PocketBook US started shipping orders for the PocketBook IQ Android tablet and PocketBook 602 ebook reader yesterday, while the 9.7-inch PB 902 is still on pre-order and is expected to ship by the end of November.
The 3G wireless/touchscreen models, the PocketBook 603 and 903, still haven’t been priced or made available for the US market for pre-order yet so it’s safe to assume they won’t be arriving until the middle to end of December.
I just finished creating new review pages for all 5 of the upcoming new devices that can be found via the main PocketBook page. There you can find the specs and watch videos of each of the new PocketBooks. Keep in mind that I will be updating all 5 of those pages with hands-on reviews and videos after the devices arrive, right now the pages are pretty bare.
If everything goes to plan, the reviews for the PocketBook IQ and 602 should be mostly finished (at least the videos) by this time next week since both will be arriving in a couple of days.
In the meantime, here’s a couple of unboxing photos of the IQ and 602 that the folks from PocketBook US posted on the MobileRead forums yesterday. Click them for large. You can visit these two posts for more unboxing photos, but these ones are the best.
The last bit of news, it looks like PocketBook is really starting to increase focus on the US market. They just opened their first US store this month in Kansas City at the Independence Center Mall, the first of 20 retail locations PocketBook plans to open across the US next year. They’ve also started getting their brand of ebook readers into a lot more online stores recently, showing up on websites like Walmart, Buy.com, and of course the major websites like Amazon and eBay.
PocketBook isn’t a brand of ebook reader that’s very well know here in the US, but with the launch of these 5 new ereaders and added retail presence that could change really quickly, especially considering the fact PocketBook is rumored to be partnered with Mirasol to develop color ereaders in 2011.
If your review is good I think I am going to buy the PocketBook IQ 701 and take back the Sylvania 7″ tablet I have on order. The Sylvania apparently doesn’t have a G-sensor which I think is probably an important feature for ebook reading.
Of course someone actually needs to start selling it. And I won’t order it from them directly since I don’t like the fact their online order site has the device listed with a cpu of 533mhz
P.s.
Where did you get the information on the fact this device is unlocked and that they may upgrade it to 2.2?
This thread at MobileRead. Mtravellerh works for Pocketbook and reveals a lot of good details about the IQ throughout that post.
That was an interesting thread. It sounds as if they are saying that while it has a 800mhz cpu for intensive processes such as playing videos, it runs at 533mhz when used for eBook reading.With the objective being to save power.
Another interesting thing mentioned was the fact it has a metal case. Some specs I read at Dulin’s Books have it listed at 516 grams(1.13758527 pounds). That seems heavy even for a 7 inch device in my opinion.
Compare that with the listed specs for the Sony 950 at 273 grams.
Yeah I noticed on the picture of the box it says 516 grams. That’s about the same weight as the PocketBook 902. I also noticed the picture confirmed 800MHz.
And for comparision, I noticed the specs for that new 7″ Samsung Galaxy Tablet has it at .81 pounds and the Pandigital Novel 7″ is at .735 pounds.
Well, I guess you have the Pandigital Novel at 1 pound. I pulled my number from Best Buy.
Best Buy sells the black one and it is slightly different. Worse I hear.
Nathan,
What do you make of these statements from Google about Android 2.2?
“Android not optimised for tablets” says Google
http://www.android-tablet.org/android/android-not-optimised-for-tablets-says-google/
If true, what are the implications regarding the IQ? Also, is there any possibility that this is why the NookColor doesn’t support the Android market?
It’s because Android was designed for phones. Most tablets aren’t equipped to properly handle Android 2.2’s full requirements like having two cameras, specific hardware buttons, etc.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab is currently the only tablet running Android 2.2 and so far the reviews for it have been overwhelmingly positive.
The article says that Google is working on a making a tablet-specific version of Android which will be great for tablets like the IQ that will be able to upgrade to that newer version of Android.
As for the Nook Color, that’s no surprise there. B&N wants to force everyone to buy ebooks from them; they’re not going to allow access to Amazon’s and everyone else’s reading apps. I bet hackers find a way to get Android Market apps onto it in less than a week after its release, however.
The way I read the article is that Google is saying that even 2.2 is not good enough for tablets if the goal is to compete against the iPad. I don’t know what they mean by this but, reading between the lines, I’m guessing that the screen resolution the apps run in will not be a pleasing experience.
I don’t think that it is necessary for 7″ tablets to compete fully with the iPad. Historically, Apple has settled for the high-margin end of the market whereas most of the world is content using devices from the complementary segment. Count me in the latter group. My guess is that things will shake out in tablets much the same way that they did in the past on other platforms.
The big question for me is how much do I give up tomorrow by being an early adopter today. There is the potential for rapid evolution over the next 12 months. Maybe I don’t want to wait that long, but maybe 4 months.
Count me into the latter group too :). I don’t want to wait that long either, though. But at least 2.2 will offer Flash support. The resolution of the apps is a good point. They’re going to have to start making them in tablet form too like they did with the iPad.
Here’s a good article on this iPad vs tablets topic that I just stumbled upon: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/82132/20101115/tablet-wars-can-rivals-unseat-the-ipad.htm
I wanted to mention that noticed on a review of the Pandigital Novel by Tipstir at his Android forum that the processor was listed as the Samsung 800mhz for it as well.
And considering that Pandigital is now unlocking their device (my words) as indicated on their site http://www.pandigital.net/android. it does make one think there are many similarities between these two devices.
Sweet. I had no idea Pandigital was doing that. I just ran a search and I guess it’s been out for awhile—how did I miss that?
Oh, and if you pull the trigger on the Archos let us know how it turns out.