Sony is introducing a second electronic book reader to its range in the U.S. that comes with upgraded hardware and will go on sale in November. The PRS-700 features a similar 6-inch electronic paper display to that used in the PRS-505 that"s currently on sale but added to the screen in the new model is a touch panel and a reading light. The touch panel means users will be able to turn pages on-screen and also search through e-books by using an on-screen keyboard and highlight passages using a stylus. The light will aid reading in dark environments.
Like the current model, the PRS-700 can store about 350 e-books in its internal memory and more can be kept in Memory Stick or SD Card media. Sony says the battery supports up to 7,500 pages of continuous reading. It"s compatible with e-book formats including Sony"s BBeB (Broadband electronic book), Microsoft Word documents, Adobe PDF and the International Digital Publishing Forum"s XML-based EPUB format.