Sony Reader gets touchy with Pocket and Touch editions

Sony has opened the book on two new models in its range of ebook reader devices, the Reader Pocket Edition and the Reader Touch Edition, including support for SD cards and for your fingers.

The Pocket Edition has a 127mm (5-inch) screen. Sony reckons you can get around 350 books on there, and it'll go for two weeks of reading between charges.

The Reader Touch Edition, pictured above, boasts a 152mm (6-inch) display with a touchscreen strip along the bottom. Yes, an e-ink touchscreen: fancy. You'll be able to turn pages, highlight sections and make notes with the swipe of a finger or by using the bundled stylus. You can also tap on a word for a definition from the built-in Oxford English Dictionary. How efficacious.

Both Readers use Memory Stick PRO Duo storage -- boo! -- and also support SD cards -- hurray! They're also Windows- and Mac-compatible and support PDFs and Word files.

Although there are a bunch of ereaders available in the UK, the Sony Reader range remains the biggest name. Until the Amazon Kindle drops at Christmas and blows them all out of the water, that is. In the States, Sony is launching a mouthwatering wireless 178mm (7-inch) Reader, but we aren't getting that. Pah. Maybe Sony is holding it back to compete with the Kindle.

We're heading for an exclusive launch event at the British Library tomorrow, so we'll bring you our first impressions of how good that touchscreen really is, and hopefully some decent pictures. In the meantime, check out our quick gallery of first shots for more details and the prices.