Sony has released specs for its Portable Reader System PRS-500. According to Sony, the Reader features a screen with technology that rivals the readability of text on paper.

While Sony’s focus appears to be on selling electronic books, the system offers support for newsfeeds and even audio files, which could make it a potent device for reading news and blog sites and even listening to audio.

Sony Reader Info:

The Sony Reader features a 6 inch display, utilizing E Ink technology that’s almost paper-like. In addition, the text can be magnified for sight-impaired readers. Daylight readable, high contrast, high resolution, near 180º viewing angle.

The Sony weighs 9 ounces (without cover) and is ½” thick. It can turn up to 7,500 continuous pages on a single charge.

The Sony Reader has 64MB of internal memory, and a slot for optional removable memory cards. The Reader will hold up to 80 electronic books in internal memory and hundreds more with Memory Stick media or SD memory card.

The Sony Reader will allow you to search, browse and discover thousands of popular electronic book titles from the CONNECT eBook online store. These can be purchased and downloaded to your PC and transfered to the Sony Reader.

Using the included CONNECT Reader PC Software, you can also transfer Adobe PDF documents, BBeB Book, and other text file formats to the Reader. You can also download user-selected RSS Web content from the CONNECT Store to the PC and sync it to the Sony Reader.