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We caught the LumiRead set up and ready for some serious page-turning action as Acer set up its booth at IFA today (yes, it's true, the show still hasn't technically started), which marks the first time we've actually been able to hold the upcoming e-reader -- previously, the closest we'd gotten was the impersonal touch of a glass enclosure back at Computex. The verdict? After havin... g touched one of those newfangled Kindles, we've got to say that pretty much every other e-reader out there feels like a ridiculously overweight beast, and the LumiRead gets swept up into that classification. The barcode scanner is still there (you can see it in our gallery below) and it's still as awesome of a concept as ever, but Acer has replaced the smooth plastic back with a ridged, patterned one on this newer prototype -- and considering that the launch is scheduled for October, we imagine this is nearly final or final spec. The thumbstick feels decent, but we don't really think it's the best way to navigate... which is a lesson Amazon already learned with the last version of the Kindle, by the bye. So here's your recipe for success, Acer: soft-touch back, cut the thickness by a third, eliminate the wasted space above the keyboard, and keep the barcode reader. Boom.

Acer LumiRead makes pit stop at IFA prior to launch originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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