I got my wife a PRS-505 for her birthday. Bought it in November in the US.

Now we're in Finland. She leaned across her desk and placed her elbow on the case(Default brown case from borders). Very slight pressure on the screen.

And it broke.

Like really really broke.

And she cried.

Which sucked.

So, I suspect Sony won't fix it because it's not in the states and the screen is broken through normal use..

Any ideas? Is it ruined? It's got the classic "straight lines broken screen look".

Are all the vizplex devices this fragile? This wasn't dropping it or really putting weight on it, it was slight pressure with the included case around the unit.

That seems to be far too fragile.

I'd like one of these with a protective cover between the housing and the screen.

The old Reb 1100 and 1200's we had were built like tanks. Anyone make eink units like that?

Mine sits in my work bag most of the day, with various folders/cases etc. Can't say that i'm particularly careful with it. It's been fine so far.

I do have the M-Edge padded cover though.

Sorry about your wife's loss. I would cry too.

How sad. I think you might be able to claim on your house contents insurance if you have accidental damage cover.
In Europe you can order a replacement from Ebay. I bought mine from an Ebay shop, nearly a year ago.

After reading all the sad stories about screen damage on this forum, I got the extended warranty which I otherwise would not have done.

Sorry about your wife's loss. Most of us on this forum would get pretty emotional were that to happen to us.

Torsion on the screen is a sure-fire way to break any eInk device - it fractures the very thin glass substrate that's under the plastic outer layer of the screen. It's relatively immune to being banged or knocked around, but anything which applies pressure to a single point on the screen, or a twisting force (like putting your elbow on it) and it's "curtains" I'm afraid. To be fair, exactly the same is true of a laptop screen, but you're unlikely to put your elbow on that!

I agree that the device will take a beating. I have dropped my 505 from tables, backpack, briefcase at least 6 to 8 times. Each time I catch my breath and say a little prayer. So far no problem. It is in a standard Sony case. My wife placed some weight on her 500 and broke it. Sorry to hear.

my condolences to the dearly departed. It's gone to a better place :'(

If pressure applied to the screen breaks the 505, how do people safely carry it in backpacks, suitcases etc.? What about leaving it on your coffee table, is that dangerous?

Are there dedicated cases you can buy for the 505?

Any tips?

Really, the only thing you have to be careful of is putting pressure directly on the display.

That being said, I carry my 500 around in a hollow book (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?p=50275#post50275).

There's a link to the instructions here (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?p=50292#post50292), if someone wants them.

I carry mine in my shirt pocket (screen facing me) and am careful about leaving it laying around (don't allow it to have anything placed on top of it).

William

This is one of the reasons that a company like Rhino Skin need to make a rigid aluminum case for the Reader like they make for PDAs. It is a rigid aluminum case that folds back on itself for ease of use.

If pressure applied to the screen breaks the 505, how do people safely carry it in backpacks, suitcases etc.? What about leaving it on your coffee table, is that dangerous?

Are there dedicated cases you can buy for the 505?

Any tips?

If the Reader is in a bag or briefcase against a flat object like another book, laptop, etc., then the screen is completely protected from impacts. The cover itself provides some protection, because the screen is recessed a bit from the edges and the cover is slightly rigid.

If pressure applied to the screen breaks the 505, how do people safely carry it in backpacks, suitcases etc.? What about leaving it on your coffee table, is that dangerous?

Been carrying mine around in an external mesh on my laptop bag for ages without a problem. Usually goes in with the cover closed and face inward.

The screen itself is like any screen. Poke it hard enough and it breaks. Luckily for most people, it's fairly hard to do that since most accidents involve hitting the case before the screen (which lets the case absorb most of the impact).

As for the coffee table....depends. If you are worried about things like books and magazines getting piled on top, you would actually be pretty safe since the case would hold most everything away from the screen. But if you're worried about dropping smaller items on it (cans of soda, game controllers, very tiny frozen water buffalo, the hands of toddlers and drunken friends) then yes, it's dangerous for the reader.

If you find yourself REALLY paranoid about the loss of such a desirable object, do what we did here:

1) Slice open cover.
2) Insert thin aluminum sheet cut to a little smaller than the cover itself (we used titanium due to a scrap bin 6 feet from the office).
3) Reglue the cover and enjoy what is basically a bulletproof coat for your reader screen while closed. (NOTE: Do not use as an actual ballistic protection device. Do not use this modification if currently involved in a firefight. Void in parts of New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Terra.)

(we used titanium due to a scrap bin 6 feet from the office)Ah yes, I remember those sorts of bins. I used to work at a company that made machines that make microchips, and I got some very fun "trash" from that office. I have the world's most expensive trivet: it's a ceramic insert for a pedestal that's meant to hold 6" silicon wafers during metal deposition. Really high-tech stuff with a nice pattern of holes in it, very tough and probably cost over a thousand bucks for them to make at the time. It lives on the kitchen counter now. :pleased:

If pressure applied to the screen breaks the 505, how do people safely carry it in backpacks, suitcases etc.? What about leaving it on your coffee table, is that dangerous?

Are there dedicated cases you can buy for the 505?

Any tips?

Being a very recent, expensive, imported acquisition which hasn't yet got to the familiarity breeds contempt stage, I'm slightly paranoid about breaking the screen on my 505 - stories like the above don't help! I looked at all sorts of options but nothing seemed to work (mostly size issues). Then my better half came up with the idea of a jeweller's necklace box. I explained what I was after and why at the first jewellery shop I tried (Ernest Jones). The manageress initially said that they didn't sell the cases seperately, but proceeded to produce one from under the counter anyway, and it fit like a glove (PRS in leather cover). It's also extremely durable and has additional padding in the lid, which gives extra protection to the screen. Of course it's a bit more bulky than just the 505 in its cover, but I feel really happy that it will provide protection against quite a large amount of abuse.

The best bit was that the shop manageress was so pleased that I was pleased to have found something that worked, she said that I could have the case for a small contribution to the company charity :2thumbsup, I was more than happy to oblige :D

Are there dedicated cases you can buy for the 505?
I've got one of these (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showpost.php?p=74059&postcount=1), which I've not had much use of so far, but am off abroad next week, so will be using it then.

I also have one of those. It works great! Protects my PRS500 very nicely. Cheap to make, too. Brodart sells the polycarbonate DVD boxes at a quite reasonable price.

Xenophon

next time, suggest you also get this:

http://www.amazon.com/Executive-Case-Sony-Reader-PRS500/dp/B000RKU1G6/ref=rsl_mainw_dpl?ie=UTF8&m=A2L962U1HDIZM2

Thanks,
F.

Ah yes, I remember those sorts of bins. I used to work at a company that made machines that make microchips, and I got some very fun "trash" from that office. I have the world's most expensive trivet: it's a ceramic insert for a pedestal that's meant to hold 6" silicon wafers during metal deposition. Really high-tech stuff with a nice pattern of holes in it, very tough and probably cost over a thousand bucks for them to make at the time. It lives on the kitchen counter now. :pleased:

And much like "art", the only ones who know it's true cost and origin also know it's true value. (And are also the only ones who would believe you when you tell them what it's "worth".)

If you look on page 1 of this forum, you'll see thread "Praise for the Sony Service Center". The person was from Thailand and Sony resolved his issue. Perhaps you can try them. I love my e-reader, so I can imagine how disappointed your wife must be.