Sony today further bolstered its lineup of e-readers by announcing the Sony Reader Daily Edition - first in its stable to feature wireless connectivity (Wi-Fi and 3G). The Reader Daily Edition also features a 7-inch touch screen. In fact, wireless connectivity and a larger screen are the only notable features that separate it from the Reader Touch Edition.

Sony had announced the $299 Reader Touch Edition and $199 Pocket Edition earlier this month. The Daily Edition, which was announced at a launch event at the New York Public Library, will retail for $399 and debut in December.

Steve Haber, president of the Digital Reading Business Division at Sony, also announced that users will be able to borrow ebooks from the local library, with the borrowed books having an expiration period of 21 days. The new version of Sony’s online book store will let users search for libraries that loan electronic versions of their books.

A $1 netbook sounds like a Third World fantasy. Ironically, such a netbook has become a reality in the US. Sprint and Best Buy have combined forces to sell the Compaq Mini 110c-1040DX Netbook for 99 cents.

The only caveat being that interested persons will have to opt for a two-year service contract with Sprint Nextel, which costs $1,440 and offers 5GB of data.

The same netbook, which features a 1.60GHz Intel Atom processor, 10-inch screen and 160 HDD, is also being offered by AT&T and Verizon along with a two-year contract for $199. Its actual price is $389.

Rumors of Nokia’s entry into the netbook market have persisted since last year. The whole idea of Nokia entering the netbook market seems even more tenable now that Nokia and Intel have announced a new partnership. But Acer chairman JT Wang isn’t too bothered by the prospect of Nokia entering the netbook market. He further told Digitimes that PC vendors would gain more business from telecom providers. He believes PC vendors would become better poised – as compared to handset vendors - to do business with telecom providers within one year as the use of netbooks for accessing 3G services is becoming increasingly popular.