On 23 January 09 I purchased my 3rd E-book a Cybook Gen3 unfortunately yesterday it developed the same fault (a crazed screen) as my two previous purchases Sony 500 and Jetbook. After spending obscene amounts on shipping charges to return them, Sony did offer me a refund which I accepted. Jetbook claimed that the unit was broken when it arrived at there service centre, a dubious claim I might add given the amount of bubble wrap I used.
Am I just unlucky? or is the technology unstable, whatever, if Bookeen cannot or will not fix this one its a return to paperbacks for me. I shall miss you guys
Keith

Welcome to MobileRead, Khlong9.

I'm sure you be getting many opinions here shortly.

Lots of knowledgeable folks around.

Is it going through a lot of customs (I see you are in Thailand)?

I had it delivered to my UK address when I was there in January
Keith

Broken screen substrates are caused by mechanical impact to the device. Sounds like it's getting "bashed around" somehow. That's very unfortunate - broken screens are rare; to suffer three of them is just awful.

Perhaps they're not so rare then.

You should review your reading habits. Where and how you read. Where do you keep the ereader. Do you take him with you on your daily activities? Where, in a bag? Does it have a cover? Are you the only one using the device?

Perhaps they're not so rare then.

Well, not for Keith unfortunately. :(

But if we are going to have one person's experiences serve as the standard, my use indicates a 0% chance of e-ink screen breakage. ;)

On 23 January 09 I purchased my 3rd E-book a Cybook Gen3 unfortunately yesterday it developed the same fault (a crazed screen) as my two previous purchases Sony 500 and Jetbook. After spending obscene amounts on shipping charges to return them, Sony did offer me a refund which I accepted. Jetbook claimed that the unit was broken when it arrived at there service centre, a dubious claim I might add given the amount of bubble wrap I used.
Am I just unlucky? or is the technology unstable, whatever, if Bookeen cannot or will not fix this one its a return to paperbacks for me. I shall miss you guys
Keith


Seems like you're unlucky, unless you can indentify a common method of use that you have put all three of them too.

Dropping back to pbooks is NOT an excuse to not keep popping into MR....

You are either very unlucky, or there's something you're doing that is causing stress to the screens sufficient to break them.

Sometime this year, ebook readers with plastic screens should start appearing. These are much less likely to break than the current screen with a glass substrate. Perhaps you should wait for one of them.


On 23 January 09 I purchased my 3rd E-book a Cybook Gen3 unfortunately yesterday it developed the same fault (a crazed screen) as my two previous purchases Sony 500 and Jetbook. After spending obscene amounts on shipping charges to return them, Sony did offer me a refund which I accepted. Jetbook claimed that the unit was broken when it arrived at there service centre, a dubious claim I might add given the amount of bubble wrap I used.
Am I just unlucky? or is the technology unstable, whatever, if Bookeen cannot or will not fix this one its a return to paperbacks for me. I shall miss you guys
Keith

On 23 January 09 I purchased my 3rd E-book a Cybook Gen3 unfortunately yesterday it developed the same fault (a crazed screen) as my two previous purchases Sony 500 and Jetbook. After spending obscene amounts on shipping charges to return them, Sony did offer me a refund which I accepted. Jetbook claimed that the unit was broken when it arrived at there service centre, a dubious claim I might add given the amount of bubble wrap I used.
Am I just unlucky? or is the technology unstable, whatever, if Bookeen cannot or will not fix this one its a return to paperbacks for me. I shall miss you guys
Keith



Just because you won't currently have a dedicated ebook Reader doesn't mean you have to be a stranger! :)

You can visit and make comments and generally keep abreast of news and technology - all in one convenient place.


Don

I would like to thank all of you for your reply's I really appreciate it, and as they are all all of a similar theme it's got me thinking that it must be something that I am doing wrong. I'm certainly not dropping them, the only answer I've come up with so far is that often I wear trousers that have a large pocket in the leg just the right size to take a reader is it feasible that it could be banging against my leg when I walk? An occasional introspection can it seems be of value and with regard to my comments on leaving MR by your leave I wish to take them back as they were just a stupid display of my frustration
Keith

Maybe it's not the banging against your leg, but some flexing it's being subjected to. Glass doesn't bend.

And -- even if you've given up on dedicated reading devices for a while, you can still hang around with us and chat about books and the evolving technology. Maybe a PDA-sized device would fit your usage a little bit better than the larger readers until such time as a plastic screen is available.

Perhaps a PDA-sized device is good idea as I know absolutely nothing about them can you recommend one to me please
Keith

Perhaps a PDA-sized device is good idea as I know absolutely nothing about them can you recommend one to me please
Keith
Unfortunately, I don't know much about them. I have a Blackberry -- older version -- which is also my phone. There are others here who have a lot more experience with PDA-type devices and smart phones. You might also check the Wiki to see if there's enough info there to help.

Perhaps a PDA-sized device is good idea as I know absolutely nothing about them can you recommend one to me please
Keith

Well, I have Palm TX and it's quite ok - apart from very short battery life compared to einks. And that's the main drawback imho, since I don't mind backlit screen that much. Other people use/used Axim-s, Hp-s, etc.

I dream of device with fast, non-breakable screen, some sort of wireless connectivity (wifi would be great), input area with touchscreen - and great battery life :book2:

DrS

Perhaps a PDA-sized device is good idea as I know absolutely nothing about them can you recommend one to me please
Keith

Something like a Pocket PC will give you great flexibility in terms of the reading applications you can put on it. Try to find a full VGA-resolution one, such as the Dell Axim or HP iPaq; that gives you a very clear image. I have an iPaq 4700 which works very well as a reader.

I would like to thank all of you for your reply's I really appreciate it, and as they are all all of a similar theme it's got me thinking that it must be something that I am doing wrong. I'm certainly not dropping them, the only answer I've come up with so far is that often I wear trousers that have a large pocket in the leg just the right size to take a reader is it feasible that it could be banging against my leg when I walk? An occasional introspection can it seems be of value and with regard to my comments on leaving MR by your leave I wish to take them back as they were just a stupid display of my frustration
Keith


Do you have them in a case?

yes GoeffC I had all of them in a case

Perhaps a PDA-sized device is good idea as I know absolutely nothing about them can you recommend one to me please

I'm using a Dell Axim x51v at the moment, which is quite usable as an eBook reader, thanks to the resolution of 640x480. However, I am going to switch to a Nokia N810 because it has a higher resolution (800x480) and other features I'd like to have. Its predecessors (N800 and 770 (without an "N")) are quite cheap to get (<100$ at ebay) and offer the same resolution. They receive good reviews all over the net as eBook readers (well, at least what I could find).

also, Ipod touch is probably the best Ebook Reader in the category if you dont care about mobi Pocket.

putting it in your pants pocket is a major thing, every time you sit down or bump into something, CRACK.

I used to keep mine in my jacket pocket, then i thew my jacket on my bed, then my girlfriend threw herself on my bed, and broke my reader, the PRS-500.

This led to the habit of the first thing i do when i get in my room is take my reader out of my breast pocket.