Remember the Magic Slate? Primarily a children’s toy, it employed a special stylus for writing on a sheet of plastic; a wax sheet below the plastic adhered to the surface, making marks visible. The magic part was when the plastic sheet was lifted, the wax backing moved away and voila! The sheet was empty again.
Now, Kent Displays has come up with an electronic version, the Boogie Board, for $35. Users can write on the slate’s black LCD surface, and green markings appear on the screen. To erase, just push a button.
The 8.8-by-5.6-inch display is about the size of an Amazon Kindle. The company says its product is a green alternative to paper scratch pads and note boards. The tablet can be hung on a wall or the fridge with a set of $2.50 magnets, sold separately.
The non-replaceable battery should last up to six years, with the screen being erased 20 times a day, the company says.
The writing is not so easy to view in dim light. Still, the retailer Brookstone apparently thinks the Boogie Board will catch on. According to a spokesman, the company has ordered 110,000.
