The RCA REB1100 and RCA REB1200 readers — each built around a separate e-book hardware architecture — will include a built-in modem that can access a central e-book server with titles from more than 70 publishers.

The readers are the first e-book devices developed by Thomson Multimedia (Paris), a consumer electronics manufacturer, under a March agreement with Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc. (Pasadena, Calif). Gemstar gained rights to e-book hardware and software technology when it acquired Softbook Press Inc. and Nuvomedia Inc. in January. The RCA REB1100 is based on Nuvomedia's Rocket e-book architecture, and the larger RCA REB1200 is based on the Softbook Reader platform.

Thomson said the RCA e-books offer improvements in size, weight, storage and display technology over early ee-book entries. They are some 20 percent lighter than the original incarnations introduced by Nuvomedia and Softbook in 1998, for example.

Both new readers possess built-in 56-kbit modems and offer 8 Mbytes of flash memory storage in base configurations, said a Thomson spokesman.

The 17-ounce RCA REB1100 is built around the ARM-based Maverick 74-MHz EP7212 processor from Cirrus Logic (Austin, Texas), and takes advantage of that chip's low power consumption, three modes of operation (off, slow, fast), and built-in LCD controller. Thomson said it also leveraged the chip's ability to play back Internet audio to run a 56k soft modem in the device.

"The RCA folks have been the first ones to fully exploit the EP7212's capabilities," said Matthew Perry, vice president and general manager of Cirrus Logic's embedded processor division. The Cirrus chip is also being used in an S3/Diamond Rio Internet audio jukebox and other Internet appliances.

The REB1100 has a 5.5-inch, black-and-white, backlit, touch-screen display that will provide 40 hours of continuous use, Thomson said. Consumers can upgrade memory with a 64-Mbyte SmartMedia memory card. The reader can also be connected to a computer through a USB port or an infrared link.

Less is known about the REB1200, which is being billed as a larger, more feature-rich e-book reader with a backlit color display reportedly offering 12 times the screen resolution of a handheld computer. The REB1200 has an Ethernet connection in addition to the modem and 8 Mbytes of storage capacity that can be supplemented with Compact Flash memory cards.

E-book titles for both devices will be provided to the Gemstar central e-book server via agreements with book and magazine publishers. In the future, Thomson plans to offer catalogs on its e-book devices. Consumers will then be able to browse the catalogs off-line, then place orders through the modem.

While most book publishers hesitate to make their best sellers available for download on the Internet due to concerns over piracy, Gemstar said its closed, proprietary hardware design calmed publishers' fears. A Gemstar spokesman explained that a file in the firmware that sits on the processor in RCA's REB1200 reader prevents a hacker program or any other file from being loaded onto the device. Thomson did not make clear how security is provided in the REB1100, saying it plans to reveal the features next month at the New York book fair, scheduled for Sept. 24.

Thomson Multimedia is developing RCA e-book readers for 2001 that will incorporate color displays, scheduling and calendar features, address information and other functions. Jay Johnson, Cirrus Logic's director of marketing, said the chip maker is already working with Thomson on next-generation designs.

Some analysts believe consumer electronics manufacturers like Thomson will eventually combine e-books and digital audio players into one device because of their similar feature sets and design constraints. But a Thomson spokesman said the company sees the two markets as "very different" and won't be introducing a combo device this year.

"The digital audio player market is being driven by young people in college who have high-speed Internet connections and PCs, while we see the e-book market as taking off with older consumers who are avid readers and who don't necessarily own a PC," he said.

Eventually crossover will occur between the two product segments, but that isn't happening yet, the spokesman said.