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By David Rothman

I’ve warned that the Sony Reader and rivals aren’t the be-alls and end-alls, and here’s yet another indication–the latest on Hewlett-Packard’s e-book efforts. From internetnews.com, via the eBookCommunity list:

HP also showed a prototype of an electronic book. So-called e-books have been out for years but the dedicated hardware devices never gained much of a following. The HP eBook looks like a small Etch-a-Sketch. Text can be displayed in one- or two-page format. The front edges of the frame act as a kind of navigation system. You can touch a panel to turn a page, or hold it down to flip a series of pages forward quickly.

Though it did not show it, HP said it was experimenting with electronic paper, a kind of flexible display that can fold. As for the business prospects for eBooks, Taub said hardware costs have come way down to make them more affordable. He also said HP didn’t want to be in the business of “selling boxes,” but planned to build a business based on recurring revenue by working with book publishers, much as Apple has worked with music publishers to supply content for its iPod.

Related: Earlier story on HP’s e-book efforts. Also here.

 
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