'TechnoEsq has both a Sony e-Reader (our second post to the blog) and an Amazon Kindle (for testing purposes only of course). The problem with the Kindle is its small screen size makes it impossible to read depositions or medical records with any clarity. Even given this drawback, most of our time is spent using the Kindle, given it’s ability to download books directly from Amazon.com as well as have PDF’s sent to the device without the need to plug in to a computer. Thus all of those treatises and legal resources you have in your office can be downloaded to the Kindle as long as they are available in PDF format. This is the main drawback of the Sony e-Reader, which actually has a more pleasant design than the Kindle, but requires the user to convert files to format readable by the eReader. The Kindle’s superiority may take a back seat to a new contender on the e-ink scene, the reader recently debuted at the DEMOfall 2008 conference by Plastic Logic has all the makings of THE e-Reader for law firms.
The device, weighing only 13 ounces and 3/8 of an inch thick, like the Kindle, can store thousands of documents in its internal memory and features the exceptional readability of e-ink. E-ink displays text on a piece of plastic without the need for backlighting, such as on a computer screen, thus the image is viewable form any angle and any ambient brightness while having the appearance of newspaper ink. Where Plastic Logic has surpassed the Kindle is in giving users the ability to add notes, sketches, and annotations to PDF’s, text documents (including Word) as well as spreadsheets all on it’s gargantuan 8.5 x 11 inch screen. This is obviously the holy grail for e-ink to break through into the business market, which is exactly what Plastic Logic has its sights on.
This technology will make it possible to store an entire case’s pleadings, medical records, depositions and correspondence on one legal-pad sized device which will allow you to search through all of those documents for exactly what you want. Once you’ve found the document you want, you can then annotate it, making notes for yourself or staff, or even potentially add text to a document. Â Conversely, a number of attorneys could send documents, medical records, or even presentations to other attorneys in the room wirelessly to other readers, eliminating the need for projectors or photocopies.
As Michael V. Copeland stated on his blog, Techland, about this new e-reader, “[if you are at all curious about the Kindle you should check it out. But it may have more appeal in the office than on the beach – you can see lawyers and information workers using the displays instead of carting around reams of documents.”
We couldn’t have said it better.