The "Words Gear" is a new portable book reader/media player from Panasonic sporting a 5.6" display with a resolution of 1024 x 600. The "E Sensor" that sits next to the screen is a touch-sensitive control device shaped like the letter E, allowing you to control the device's functions with one finger.

The Words Gear can handle audio, video, still images, and electronic books stored on cards inserted in its SD card slot. It supports "SD-ePublish," which supports CPRM, for copyright protected content. The battery life is about 6 hours.

Slated to launch in tandem with the new device is a new company jointly established by Panasonic, Kadokawa Mobile, and Tokyo Broadcasting, dubbed the "Words Gear Corporation." The company will be handling the production and distribution of content for the device, primarily via saidoku.com, whose "image character" is none other than Kaori Manabe. Hubba hubba.



Inspired by:
http://pc.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/2006/0926/pana.htm

Press Release 1:
http://panasonic.co.jp/corp/news/official.data/data.dir/jn060926-1/jn060926-1.html

Press Release 2:
http://panasonic.co.jp/corp/news/official.data/data.dir/jn060926-2/jn060926-2.html

Finally, there were no less than three "Lumix" digital still cameras announced by Panasonic today: the LS2, TZ1, and FX01.

Panasonic has announced a new portable projector with an SD card slot, making it the smallest and lightest such projector in the world.

Panasonic's new "DVD-LX97" portable DVD player is the first in Japan (and thus the world) with support for "One-Seg" terrestrial digital broadcasts.

Panasonic's new batteries have 20% longer life, and can operate in colder temperatures. This can mean o­nly o­ne thing: put them in a plane.

One of the primary advantages Blu-ray has versus HD DVD is the fact that the discs support multiple layers. Sony said they're working on discs with as many as 8 layers, bringing the total capacity to 200GB. Nice.

But before we get there, we need to dual and quadruple layer discs first. Panasonic has announced they've begun initial production of the former, and they'll be shipping out sample units before the end of the year. They already have an English press release available, so go ahead and take a look if you're interested.

We're getting awfully close to switching from DVD to either Blu-ray or HD DVD. Are you ready? Apparently Panasonic is; they'll be shipping Blu-ray drives for your PC as early as January of next year.

That portable SD card copier we talked about a while back? It was officially announced by Panasonic today. It will be released on October 21st, and Impress Watch estimates it will cost around 4,000 yen. The official name is "SD Pocket Copy." Otherwise, everything seems to be the same from when we first looked at it. Here's the official Panasonic press release, and the DC Watch article if you're just clamoring for more information.

How often have you found yourself with two SD cards, wanting to make a copy of what is o­n o­ne card, but not had a PC in sight? Never? Oh, well me too.

But I take it some of you out there will appreciate a new product Matsushita demoed at their recent LUMIX announcement event. Take two SD cards, plug them into the device, and whammo, the contents are copied from o­ne card to the other.

The KX-PX100 from Panasonic is a small photo printer that features an SD slot in order to print pictures immediately after taking them with your camera. It measures a mere 210 x 279 x 100mm, and supports standard photo paper sizes.