I am thinking of buying a Cybook, but have been put off by more than a few post's about the page turning buttons being either unresponsive or very hard to press. I have also read that Bookeen are aware of this and will try to provide a workaround or fix. Am I being paranoid, is it hard to press ? Not being able to actually handle one before I spend the cash is a little disconcerting. I would hate to spend £245 and find the page turn button becoming a real bugbear.

I am thinking of buying a Cybook, but have been put off by more than a few post's about the page turning buttons being either unresponsive or very hard to press. I have also read that Bookeen are aware of this and will try to provide a workaround or fix. Am I being paranoid, is it hard to press ? Not being able to actually handle one before I spend the cash is a little disconcerting. I would hate to spend £245 and find the page turn button becoming a real bugbear.

I'm waiting for mine but I'm also very anxious to see how it works.

As far as I could read the "unresponsive button" issue results from that fact that people don't actually press the right button. The "hard to press" thing seems to be an isolated problem in some devices and people are reporting that although the button is not very easy to press it's not really an issue.

As soon as I get mine tomorrow I can tell you my personal experience.

Yes, compared to *some* buttons (Ahem! Cough! Cough! Kindle! Cough! Cough!) the page forward/backward buttons can be a tad unresponsive - by comparison. I *LIKE* the bit of stiffness to the buttons as I'm not accidentally paging-paging-paging-paging with every breath and jiggle of my hand when I'm holding it one-handed. However, *some* people seem to prefer a button which registers a depression whenever a butterfly in China flaps its wings. Go figure. Either you'll like it, tolerate it, love it or hate it. That's about the best I can offer you as you'll really have to see for yourself.

But yes, it is *NOT* as sensitive as a Playstation controller.

Derek

I agree with Derek - the button is firm, but not excessively so. I have absolutely no problem with it.

Thanks all for the replies, I appreciate I would not want a button that would be too sensitive, accidental page turnings would be worse than no turn at all. A few people have posted about the slow or non existent response from Bookeen regarding problems with their device, thats another thing that worries me, the prospect of little or no backup in the event of a fault developing. Plus I realise the firmware has only reached ver 1.0 so hopefully some of the reported niggles can be fixed via that. One more question I have asked elsewhere but got no response to is that the firmware is updated via the SD card. Does that mean just downloading the new file to the card and plugging it in to do the update, or does the machine have to be connected to a computer. I have a Mac, will there be any firmware update problems with a non Windows computer ?

The buttons on the 505 are really nice. Not too still and not too loose and the setup is very easy to hold without accidentally pressing the wrong button (hint Kindle).

Unfortunately I have already ruled out the sony, because of content, having to use windows and the difficulty in purchasing from the Connect store in the UK.

seem to prefer a button which registers a depression whenever a butterfly in China flaps its wings.

Cute! :)

So far I haven't encountered any real problems with the button on my Cybook. Sometimes I need to press twice to make the page turn, but that's okay. After having used it for a while now, I also don't think I will get a sore thumb -- after all, when you're reading you only have to press that button every 1-2 minutes or so.

...after all, when you're reading you only have to press that button every 1-2 minutes or so.

I GOTTA remember that one! :) :) :) Yep, for me 1-2 minutes between page turns is, like, an ETERNITY! :D

Derek

The button is more or less ok and regardless i would totally recommend the Cybook it's a great machine.

I'm hoping that at some point they will release a software update so that I can attribute one of the other buttons as page turner (one of the ones on the left preferably!)

I'm not sure about anyone else but if i'm lying down i can't just hold the thing in one hand i have to use both when the page turn bit comes ..

not a huge thing tho even if i'm making it sound like a huge thing! lol ..

Loopy

I GOTTA remember that one! :) :) :) Yep, for me 1-2 minutes between page turns is, like, an ETERNITY! :D

Derek

Uhm. I haven't timed it or anything, you know. :o What I meant was: it's not a continuous pressure in contrast to what you do when you're writing a SMS.

Of course, you could always strengthen your fingers doing some finger exercises (is that what you call them in English???) for piano players. :D

After a week of extensive use I notice the page flipping problems actually becoming less. This can be the result of either getting used to the way to 'properly' press the button, or the button losing a bit of its stiffness after some use. Really not sure which of the two it is, maybe a combination of both.

To me, this is something I gladly live with, since I am a very happy Cybook user given all the good aspects of the device :)

At any rate it's by no means more cumbersome than wetting your fingers to flip a paper page. ;)

The button is more or less ok and regardless i would totally recommend the Cybook it's a great machine.

I'm hoping that at some point they will release a software update so that I can attribute one of the other buttons as page turner (one of the ones on the left preferably!)

I'm not sure about anyone else but if i'm lying down i can't just hold the thing in one hand i have to use both when the page turn bit comes ..

not a huge thing tho even if i'm making it sound like a huge thing! lol ..

Loopy

I agree! However, that's mostly because the 'notch' at the bottom (My rubber cover popped out and fell off.) digs into my hand over long periods of time. I've kind of developed a 'grip' - similar in approach to my holding my dSLR - where the thumb is positioned near the paging control, the index finger rides up along the right side of the front edge, the next two fingers wrap around the back and the little finger forms a 'rest' along the bottom... Yes, I still have the rather 'sharp' corners of the plug compartment digging into my hand, but I'm beginning to develop a callus.

I wonder... If I start taking Human Growth Hormone, will my callus develop faster and larger? (I now envision myself with Mr. Hyde - as we saw in the movie "League of Extraordinary Gentlement" - hands.) :D

Derek

After about 6 weeks my button is worn in nice. I honestly wouldn't think of it at all except for the posts that I see here (and I don't take growth hormones :)). I'm still really happy with it. Best purchase I've made in a long time.

I too am a little concerned with the reports that I've seen about the lack of responsiveness from Bookeen on support questions but hopefully that will improve.

On your concerns about not being able to try it out... if the availability of the Cybook Gen3 stays the way it is then worst case if you don't like it you'll probably be able to sell it used for close to what you paid for it. In my opinion you'll like it though.

Thanks all for the help, I think my next purchase will be a Cybook Gen 3. But having just bought myself an Apple iPhone my wife is trying to persuade me to wait till March when she can buy it for my birthday. Not a bad idea, maybe another firmware revision will have been issued by then.

I must agree with ashalan, the effort required to trigger a page turn seems to be lessening. Though I am not sure if it I'm getting used to it (<badrussianaccent>In Soviet Russian, Cybook breaks you in!</badrussianaccent>) or that the button is finally 'breaking in' like a pair of shoes. Or possible some combination of the two.

Got my device today. I don't think the button thing is an issue at all :S Yes sometimes I have to press the back button twice because in the first time I didn't press it firmly enough. But the same thing happens with cellular phone sometimes.

I know I can download the Cybook user manual in .prc format, but is there anywhere I can get it in a format I can read on a Mac. That will give me a chance to familiarise myself with the device before I eventually buy one in March. PDF would be great.

I know I can download the Cybook user manual in .prc format, but is there anywhere I can get it in a format I can read on a Mac. That will give me a chance to familiarise myself with the device before I eventually buy one in March. PDF would be great.

Man... That's a tough one. I suppose the best thing to do would be to run it through BookDesigner and turn it into an HTML file...

Derek

Some people did it by running Garnet OS Emulator on Mac and running the Mobipocket reader inside it. Complicated, but seems to work.
http://www.teddypig.com/2007/11/11/teddypig-hacks-an-ebook-mobipocket-ebook-reader-for-mac-osx/

I agree! However, that's mostly because the 'notch' at the bottom (My rubber cover popped out and fell off.) digs into my hand over long periods of time. I've kind of developed a 'grip' - similar in approach to my holding my dSLR - where the thumb is positioned near the paging control, the index finger rides up along the right side of the front edge, the next two fingers wrap around the back and the little finger forms a 'rest' along the bottom... Yes, I still have the rather 'sharp' corners of the plug compartment digging into my hand, but I'm beginning to develop a callus.

I wonder... If I start taking Human Growth Hormone, will my callus develop faster and larger? (I now envision myself with Mr. Hyde - as we saw in the movie "League of Extraordinary Gentlement" - hands.) :D

Derek

hehehe ... well your 'grip' sounds fine but ... i want to hold it in my left hand *grin* .. yeah yeah i know, some of us just have to be awkward!!

Loopy

Well, the button is a bit stiff but with time it will loosen up. The edges of the button though feel a bit sharp. Anyway i'm very pleased with the cybook as it is, and find it usable, funny it has sold out again.

Is there any eink reader that's not anti-OS X?

I think the Cybook is about the nearest you are going to get, just drag and drop. Thats why I decided on it being a OSX user.

After spending some time turning pages, I have been paying attention to the times when the Gen3 seems to miss the button press. I have noticed that when it "misses", the green activity LED does turn on. If I press again while the light is on, I seem to get a quicker page turn.

My guess as a real-time Linux programmer is that the button press is doing two things: 1) it is waking up the Gen3 from a low-power state. This seems to take a little time. Then it looks at the button states to determine what action to take. If I have let go of the button after "waking" the unit, but before it scans for the button press, it will miss the page turn. If I hold the button down just a little longer, the page turn works.

If my hypothesis is correct, there are a couple of ways the problem might be fixed. If the I/O chipset that is connected to the buttons can be programmed to "latch" or hold the press state until cleared, the button press would be available after the unit gets around to reading the buttons. Another way to reduce the likelihood of a quick press not registering would be to move the button-read logic earlier in the wake-up cycle. This might require some kernel programming or driver modifications.

Or I could be entirely wrong. :)

Is there any eink reader that's not anti-OS X?

The iRex and the cybook are definitely the most user-friendly.. Very easy once the PID number is registered.

Loopy

The iRex and the cybook are definitely the most user-friendly.. Very easy once the PID number is registered.

Loopy

I guess that the Kindle is even easier. You don't need a computer or to register a PID.

I guess that the Kindle is even easier. You don't need a computer or to register a PID.

Well... Actually, you don't have to do so but, you're still limited to whatever Amazon - or sometimes Fictionwise - offers.

And you're S-O-L overseas.

Yep. The Cybook is better.

BTW, NAEB's up and can take Paypal and CC payments (the latter through Paypal.) Or you can just send us filthy lucre in the form of checks or money orders (BLECH!).

Derek

BTW, NAEB's up and can take Paypal and CC payments (the latter through Paypal.) Or you can just send us filthy lucre in the form of checks or money orders (BLECH!).


When are you anticipating delivery of your Gen3's, Derek?

Well... Actually, you don't have to do so but, you're still limited to whatever Amazon - or sometimes Fictionwise - offers.

And you're S-O-L overseas.

Yep. The Cybook is better.

BTW, NAEB's up and can take Paypal and CC payments (the latter through Paypal.) Or you can just send us filthy lucre in the form of checks or money orders (BLECH!).

Derek

The home page still says "Store Status: NOT OPEN"

And despite the home page saying
"United States Postal Service (USPS): Up ",
the Delivery Information page / Shipping Method page still says
"An error occured [sic] with the USPS shipping calculations.
If you prefer to use USPS as your shipping method, please contact the
store owner."

How can you pay by CC if the store can't tell you the total price ?


So close yet still so far ?
What is the rule of thumb about how long it takes to try and fix the 'last' few bugs (grin).


How about NAEB consider offering an option where you charge our credit cards the $375 for the readers now, (so you can get the process underway), and then you have a month or so to sort out the shipping price bugs and to collect the rest of the payment from customers.
(I gather that it will be a month or so before NAEB is in a position to ship the readers that are about to be purchased from your store - the delay until you get the 1000 units from Bookeen.)



Martin.

The home page still says "Store Status: NOT OPEN"

And despite the home page saying
"United States Postal Service (USPS): Up ",
the Delivery Information page / Shipping Method page still says
"An error occured [sic] with the USPS shipping calculations.
If you prefer to use USPS as your shipping method, please contact the
store owner."

How can you pay by CC if the store can't tell you the total price ?


So close yet still so far ?
What is the rule of thumb about how long it takes to try and fix the 'last' few bugs (grin).


How about NAEB consider offering an option where you charge our credit cards the $375 for the readers now, (so you can get the process underway), and then you have a month or so to sort out the shipping price bugs and to collect the rest of the payment from customers.
(I gather that it will be a month or so before NAEB is in a position to ship the readers that are about to be purchased from your store - the delay until you get the 1000 units from Bookeen.)



Martin.

Now *that* is an option... I'll pass your suggestion along. And it's good to have such feedback because, as in my test run, where I went with the default USPS setting for a shipment to California, everything went flawless. Of course, I'm not the one who's making sure everything is tied together in the background, so I don't know if that's happenstance or just that my address was chosen for the initial testing setup.

And you should have had the total price. My attempt gave me the total price with applicable sales tax.

As far as 'Store not open'... We're not taking that down until I get the email notifications out to those who've pre-signed-up. That should happen by noon, California time, today.

Derek

Seriously guys......:)

coming back to the cybook.....my cybook was froze on the boot screen that says Cybook gen 3 and resetting it ,removing the battery even after removing the sd card...it's still frozen...
Even with battery dead it's frozen...

I've emailed Bookeen several times and have not had any response $375 correction ₤250 for a flat piece of plastic that works for a week is not my impression of a functioning company.....

Looking :bookworm:....all the problems have been around since the first sample units...

1.either they should have been ironed out before being sold

2.or they shouldn't have shipped

3.or have a viable readily available workaround like having the firmware downloadable to flash it ...so we can do it ourselves

Whatever ...it's a nice machine but think before you buy (addition: from bookeen) :smack:
[/LIST]

Seriously guys......:)

coming back to the cybook.....my cybook was froze on the boot screen that says Cybook gen 3 and resetting it ,removing the battery even after removing the sd card...it's still frozen...
Even with battery dead it's frozen...

I've emailed Bookeen several times and have not had any response $375 for a flat piece of plastic that works for a week is not my impression of a functioning company.....

Looking :bookworm:....all the problems have been around since the first sample units...

1.either they should have been ironed out before being sold

2.or they shouldn't have shipped

3.or have a viable readily available workaround like having the firmware downloadable to flash it ...so we can do it ourselves

Whatever ...it's a nice machine but think before you buy:smack:


Solodoc,

First, NAEB is *NOT* in control of Bookeen's quality control. We're a completely separate entity...

Second, the $375 price??? Hmmm... Did you buy the Basic? If so, maybe you might want to get an RMA number and send it back...

Third, our problems getting our storefront up and running are not, as you say, necessarily germaine to any problems current Bookeen customers are having. I wish that we at NAEB were set up, already, to do repairs and testing, but we're not yet ready for that or I'd make the offer. Sorry.

Fourth, have you tried plugging the Cybook into your PC and deleting all files you've added? This may well solve the problem if you've attempted to add your own font files or if you've attempted to load in extra-large pictures and the like.

And maybe I, personally, can send you a copy of the 'remove-and-replace' 0.98 firmware update along with the 0.99 and 1.0 firmware update so you can remove the 'offending' firmware and re-install... Please send me an email address capable of accepting 9MB zip files, by private message, and I'll forward them on to you. You'll need a blank SD card with which to install it.

Derek
Derek

No offence Derek....

I only meant to bring to the fore this problem with the cybook I bought from bookeen.

I didn't install any fonts...it froze while I was reading the doctorow book that was preloaded.

and yeah I forgot to mention that I did try to connect to my pc both windows and linux and it won't recognize it.

Well your offer of the firmware is definitely appreciated.

I will try to PM you.

Thanks
Solo

Thanks Derek

I'm trying to flash it but the cybook will not go past the logon screen with cybook image.

Will need to try it again later.

Solo

For me it's easier to use the "down" button to change my page. I push the cover a little to clear the space for my thumb and it always worked.