| E-paper terminals run Windows CE 5.0 |
Apr. 23, 2007
 Fujitsu Frontech Ltd. on April 20 announced a pair of portable information terminals based on electronic paper ("e-paper") and running Windows CE as their embedded software platforms. The FLEPia terminals come in two sizes, utilize full-color electronic paper, and can store a full year's newspaper subscription, according to the company.
Both terminals provide XGA resolution (768 x 1024 pixels) e-paper display screens that selectably support either eight or 4096 colors. A built-in SD card slot accommodates flash memory cards of up to 4GB capacity, on which, the company claims, the terminals can store up to a full year's newspaper subscription, two years of a weekly comic, or 5,000 300-page books.
Fujitsu's FLEPia A4 (left) and A5 (right) e-paper terminals
According to Fujitsu, the terminals are light weight, feature easy operation by means of a touch screen overlay, and provide built-in 802.11b/g WiFi wireless communications for ease of transfer of data into the devices. Additionally, thanks to the low power consumption of the e-paper displays, the terminals can operate continuously for up to 50 hours on a single recharge of their internal lithium polymer batteries.
Other key features and specs, as listed by Fujitsu, include: - Processor -- unspecified XScale chip
- DRAM -- unspecified
- SD card slot, supports up to 4GB memory cards
- USB 2.0 connector
- 128-bit AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) encryption
- Stereo speakers; headphone connector
- Dimensions/weight:
- A5 model -- 6.22 x 9.45 x 0.47 inches (158 x 240 x 12 mm) / 1.1 lbs (480 gm)
- A4 model -- 8.26 x 11.97 x 0.47 inches (210 x 304 x 12 mm) / 0.7 lbs (320gm)
Three body colors are available: white pearl, pink pearl, and silver.
On the software side, the devices run Windows CE 5.0 and include browser and email functionality, in addition to Fujitsu's custom FLEPia software, the company said.
Fujitsu's electronic paper
(Click image for details) | Fujitsu's proprietary e-paper
The e-paper terminals most likely utilize e-paper technology jointly developed by Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd., Fujitsu Frontech Limited, and Fujitsu Limited, and showcased in mid-2005 at the Tokyo International Forum. At that time, Fujitsu said the thin, flexible paper was more vivid than an LCD, required only small amounts of electricity to update, and could be commercialized in 2007. The company claimed the technology to be the world's first film-substrate-based bendable color electronic paper with an image memory. Further details are available in an article on our sister site, DeviceForge.com, here.
Availability
Fujitsu is currently accepting orders for FLEPia terminal sample units. The sample units are priced at 150,000 Yen (about $1,260 USD) each in lots of 10, for the A5 model, and 250,000 Yen (about $2,100 USD) for the A4. The company expects production units to ship in October of 2007.
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