Sharp has announced it will begin selling its Galapagos tablets in Japan starting on December 10, with the 5.5-inch EB-W51GJ-R/-S priced at 39,800 yen (~$475) and the 10.8-inch EB-WX1GJ-B coming in at 54,800 yen (~$654). Announced back in September, the devices will initially offer about 20,000 electronic book, magazine, and newspaper titles, and in Spring 2011 Sharp expects to open up video and music downloads as well.


Users won't have the freedom to download and install software of their choice, though. The 5.5-inch slate has a 1024 x 600 panel, with the 10.8-inch version clocking in at 1366 x 800. Each model comes with Wi-Fi and feature "Automatic Scheduled Delivery Service" for periodical publications, allowing users to buy magazine or newspaper subscriptions rather than having to purchase each issue independently. Sharp plans to launch the Galapagos 9n other markets outside of Japan, but for now the precise timing and other details remain unknown.