Sony’s new PRS-T2 ebook reader focuses on sharing, speed

Sony’s ebook readers haven’t made much of a dent in the US, as the Reader has been overshadowed by the Kindles and Nooks of the world — though reps said the devices have been far more successful elsewhere. Still, the company marches on undaunted, and has just announced the PRS-T2, the latest model in its lineup. The Wi-Fi-enabled device is largely unchanged from last year’s model, with a six-inch E Ink display inside by a white, red, or black body. It’s remarkably thin and light, weighing less than six ounces, and its buttons have been redesigned slightly; rather than icons above clickable buttons, the icons themselves are just clickable now.

There are a number of software tweaks designed to make everything faster and smoother, from page turns to zooming, but easily the most exciting new feature is the PRS-T2’s sharing capability. You can connect Evernote to your Reader, and share content back and forth: save an article with Evernote Clearly and it’ll show up on your Reader, and if you annotate a passage it gets synced to Evernote. That’s a feature we’ve wanted from the Kindle for a long time, and it should win over a few Evernote diehards all by itself. There’s also a new Facebook sharing feature that lets you share what you’re reading.

The Reader PRS-T2 is available now for $129. Steep prices continue to be Sony’s biggest obstacle, and now that we’re heading into the season of Kindle and Nook updates, the new model might be a tough sell. Unless you really love Evernote, anyway.