E Ink shows foldable e-reader prototype that also supports pen input

E Ink display technology has found its way into devices like the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite because it offers excellent readability in bright spaces and offers substantially longer battery life than regular LCD or OLED displays. In fact, for some e-reading fans, they wouldn’t buy an e-reader without E Ink technology. The next frontier for the company is foldable display technology which would help to make an e-reader feel much more like a regular book.

The folks at GoodEReader have been given a hands-on with the second-generation E Ink foldable display prototype. The new device sports a 10.3-inch flexible ePaper display and also sports support for stylus input. Not only can you take notes with the stylus, it can also be used to highlight text. As it doesn’t sport a backlight, the top of the display also hides a couple of LED light strips that can be folded into position to light up the panel.

E Ink doesn’t manufacture e-readers itself, so the prototype exists to showcase the technology to OEMs who might go on to build a device with the technology. Devices with foldable display technology are still relatively expensive, but it does seem inevitable that they will become mainstream one day. If E Ink has its way, this will include e-readers, which frankly, could do with a little more innovation to make the niche more appealing.