Sharp preps 6-in. notepad with 60-hour battery life

IDG News Service - Sharp is readying a 6-in. digital notepad with 60 hours of battery life under continuous use.

The monochrome "Digital Note" features a pen-shaped stylus and has enough storage for 1,000 pages of hand-written notes. It syncs with a computer using a microUSB connector, and has a low-power LCD touch screen.

While the device can be used to scribble notes on a blank screen, Sharp will also release a series of background templates for download in the future. Concepts for the templates include simple designs like lined notepaper, as well as resume forms and tables for entering figures, so the notepad could also be marketed to companies and storefronts for basic data entry.

Sharp is aiming to sell the notepad more as digital stationary than as a scaled-down tablet. Simple digital devices for taking notes are a growing category, with foreign competitors like the black-screened Boogie Board already selling in Japan. The Boogie Board has a 9.5-in. version that can run about 40 hours on a single charge and costs $180 in Japan.

The company said it has no plans to sell the device outside of Japan.

It will still compete with cheaper tablets like Amazon's basic Kindle Fire.

Sharp has tried to position its effort as part personal organizer. Users can search for entries by flipping through a calendar, or organize notes into different notepads. Notes drawn onto the device are saved and transferred as 600x700 bitmap images, with 16 colors of grayscale.

The Digital Note weighs 210 grams, or 315 grams with its case and stylus. It measures 11.1cm wide, 15.5cm tall, and 9.9mm thick.