Dear all,

Unfortunately I cracked the plastic cover of my ebookwise 1150 not too long ago. Fortunately it still works (only upper left menu button doesn't). As I live in the UK, repair isn't really worth it.

Anyway, I've been following the e-ink devices with interest and think that it might be time to buy one of those to replace my much-loved ebookwise. I have some eye-problems and even though the ebookwise is lots better than a PC screen, I do read a lot on it and there is some associated strain. I have done some research on which one to buy and tend toward the NAEB Cybook.

However, as far as I understand the Cybook 3 does not read .imp files. Is that correct? Do any of the others read .imp files? Also the wiki says there is no conversion program for .imp files to other formats. I don't really fancy downloading several hundred books again (fortunately as most of them are BAEN books I can), so a batch convert would be helpful.

I've also bought a few books from ebookwise and fictionwise. However according to ebookwise I will not be able to download the books I already own in a different format, as my books are apparently linked to the ID of my ebookwise 1150. Is there a way around that? IE is there any way I can get books off my ebookwise 1150 onto my PC via the memory card? Seeing as I've already paid for those books I am not pirating them! I simply want to keep reading them as often as I want to!

I have read on the forums that ebookwisetechnologies are working on a e-ink version of their reader - is there any more info on when we can expect it? I might just hang in there or even buy another ebookwise 1150 if its less than a year.

And please please, if anyone from ebookwisetechnologies reads this: DO NOT MAKE ANOTHER EBOOKREADER CLONE! Just keep everything in the ebookwise 1150 (ergonomics, esp. page foward and back buttons and the formed grip on the back, menu system, download) and fit an e-ink screen! Oh one little thing to change - don't forget the non-American market when it comes to battery charging! I have to carry around a 1/2kg converter every time I'm going on holiday.

Anyway, any help and replies would be much appreciated!

Best wishes

LeserattePD

Dear all,


I've also bought a few books from ebookwise and fictionwise. However according to ebookwise I will not be able to download the books I already own in a different format, as my books are apparently linked to the ID of my ebookwise 1150. Is there a way around that? IE is there any way I can get books off my ebookwise 1150 onto my PC via the memory card? Seeing as I've already paid for those books I am not pirating them! I simply want to keep reading them as often as I want to!


Best wishes

LeserattePD

Sorry for you loss of your reader. You can get a new one for much less than any of the e-Ink devices available. Check eBay.

It is unlikely that you will be able to read the files on another device except that you can read them on your PC using the reader included with eBook Publisher or GEB Librarian. You can use a smartmedia card reader to move the files from your unit over to a pc. However these files are not IMP but an internal form. You can redownload IMP files from the fictionwise site and in some cases you will be able to download files in a different format.

Files in the internal RES format can be converted back into IMP files. Join the yahoo group for the REB1200 and in the files section is a program that will do this conversion. I am not aware of any program to convert IMP files to any other format.

I'm very sorry for you, i live in dread of damaging mine... I hope you find a good solution.

For a little (tiny) bit more info about the e-ink plans of ETI, you might check this thread (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20420), no dates as yet (but i also am hoping it's soon...) but encouraging words concerning the design (i.e., not another clone...).

good luck fixing / replacing yours, let us know how it works out...

Yeah I know I can get another Ebookwise 1150 through ebay America (that's how I got mine in the fist place seeing as ebookwise dooesn't actually deliver outside America/Canada as if the rest of the world doesn't exist...). And even with delivery it would be about 1/2 the price of an e-ink device.

But I'm really tempted to go for an e-ink display. Normally I only work 2-3 hours on the computer with large breaks in between, so the slight strain from the ebookwise is not a problem. But I'm writing my doctoral thesis at the moment and after 7-9 hours of staring at a computer screen, my eyes are feeling the strain. I like to relax by reading fiction on my ebookwise, but atm it is adding to the eye strain. I'm hoping an e-ink device would reduce that.

Thanks for the tip about getting the books off the ebookwise. I'll try the yahoo group.

I'm very sorry for you, i live in dread of damaging mine... I hope you find a good solution.

For a little (tiny) bit more info about the e-ink plans of ETI, you might check this thread (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20420), no dates as yet (but i also am hoping it's soon...) but encouraging words concerning the design (i.e., not another clone...).

good luck fixing / replacing yours, let us know how it works out...

I think I read that thread a while ago but couldn't find it again. I just love the ergonomics of my ebookwise! One of the things that puts me off the Cybook is the page forward/back button on the front... I estimate that my reading spead is about 2 page per minute, so having to move my hand that often to push the page forward button will be annoying.

One of the things that puts me off the Cybook is the page forward/back button on the front... I estimate that my reading spead is about 2 page per minute, so having to move my hand that often to push the page forward button will be annoying.

You don't have to move your hand. If you hold the CyBook in your right hand, your thumb naturally falls over the button.

You don't have to move your hand. If you hold the CyBook in your right hand, your thumb naturally falls over the button.
It's the same sort of hand placement for the 505.

I think I read that thread a while ago but couldn't find it again. I just love the ergonomics of my ebookwise! One of the things that puts me off the Cybook is the page forward/back button on the front... I estimate that my reading spead is about 2 page per minute, so having to move my hand that often to push the page forward button will be annoying.

oh, i love the ergonomics also !! it's unbeleivably well designed. especially since you can rotate the screen to hold it in either hand (which i do often, usually several times in the course of one reading session), and the buttons are re-assigned automatically. honestly, based on my experience with it, i don't think i could be as comfortable with the Sony / cybook design, although i admit i have never had the opportunity to try one so i don't know for sure.

i also am really hoping for an e-ink eb1150 soon, as the backlit screen also bothers me (although not enough for me to want to stop using it), and the idea of e-ink makes me absolutely wild... it would really be the best of all (current existing) worlds.

well, i guess we just cross our fingers and hope...

Any updates on this? I've already decided to get the Sony, because of various promotions I'll end up paying about US$150.00 for it, comparable to the price of the eb1150. But if they are working on an e-ink version, with touchscreen navigation, that might represent the new state of the art. I know you're in communication, come on, spill it.

well, i did in fact send an email to (my good friend) Garth Conboy when i saw this thread (i think they'll probably be more motivated to work on their new version if they know they actually have more than one rabid fan / future customer), who replied :

Still no solid news -- but, we're working on a number of possible
product directions. Hopefully some of these will make it to the market!

do with that what you will... i too beleive that an e-ink screen with touch capabilities will be the new state of the art, and from what he said previously this seems to be what they are working on.

since in the meantime i am very happy with my eb1150, and since i only just bought it a few months ago and can't really justify such a large expense for a second one so soon, i will wait a while longer to see what happens... especially since, in any case, i think e-ink technology is going to undergo some very important developpments (i can't even speculate on them, but at least touch and probably color) within a fairly short time (i imagine 1 to 3 years, but i'm really just guessing), so i might as well try to hold out as long as possible...

Regarding "touch screen" navigation, that doesn't mean the entire reading surface need be touchscreen. I think a navigational widget would suffice. I think a thin horizontal band near the bottom of an e-book (new usage of the term, see this post (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showpost.php?p=162340&postcount=170)) could be interesting. You'd turn pages by sliding your finger along the band. Slide faster, turn pages 5 or 10 at a time. Or have "zones" on the band, sliding here turns x many pages, sliding in a different zone turns more or less. User configurable. Combine that with the standard buttons, and you'd have plenty of options for robust navigation.

Please tell your good friend that the whole world waits.

Please tell your good friend that the whole world waits.

you've probably just told him yourself ; he stops by these forums regularly and knows about this thread...

oh, i love the ergonomics also !! it's unbeleivably well designed. especially since you can rotate the screen to hold it in either hand (which i do often, usually several times in the course of one reading session), and the buttons are re-assigned automatically. honestly, based on my experience with it, i don't think i could be as comfortable with the Sony / cybook design, although i admit i have never had the opportunity to try one so i don't know for sure.

i also am really hoping for an e-ink eb1150 soon, as the backlit screen also bothers me (although not enough for me to want to stop using it), and the idea of e-ink makes me absolutely wild... it would really be the best of all (current existing) worlds.

well, i guess we just cross our fingers and hope...

Having had both an eb1150 and one of the Sony eInk readers (the 500, not the 505), I may be able to shed some light on the differences, but of course, your mileage may vary.

In particular, I have to agree about the ergonomics. A relative of mine gave me a Sony as a present, and within three months I was back to using the eb1150. Holding the eb1150 is much more comfortable, and I really missed being able to switch hands. The eInk is certainly nice, but was also one of my problems. I had expected that I would not be able to read in the dark with it, but even in situations that I could read a p-book, I often did not have enough light for the Sony (Note: this was the 500, not the 505). This makes me a bit wary of the ETI's new machine, as it is also eInk.

Surprisingly, I was also not satisfied with the battery life on the Sony. What I did not realize is that I charge my eb1150 after I use it, then leave it lying around for a few weeks at a time, come back when I have need and read for most of a weekend, or a plane ride -- it was ready to go. Since the Sony did not actually turn off, the two times I did this with the Sony, it was nearly dead when I picked it up, and I had to charge it before I could use it. I understand there is a hack to actually turn it off, but given my mixed feelings about it otherwise, I was not willing to mess with it. In fairness, I should say that when I used it with a fresh charge, the battery life was every bit as wonderful as everyone says. I don't know if the Cybook sleeps or turns off.

Looking at the thread Zelda mentions, I am encouraged about the way ETI is embracing open formats. Still, given the ongoing partnership with Fictionwise, and their recent acquisition of eReader, I cannot help but wonder if a successor to the eb1150 might also be able to read eReader files. eReader really needs to get on a dedicated device. Of the existing DRMs, theirs always seemed the least restrictive.

Jack

hello jack,
thanks for the comparison. i suspect i would have a similar experience, although as e-ink is very tempting to me it might outweigh the rest. if i buy one before ETI starts to market their new device, i will get a Cybook Gen3, they have certain features which i find very interesting (dictionary lookup, better format support, etc.). i would have to find out whether it can be completely shut down to save battery, or if it only goes to "sleep mode" like the sony ; that seems like a big disadvantage.

anyway, we'll all just have to keep looking out for any news from ETI...

A friend of mine just ordered the ETI-1, even though it is supposedly not available. It uses .imp as its native file and has color. It is the next gen from your unit. He paid $400 for it. Send me a message and I will have him contact you, or perhaps add to this thread. http://www.mobileread.com/forums/images/gnav_home_red.gif (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/home.htm) http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif He was told it should arrive next week.http://www.mobileread.com/forums/images/gnav_products_red.gif (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/products.htm) http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif http://www.mobileread.com/forums/images/gnav_partners_red.gif (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/partners.htm) http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif http://www.mobileread.com/forums/images/gnav_news_red.gif (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/news.htm) http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif http://www.mobileread.com/forums/images/gnav_support_red.gif (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/support.htm) http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif http://www.mobileread.com/forums/images/gnav_contact_red.gif (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/contact.htm) http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif http://www.mobileread.com/forums/images/gnav_about_red.gif (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/about.htm) http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/toureti1/front.gif
Menu Buttons
Displays several options and can vary depending on whether you are reading an eBook Edition, looking at the eBookshelf or browsing the eBookstore. The Menu button also has an on/off option.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
Shortcut Button
Allows you to set a shortcut to a specific feature/function on your eBook.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
Brightness Control
Turn the knob to adjust the brightness on the screen. This affects the brightness of the background, not the text or graphics.
Contrast Control
Turn the knob to increase or decrease the contrast difference between the background and the text or graphics.
Page Forward/Back
Toggle Switch
Use the right edge of the switch to page forward and the left edge of the switch to page back.
to highlight text, and Search to look for a word or phrase.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
Bookmark
Bookmark a page simply by tapping the upper right corner.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
Touchscreen
The back-lit 6.75" x 5" color LCD touchscreen, with adjustable brightness and contrast controls, enables comfortable reading anywhere, even in the dark. Use your finger to touch the icons and links to activate the many features and functions, or use the stylus that is stored in the top of the device.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
Page Navigation Bar
Skip through your title easily and quickly. Touch the bar and it displays the number of your current page.
The brightness and contrast controls are located on the side

http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/toureti1/side.gif
Brightness Control
Turn the knob to adjust the brightness on the screen. This affects the brightness of the background, not the text or graphics.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
Contrast Control
Turn the knob to increase or decrease the contrast between the background and the text or graphics.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/toureti1/top.gif
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif
Stylus
Use the stylus like a pen to select items on-screen. To use, simply push in on the stylus and pull out.
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/toureti1/bottom.gif
http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/images/null.gif

A friend of mine just ordered the ETI-1, even though it is supposedly not available. It uses .imp as its native file and has color. It is the next gen from your unit. He paid $400 for it. Send me a message and I will have him contact you, or perhaps add to this thread.

Can you ask him where he bought it? For $400 I might get one.

Can you ask him where he bought it? For $400 I might get one.

He bought it from this lady:

Jeanne
jc@eBookTechnologies.com

(Edited: My friend wants to check with Jeanne if she is OK with sharing her last name and phone numbers, will repost if OK.)

To my eyes the ETI-2 seems to be the same as the 1150.

Here's their page: http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/devices.htm

Here's a portion of the email he had with her which he shared with me:

"Thank you for your order, . I’ll get it in process, and it will likely ship out on or around Wed March 26th. Order summary: one ETI-1 $400 , one ETI-2 with 64Mb Smart Media card $100, shipping and handling $7.50, total $507.50. It will ship via FedEx, and when it ships, I’ll get the tracking number, which I’ll forward to you via email. I’ll also see what I can do about including a small Compact Flash card for the ETI-1.

Thank you! my contact info is below, and I’m in the pacific time zone."


Nate, I've ordered a Windows laptop and will be asking for your help on the topic we discussed privately. OK? Fair trade?

Nate, I've ordered a Windows laptop and will be asking for your help on the topic we discussed privately. OK? Fair trade?


Okay.

you will tell us all about it, if you get one, right ? :)

Nice picture, we have this device in the wiki as the REB 1200. It is also discussed from time to time in the section of the ebookwise subforum. It has very knowledgeable people on the REB1200 which is the same as this unit.

Dale

Nice picture, we have this device in the wiki as the REB 1200. It is also discussed from time to time in the section of the ebookwise subforum. It has very knowledgeable people on the REB1200 which is the same as this unit.

Dale


I've done some searching around the forum and can't locate the wiki.

Could you provide a link to it?

thanks

I've done some searching around the forum and can't locate the wiki.

Could you provide a link to it?

thanks

Found it with a little searching:

http://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/REB_1200

Found it with a little searching:

http://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/REB_1200

Great, there is lots of good data on the wiki. It can be your first choice for any questions on eBook. If you can't find it there then ask in the forum and its likely to be added. If you go on the top line of every page you will find wiki just beside fourms.

Dale

You don't have to move your hand. If you hold the CyBook in your right hand, your thumb naturally falls over the button.

If you hold it in your right hand... I like to switch hands because when I read and have the time I read for hours. One of the things I absolutely love about the ebookwise 1150 is the ease of switching hands/screen orientation.

Any updates on this? I've already decided to get the Sony, because of various promotions I'll end up paying about US$150.00 for it, comparable to the price of the eb1150. But if they are working on an e-ink version, with touchscreen navigation, that might represent the new state of the art. I know you're in communication, come on, spill it.

The main reason against the Sony is that I bet they don't have the few books I absolutly have to get even in secured format in their shop.

Thats one of my gripes with ebooks in general - when will they get around to a standardised format? Atm it's like saying you can only listen to mp3 files if you have an ipod and if you want to listen to a .wav you need to get an IRiver player.

Surprisingly, I was also not satisfied with the battery life on the Sony. What I did not realize is that I charge my eb1150 after I use it, then leave it lying around for a few weeks at a time, come back when I have need and read for most of a weekend, or a plane ride -- it was ready to go. Since the Sony did not actually turn off, the two times I did this with the Sony, it was nearly dead when I picked it up, and I had to charge it before I could use it. I understand there is a hack to actually turn it off, but given my mixed feelings about it otherwise, I was not willing to mess with it. In fairness, I should say that when I used it with a fresh charge, the battery life was every bit as wonderful as everyone says. I don't know if the Cybook sleeps or turns off.

Jack


Yeah I was worried about the whole "you can't read while it's charging issue" and "it's never completely turned off" with the e-ink readers. Not sure if they've fixed that now. I often read my ebookwise while charging and at my light settings I used to get about 14 hours of use out of a charge. Looks like my battery is getting old though, because lately it doesn't last that long anymore. No wonder after nearly three years of heavy use (prob average of 2-3 h per day).

The main problem for me really is that I can't just plug the charger in here in the UK, I have to lug around this big converter.

If you hold it in your right hand... I like to switch hands because when I read and have the time I read for hours. One of the things I absolutely love about the ebookwise 1150 is the ease of switching hands/screen orientation.

My camera has a sensor inside that knows when I rotate the camera. It would be nice, in the next generation, ETI device is such a sensor could be employed to automatically redo the buttons when you rotate it 180 degrees.

Dale

Yeah I was worried about the whole "you can't read while it's charging issue" and "it's never completely turned off" with the e-ink readers. Not sure if they've fixed that now. I often read my ebookwise while charging and at my light settings I used to get about 14 hours of use out of a charge. Looks like my battery is getting old though, because lately it doesn't last that long anymore. No wonder after nearly three years of heavy use (prob average of 2-3 h per day).

The main problem for me really is that I can't just plug the charger in here in the UK, I have to lug around this big converter.

The charger can be replaced. There is a thread in the ebookwise subforum on this topic. You need a charger that will supply 12 Volts at 1 amp.

Yeah I was worried about the whole "you can't read while it's charging issue" and "it's never completely turned off" with the e-ink readers. Not sure if they've fixed that now.

The "never switches off" thing is specific to the Sony. All the other eInk devices genuinely switch off. Even the Sony can be via a menu item.

The charger can be replaced. There is a thread in the ebookwise subforum on this topic. You need a charger that will supply 12 Volts at 1 amp.

Thanks for the tip! I've been lugging around a voltage adapter to plug the charger into! Didn't have any idea that there were UK chargers with the right output/plugs.

Hmm that definitly makes buying a new ebookwise a serious option. Guess I'll have a look at the Sony reader once it's available here in the UK, just to see how much I'd love the e-ink screen and then decide between the Cybook and another ebookwise.

If you're like most people, once you've seen an eInk screen you'll never want to read on an LCD screen again :).

My camera has a sensor inside that knows when I rotate the camera. It would be nice, in the next generation, ETI device is such a sensor could be employed to automatically redo the buttons when you rotate it 180 degrees.

Dale

that would be brilliant.

If you're like most people, once you've seen an eInk screen you'll never want to read on an LCD screen again :).

I can't go quite that far. I love my e-ink Cybook, but it does require reasonably good light for comfortable reading. Under such conditions, it is indeed a better experience than using an LCD. Outdoors, it is a remarkable display indeed.

However, I find that much of my reading is done is lower light conditions -- there, I find the LCD display on my Sony Clie to be more comfortable, even if smaller.

I simply do not understand this attitude about backlighting. Ordinary print is not backlit! Since when did it become almost a necessity to have lit reading material? I am 73 and I find reading on my Kindle a better, less intrusive, reading experience than any lcd backlit screen I have seen, even when I am not in a brightly lit room (which is the case right now). It's almost like reading real print (which is what I thought was the aim of eink).

I simply do not understand this attitude about backlighting. Ordinary print is not backlit!

Nope, it needs to be frontlit. When that is not possible or simple, backlighting works. Don't see a need to evangelize one or the other. They both have their pros and cons.

How do you backlight ordinary print?

You don't. Nor do you read ordinary print in the dark. With a backlit device, though, you can, and it's this "extra" functionality some want, while others could care less. I'm in the "could are less" group, myself, but at least I understand the reasoning from the other camp.

Of course I understand that. My point is that these two screens, eink and lcd, are very different. If you see little or no difference, there is no point in buying an expensive eink device. One detail: I used to do a lot of photography, and took many color slides; to look at those slides, I placed them on what we call a lightbox which was a sheet of milk-colored glass over different kinds of lightbulbs, and we generally did this in a very dark room; this was similar to looking at a backlit screen and when I looked up it took me some seconds to focus. Backlit screens sometimes have that effect on me today, especially if I have been looking at them for over an hour.

I can't go quite that far. I love my e-ink Cybook, but it does require reasonably good light for comfortable reading. Under such conditions, it is indeed a better experience than using an LCD. Outdoors, it is a remarkable display indeed.

However, I find that much of my reading is done is lower light conditions -- there, I find the LCD display on my Sony Clie to be more comfortable, even if smaller.

I find the same thing with my Sony PRS500: it's great in direct sunlight but hard to read without good light. I love the large number of books formatted for it though.

I got a Clie to use as a portable book reader but mainly because there were a lot of DRM books I couldn’t get in IMP format but I found in both MobiPocket and eReader versions. I gave up on using Mobi books when a computer glitch somehow crashed the directory with my eBooks in it. My backup restored the eBooks but I could no longer read them on either the PC or the Clie. My eReader books kept working though, and there are almost as many books in that format as there are in Mobi so that’s what I’ve been getting when I can't find a book for the eb1150.

I’m wondering why ETI can’t just add support for eReader to the eb1150, or put it on their new reader? eReader is reflowable and supports additional fonts on the Clie so that feature might keep working on a larger screen. There are versions of eReader for Palm, Windows, MacIntosh, and WPC, but there’s no version of eReader for Linux. Is that the trouble? Does the Linux OS make it impossible to get eReader to work on the eb1150?

I’m wondering why ETI can’t just add support for eReader to the eb1150, or put it on their new reader? eReader is reflowable and supports additional fonts on the Clie so that feature might keep working on a larger screen. There are versions of eReader for Palm, Windows, MacIntosh, and WPC, but there’s no version of eReader for Linux. Is that the trouble? Does the Linux OS make it impossible to get eReader to work on the eb1150? The eb1150 (ETI-2) is not Linux based, its operating system is Nucleus from Mentor Graphics - see ETA Products (http://www.ebooktechnologies.com/devices.htm). I doubt the eb1150 will get a major software upgrade, but if FictionWise ever sells an E-Ink device it would help sales if it provided a migration path for ebookwise ebooks (in addition to, say, eReader support). This would presumably be easier if the source of the device was ETI.

I find the same thing with my Sony PRS500: it's great in direct sunlight but hard to read without good light. I love the large number of books formatted for it though.


The 2nd generation "VizPlex" screens which devices like the Sony 505, CyBook Gen3, and Amazon Kindle use, have greatly improved contrast compared to your Sony 500, and are much better in dim light. When I had a Sony PRS500 I needed to use a reading light in pretty much any artificial light; with the VizPlex screen on the Gen3 I find that I can read (perhaps with a slightly larger font size) in much the same light levels I'd need for a paperback book.

The 2nd generation "VizPlex" screens which devices like the Sony 505, CyBook Gen3, and Amazon Kindle use, have greatly improved contrast compared to your Sony 500, and are much better in dim light. When I had a Sony PRS500 I needed to use a reading light in pretty much any artificial light; with the VizPlex screen on the Gen3 I find that I can read (perhaps with a slightly larger font size) in much the same light levels I'd need for a paperback book.

Hummm... That's interesting. I wandered onto this thread because I was searching for something with the content of the Sony and the readability of the Clie and the eb1150. The Clie is great for what it does but I longed for a larger screen. I read the early reviews of the 505 here at MobilRead. NatCh seemed to like the 505 in the short time he had a review copy but it helps to hear from someone who has lived with both devices.

Some reviewers seemed to think the screen reads better on the blue model than the silver one. This is really silly, but I love how the silver 505 looks like my Clie "all grown up." Is yours silver or blue? Do you find the color makes a difference?

Thanks for sharing your experience. :2thumbsup

I have a CyBook Gen3, not a Sony, but the two machine use the same screen (as does the Amazon Kindle, too). I bought the Gen3 having previously owned a Sony PRS500.

with the VizPlex screen on the Gen3 I find that I can read (perhaps with a slightly larger font size) in much the same light levels I'd need for a paperback book.

I'll agree with Harry. I was a little disappointed at first with the Gen 3 compared to my Clie TH55 in some of my reading locations. Part of that was adjusting to e-ink vs LCD. After almost a week with it, I find the Cybook to be comfortable to use in lower light levels, although I've learned that font family and size selection (one of the key Cybook strengths) is important. And living in Florida, it is nice to be able to use its gorgeous screen outdoors.

I still prefer the Clie for reading in bed (vs. using a book light with e-ink or paper); otherwise, I prefer the Cybook.

After almost a week with it, I find the Cybook to be comfortable to use in lower light levels, although I've learned that font family and size selection (one of the key Cybook strengths) is important.

Yes, one of the nice things about an eInk reader (and it's true for all of them) is that it's so easy to switch to a larger font in poor light - something you can't do with a paper book :).