Openmoko Launches Portable Wikipedia Device Called WikiReader
Posted on October 13, 2009
Openmoko has launched WikiReader, a palm-sized electronic encyclopedia containing over three million Wikipedia articles. The articles on WikiReader can be accessed anytime without an Internet connection. WikiReader contains a large monochrome screen with a touch interface.
Articles can scrolled with a finger and hyperlinks can be selected with a tap. Three buttons, Search, History and Random, allow users to access the Wikipedia articles contained on the device. WikiReader runs on two AAA batteries.
WikiReader is available for $99 at thewikireader.com. Updates for the WikiReader are provided quarterly and available for free download. A yearly subscription plan for updated microSD cards is also available for $29.
Erik Moeller, deputy director of the Wikimedia Foundation, said, "We've played with WikiReader, and it's a lot of fun to see the entirety of the English Wikipedia text in a self-contained little box that doesn't require Internet access. It could also be one viable approach to share the world's most comprehensive encyclopedia with people who aren't connected. We will watch the continuing development of this device with great interest, as it's fully in the spirit of what Wikipedia is all about: empowering people."