Plastic Logic has released details of a capacitive touch e-reader with a 10.7in. plastic-substrate E Ink display.
The firm, which specialises in organic thin-film transistors deposited on plastic substrates, is putting 1,000 of the readers into a Russian school educational programme.
"Because the base is not glass, the display is uniquely shatterproof and rugged which is especially important given constant use by students," said the firm.
Display resolution is 1,280x960 at 150pixel/in. in a 216x280x7.65mm product weighing 475g and called '100'.
Inside is an 800MHz ARM processor from Marvell with 4Gbyte of storage running Windows CE.
The processor is thought to be a variant of Marvell's 610 smartphone/tablet CPU rather than its less powerful 16x e-reader core.
Everything is controlled through the touch screen.
"Tap on a textbook: It automatically opens to the page where you left off. Swipe your finger from right to left to turn the page," said Plastic Logic. "Students can search, and underline and annotate a text using the virtual keyboard to make a note on a page."
It is "capable of delivering an entire year's worth of textbooks in one place without the risk of students not having what they need with them", added the firm.
In-built security means the students cannot change, damage or delete their textbooks.
Early last year the firm launched a similar e-reader/tablet aimed at businesses and consumers.
Called Que, it was expensive and quietly withdrawn after delivery delays.
According to a company spokeswoman, the 100 features faster screen updates than Que and "certain functions are not on the Plastic Logic 100 because it is aimed as students", she told Electronics Weekly.
For example, the 100 does not have a calendar.
Commercial products based on 100 hardware are planned.
"They will have more specific software aimed at their markets," said the spokeswoman. "For example, with the business version you will be able to read emails and it will have a calendar."
The firm is not discussing launch dates for commercial products, nor detailed specifications.
Connectivity on the 100 is limited to a micro USB socket while the Que had Wi-Fi as standard and optional 3G wireless.
Tablet-based paper-less pilot studies in US business schools have shown wireless access is too much of a temptation to students, leading to in-lecture browsing.
Battery life is "over a week of average student reading", claims the firm.
Used by almost all e-readers, extremely low power consumption and excellent sunlight readability are the major advantages of E Ink displays.
Disadvantages include slow, monochrome, operation compared with the colour video-speed LCDs used in tablet computers that users expect to charge daily.
The Russian link for UK start-up Plastic Logic came late last year when the Russian Corporation of Nanotechnologies (Rusnano) invested $700m as part of a deal which will the firm building its largest production facility in Zelenograd near Moscow.
"Plastic Logic continues to invest in the expansion of its first manufacturing facility in Dresden as well as its R&D centre in Cambridge, England and its product development hub in Mountain View, California," said the firm.
The 100 announcement follows the installation of a new CEO at Plastic Logic two weeks ago when Indro Mukerjee took over from Richard Archuleta.
Mukerjee came from C-MAC MicroTechnology where he was chairman and CEO, and will be based in Cambridge.
The 100 is priced at 12,000 Rubles (£250).
