Blio reader ready for PCs, Android and iPad soon

Blio today set down a launch schedule for its upcoming e-reader app for both the desktop and mobile. It now plans to post the Windows version of Blio on September 28 and to follow up with Android and iOS versions shortly afterwards. Mac, Linux, Symbian and other versions are expected in the future.

The company has also struck a deal with book distributor Baker & Taylor to get a large volume of books on its store. Its lineup will include all six major publishers (Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin, Random House and Simon & Schuster) as well as independent and niche publishers such as Wiley, Workman and Zondervan. Some of these aren't available on any e-paper based readers, Blio said.

Much of the advantage of Blio's format, as well as its reasons for the deal, center on its preservation of a book layout. The design was intended to recreate the complex diagrams and images of print but retain digital features like highlights, searching and text-to-speech. Books sync across platforms and will keep their positions; the app recognizes mostly its native XPS format but will also read simpler ePub books.

By Electronista Staff

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