Gizmodo has coverage of a new reader from Sony based on technology licensed from eInk Corporation based up in Boston. Sony had launched an earlier version of this product, the Libre, in the Japanese market but it apparently never took off because of it’s restrictive DRM technology. Since I have to drive to work I’m no longer in the market for such a device but anyone that takes public transportation and finds themselves reading lots of printouts, a device like this could be a godsend.

While the device supports RSS, PDFs, JPEGs, and MP3 files (which, on the Sony site, they take pains to point out are unencrypted), it does not support WiFi and requires the separate purchase of a cradle which you hook up to your PC to transfer files.

I’ve always been a big fan of ambient displays of information as a non-intrusive way of keeping up with the river of information that flows through our lives. Screensavers and scrolling images are one method which shows promise and in our new broadband, always-on world. PointCast was popular because people liked the concept but it was killed by IT departments because it was a bandwidth hog when bandwidth was still scarce.

eStarling makes an LCD screen that, once programmed via its USB port, can update itself via Wi-Fi. It accepts images from email or a Flickr RSS feed. The memory holds up to 30 pictures that are cycled through until new photos replace the older ones.

Some uses:

• Give one to the grandparents and set up an email account for the device. Have the family email the lastest photos of the kids. You can configure trusted email accounts to keep photos of viagra bottles from making it into rotation.
• Search a tag or group you like on Flickr, (ie. clouds or squared circle) and have the photo frame subscribe to the latest images.

Available on ThinkGeek. Thanks to Niall for the pointer.

UPDATE: Niall points to a similar device that boasts a larger screen and can connect to other PCs on a home network.