In someways they are just too epensive to try and reproduce. With Amazon selling the low end eReaders for less than $100 USD, and very well designed overall, it's hard to make an entry at this point in time. Further, while I can and do read books that are free on my own Kindle eBook reader, many are DRM'ed. Any open source eBook reader would not likely support DRM on it's books. (Whether that's a technical issue, or political issue...)
There are a few things that could set an open source eReader apart;
- Speaker and or bluetooth support for audio books. (Both, if un-used won't take power.)
- Color eInk display for graphic novels / comic books, (it may be limited colors, and too expensive, a normal tablet would probably be better)
- Simple apps beyond eBook reading, like calculator, E-Mail or text messaging, (if you don't use them, they don't take power)
- MicroSDXC card slot
Yet every one of those things costs money.
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Arwen Evenstar
Princess of Rivendale