CES 2009: The ASTAK EZ Reader
by Jaymi Heimbuch, San Francisco, California 
on 01.12.09
We've talked about the ASTEK EZ e-readers before, and I had a chance to play with their devices for awhile at their booth. Turns out, the readers are pretty darn cool.
While a debate still swirls around e-readers on whether or not they're greener than books, I have to say that this is one gadget that seems like it goes far to green up the paper scene.
Portability and Readability
First off, it's surprisingly light. It is very thin, and feels nearly weightless. About the dimensions of a paperback, it's easy to toss into a purse or briefcase. The display uses e-ink technology and I was pleased at how easy to read it is. However, the pages did load slowly, and each page is really only about half the words of what an actual book page would hold, so you're flipping fairly often. That deters from the reading experience.
Probably Shouldn't Drop It
When speaking with the representatives at the booth, I was told that a single full charge will let you read 8,000 pages. And supposedly it's difficult to damage it. The representative said you can drop it without harming it, but when I went to place it back on the holder, the attendant also took hold of it to gently place it on the stand...he clearly didn't want me experimenting with it's drop-ability.
So, while it's definitely greener to head to the library for books, it could be much more green to get an e-reader like this and buy digital versions of new books rather than printed versions. Also, you can upload documents to it to help cut way back on your printing needs. Plus, it travels much more easily than a stack of paperbacks. It's priced starting at $299. Oh, and I was told they'll be coming out with a touch screen version soon.
More on CES 2009:
CES 2009: Horizon Renewable Energy Science Kits
Ultralast Batteries: "Does This Packaging Make My Green Look Washed?"
CES 2009: Toxic TV Zombies Invade Las Vegas
CES 2009: Fuji Rolls Out Greenwashed EnviroMAX Batteries
CES 2009: Super Bright Solar-Powered LED Security Light
CES 2009: Schwinn's Tailwind Bike Uses Exclusive Toshiba Battery Tech (Video)
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The "debate" isn't swirling around that much anymore... it's pretty much settled down, and reveals that e-book readers are more ecologically sound than printed books. Visit Read an E-Book Week 2009 to get the latest detail.
Beyond the new readers, e-books can also be read on devices you probably already have, like PDAs, cellphones and blackberries (not to mention your PC or laptop), meaning no new manufacturing is needed to read your e-books. And when a single reader can carry hundreds, even thousands of books... how can paper manufacturing beat that?
I'm still looking forward to the day that my entire collection of books and magazines (hundreds of pounds of paper, not counting the shelves holding them) are all stored in a single device, at my side at all times.
The eeePC makes a fine reader, and is also a fine computer, for about the same price.
Thousands of texts are available on Guteberg.org.
It would be great if publishers would sell their copyright-protected books to the public in ordinary text format. Many do sell books in e-format, but they often require dedicated software or expensive readers, like the Kindle.