Electronic "ink"?

So most of us have heard about the Kindle. If you haven't check this out. It is a wireless reader device, as the website says, that lets you read books, magazines and newspapers on the six inch screen. It claims to use an electronic paper technology that 'eliminates the eyestrain' of reading on a computer. Great stuff, huh?

According to an article in Fortune Magazine, the Hearst Corporation plans to release it's own electronic reader in hopes that "it can do for periodicals what Amazon's Kindle is doing for books."

Wait a minute...does this mean we are going to eliminate not only newspapers in their original form, but magazines as well? According to this article, magazine publishers are looking for a way to bridge the gap between the declining print revenue and the online revenue. These e-readers would lower costs for publishers, and eliminate all the waste created by printing on paper. The costs of putting out a periodical might be reduced by up to 50% by switching publication to the new e-reader.

I have to say that as much as I like saving the environment, there is something about flipping through the pages of your favorite magazine that just wouldn't be the same on a screen. On the bright side, this device is rumored to be about the size of a standard sheet of paper. According to the article, "the larger screen better approximates the reading experience of print periodicals, as well as giving advertisers the space and attention they require."

It sounds like the experience will be close to the same, but it will allow you to use wireless technology to download participating newspapers and magazines in seconds. The new e-reader is believed to debut in black and white and then move to color as the technologies develop. There is no price speculated for this device yet. Hearst plans to sell the e-readers to the publishers and make money from selling magazines and newspapers on the gadget. They are leaving the branding and payment models up to the publishing companies to decide.

Overall, it's a pretty intriguing idea. It would be very convenient to have magazines and newspapers available at my fingertips fast and practically weightless.