Planet Gadgets Gadget Blog

Polymer Vision’s “Readius”

by Darren

How many gadgets these days are truly revolutionary? It’s safe to say that Polymer Vision’s “Readius” fits the bill.

Polymer Vision, spun out of Philips (PHG.AS: Quote, Profile, Research), whetted the appetite of gadget fans more than two years ago when it showed off a prototype. Now the gadget is in production and will go head-to-head with Apple’s (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) iPhone and Amazon’s (AMZN.O: Quote, Profile, Research) ebook reader Kindle when it hits stores mid-2008.

“You get the large display of e-reading, the super battery life of e-reading, and the high-end connectivity … and the form factor and weight of a mobile phone,” said Karl McGoldrick, chief executive of the venture capital-funded firm, in which Philips still has a 25 percent stake.

“We are taking e-reading and bringing it to the mobile phone.”

The price hasn’t been announced yet, but the device is thought to be in the same price range as a “high-end” phone.