China's equivalent of the Kindle offers similar bells and whistles, but has extra features that make it an ideal tool for language learners, reviews Raymond Zhou

I have seen the future of books, and it's called Hanvon. Mind you, I did not say "the future of reading". There is a subtle difference.

Before I was introduced to the Hanvon e-book, I was resistant: "I already have my mobile phone, which doubles as a reading device. What's the point of having a bulky alternative?"

The difference lies in e-Ink, the MIT-developed technology that is also at the heart of Amazon's Kindle. For those who have not been exposed to this kind of e-book, we tend to think of it as just another gadget with an enlarged screen. No, the screen size is not half of the attraction. It's the display on the screen that sets it apart.

When you open Hanvon, each page is "imprinted" on the screen, rather than just projected. It is like the drawing and writing tablet that children use - which leaves an indelible mark until you swipe with the eraser knob. Power is used only when you turn the page, and a lab test by Hanvon shows each charge can yield 7,000 page turns. Under normal circumstances you can read for two weeks with each charge.

On a regular gadget, such as my cell phone, the screen dims after a few seconds - to save power - so I have to cultivate speed-reading or constantly press a button to keep it lit. Back lighting is the key to your mobile phone. It strains your eyes. The only benefit is, you can read under a blanket, which, come to think about it, is what puts glasses on so many teenagers' eyes.

My conclusion? Your mobile phone or MP4 is perfect for information in a capsule - your daily diet of jokes and tips and newspaper digests. But for serious readers of books and periodicals, an e-book like the Hanvon offers a pleasant reading - not browsing - experience that is rivaled only by the real thing, a book.

I'll spare you the full rundown of benefits of the e-book versus the paper book. If you already use a computer, you know everything, including the text-to-voice technology.

This is a capability enabled by a third-party software program. I never thought a machine could read aloud like a human. So, when I tried it on the Hanvon F21, I was pleasantly surprised. It did not sound anything like Hal the computer in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. It was quite listenable. But there's a catch: There are three language settings - Mandarin, Cantonese and English. You can choose a male or female voice for reading.

But even if everything is set right, there is little chance you'll be all ears from start to finish. After a couple of pages, it sounds a little monotonous, without the emotion inflections. To counteract that feeling, Hanvon has preloaded many audio books that are read by qualified actors. The large collection of Tang (AD 618-907), Song (AD 960-1279) and Yuan (1279-1368) poems is a real delight.

Hanvon goes out of its way to make sure intellectual property rights are respected. It has licensed many books, and is in talks with publishers to get a deal similar to Amazon. It offers many classics - both Chinese and English - that are in the public domain, and is catching up with contemporary works that are on the best-selling list. As much as 60 percent of its titles are books published in the past two years, and some, like the recent Confucius, were simultaneously launched in print and Hanvon editions.

My F21 came preloaded with hundreds of titles, some of which I will never find a use for. A registered customer can download more titles from Hanvon's websites and some titles are available for 2 yuan ($30 cents).

A Hanvon spokesman said e-books like theirs are not supposed to replace all paper books, but they would be the mainstream approach to reading in the future. Printed books, on the other hand, will become a niche product and used, for example, as expensive gifts.

Right now, as I see it, a Hanvon e-book is a great gift idea. If you are a Chinese learning English, or better yet, an expat learning Chinese, this could be a great tool. Load as many materials as you like, have the book read it out to you, repeat as many times as you want, check the embedded four dictionaries and encyclopedia, and move up the learning curve by testing what books fit your language proficiency.