. This digital network hosts more than 1400 magazines and newspapers from nearly 100 countries around the world.
The DR 800SG’s 3G connectivity is powered by Verizon Wireless Network. iRex picks the bill so eReader owners are not tied to contracts or monthly charges. iRex has also integrated the Gobi multi-mode 3G including Qualcomm’s mobile broadband technology, which provides the device’s global 3G access. 
You can store around 1500 books and images in the DR 800SG’s 2G storage.

The Bottom Line

The iRex DR 800SG will arrive in selected Best Buy stores in October this year with a $399 price tag. Despite some missing features, the iRex DR 800SG is an exciting proposition for people who value great reading experience.

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Features – Hardware and Software

The Digital Reader 1000s’ high resolution makes reading a comfort. Users not only get to enjoy having a large screen to read on, but also have the convenience of being able to in a wide range of lighting conditions. An additional fun and functional feature allows the user to scribble notes and doodle on the touch screen with a stylus. Reflow capability automatically adjusts any content into the size of the screen display. And with 10.2 inch-wide screen display, the IREX reader makes any document look seamless.
The device has no internal storage, with all files being kept on an SD card. A 1GB SD card is bundled with purchase, which is enough for about a thousand documents or 400 images. One full charge gives you a battery life of about 12 hours, with a charging time of about 5 hours via a USB port.

The Bottom Line!

The IREX Digital Reader is a great device for its intended purpose of document management in a fully electronic office. Users who demand greater stamina, mobility and more features in their electronic readers may need to look elsewhere. Otherwise, the large 10.2 touch screen is a novel and very handy feature to have.

The iRex iLiad is certainly not on the tip of everyone’s tongue as a choice in the electronic reader category, but it sure has its fans and followers. With a huge 8.1 inch screen, the iLiad is not just a reader, but a writer as well. While its $699 price puts it in the top price range of electronic readers, does this product live up to its price tag?

Features The iLiad offers just half the storage of the Sony electronic readers at just 256MB. While it does offer expandable storage, there have been some reported quirks in using SD cards, so a multimedia card is recommended. What the iLiad does have more of is screen size. Offering over 8 inches of display, the iLiad is the first electronic reader to offer 16 grey scale and 768×1024 screen resolution, making it the clearest, easiest to read screen in the genre.
 

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The Bottom Line While the price tag may be a deterrent for this product for personal use, the size and clarity of the screen make the iLiad much more than an eBook reader. With the notepad capabilities, many business users may find this to be just what they need for text markups, notes, annotations, oh, and the occasional Sudoko game.