Amazon may have announced its Kindle Paperwhite e-reader for the UK today, but the company will face competition from an unlikely source.
German manufacturer textr has announced the Beagle e-reader, which costs an astonishingly inexpensive 9.90 Euros (around £8) and will have 400,000 books available from its own store at launch.
However, with a £57 saving on the cheapest Kindle model, there are some serious caveats to consider, beyond its inability to match the Kindle 900,000 strong library.
The ultra-cheap, no-frills device only has a 5-inch, 800 x 600 screen, can only hold 5 books, has no rechargeable battery, no touchscreen and there's no sign Wi-Fi or 3G connectivity to download new titles.
Bluetooth connectivity
Instead owners will be required to load books onto the device using Bluetooth via the accompanying smartphone app for iPhone and Android and must also be pre-rendered using the app.
Reports suggest that textr may team up with mobile phone operators, who could offer the AAA-powered Beagle as free incentive when enticing users to sign up for new contracts.
Books purchased from textr's portal are similarly priced to the Kindle Store and the rival Sony Reader store when it comes to popular titles.
The Guardian reports that some of the less-high-flying can be a little more expensive, so there's that to consider when evaluating the potential savings on a Kindle model.
