Sharp Rolling Out Two Android Tablets December 2010

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Published on Monday, 27 September 2010 15:00

Sharp is getting into the tablet arms race with its Darwinian Galapagos devices, a combination of tablet and ebook reader, supported by Galapagos cloud-based ebook store that will launch in Japan this year.

It will be supported by two Galapagos tablets, which have been designed specifically as ebook readers but will also include a browser and built-in social-network software for sharing notes and lists based around reading.

Whether is will be integrated in any way with Sharp TVs is yet to be heard. and there's no word yet about 3G connectivity at this point. Sharp is promising 30,000 newspapers and periodicals available on release, which is supposed to be this December in Japan.

This new e-bookstore provides an “Automatic Scheduled Delivery Service”(fee-based service) for periodical publications. The most recent editions of newspapers and magazines a user has subscribed to can be delivered and read by the user’s e-book readers. In addition, free trial versions of recommended e-book content can also be delivered to the e-book reader, letting users immediately purchase content of their favor.

Two models of the e-book readers have been developed—a mobile type featuring a 5.5-inch LCD screen that reads like a paperback book, and a home type featuring a 10.8-inch high-resolution HD LCD that allows users to enjoy magazines formatted across a two-page spread.

Sharp will continue to provide for evolving e-book lifestyles by further enriching the content available through the service, and by expanding the functions of compatible terminal devices.