the product is flimsy
the customer service is sleazy
avoid it.
I will tell you the story later. I bought this product in late January and it was down in the mid-March. Within one and half month I lost $275.
the lesson I learned from this is:

1) Avoid those obscure manufacturers. Try to do business with dependable and mature manufacturers.

2) Don't rush into buying an E-book reader. The market is young and wild. Let's wait for sturdy products.

3) You cannot win your case for warrantee unless you can talk with the customer service face to face with the real thing in hand. They will not give you a reasonable diagnosis unless you can confront them face to face.

My experience with pocketbook reader is a nightmare. I am trying to forget about it. I have never been treated this bad.

I'm sorry you had a bad experience, but there are many, many people here who have positive things to say about Pocketbook. I love mine and am so glad I bought it after trying to decide which reader to buy for months.

Are you sure you're problems weren't with the last firmware update that screwed up some things?

I'm guessing no-one is going to take much notice of this post unless you give us details.

the product is flimsy
the customer service is sleazy
avoid it.
I will tell you the story later. I bought this product in late January and it was down in the mid-March. Within one and half month I lost $275.
the lesson I learned from this is:

1) Avoid those obscure manufacturers. Try to do business with dependable and mature manufacturers.

2) Don't rush into buying an E-book reader. The market is young and wild. Let's wait for sturdy products.

3) You cannot win your case for warrantee unless you can talk with the customer service face to face with the real thing in hand. They will not give you a reasonable diagnosis unless you can confront them face to face.

My experience with pocketbook reader is a nightmare. I am trying to forget about it. I have never been treated this bad.

Could you get a little more detailed, please? Since mid of last year, there was no heavy price change for Pocketbook readers. We always, always respect warranty, even to a higher degree than demanded by law. What exactly is your specific problem, maybe we can still arrange something that makes this experience a good one. Our support is also more than adequate.

Dear topic starter, thank you for your very detailed list of everything that's wrong with the PocketBook.

(But I have to remind you that April 1st was five days ago!)

I'm guessing no-one is going to take much notice of this post unless you give us details.
Ditto.
People posting this kind of topic rarely come back anyway...

Kind of suspicious this being the only post from this person and they're not even looking for help.

:dots:

-Marcy

Hi, Sorry for late reply. I posted this message in the early moring (1:00 a.m.?) Now I have time to answer details.
It is pocketbook 301 plus. I have done a lot of comparison before I placed the order. If not for this bad customer service, I should say pocketbook is really a nice product with very competitive feature/price ratio.

I received the order in late January. At the beginning, I love it very much. It start (or reboot) fast, the electronic ink display is crystal clear. you can re-orientate your PDF file on the screen to have a nice display with extra margine being cut off.

I took this ebook reader meticulously careful. I usually put it on the study table. Sometime I bring it to my office, put it in my backpack which is shock-resistant. I have attached the pocketbook to the black leather(?) jacket. I have never placed heavy stuff onto it. never have it fall down to floor.

But ten days ago, it suddenly was down. The screen glass is in perfect condition. But I cannot see any legible font on the screen except some stripes of gray color. lt is like your TV set suddenly lose signal and you can only see the stripes of color or snow dots.

When your TV can not show picture, You don't rush into the judgment that this TV has been physically damaged, right? You alter the antenna to receive the signal. I think what is wrong with my pocketbook reader is some internal program goes wrong and the manufacuture need to help me revamp the internal program.

I believe the physical condition of the pocketbook is perfect. The sales representative and their customer service insisted that there is crack on the screen and it has been mechanically altered by someone. They make their judgment based on the low-resolution picture. I see the device and see no cracks on the screen. Also I have never treated this device clumsily and heave-handedly. How could a e-reader cracked when you only push the button?

I believe my eyes, and don't trust their judgment based on picture of the blurred screen. So I mailed the device to the customer service, hoping them to see by their eyes and change their judgment, and, thus, honor their one-year warrantee.

Per my request, they sent this device to the third party repair man. I have no way to check the credential of the third party repair man. they forwarded me the email from the third party repair man, saying the device is physically damaged with crack on the screen. So they asked me to pay hundred bucks to repair it.

I would not pay and asked them to return it to me. I want to cut my lose earlier. Based on my conversation with the customer service, I don't believe they will look at the device and make a rational judgment. I want to meet them face to face to look at the device to see where is the crack. But I can not waste more dollars on this.

Let me be modest, I might have been wrong and the crack could be internal and cannot be detected by naked eyes. But I feel this device is so flimsy. You have a $275 device and you push button for two month, and suddenly it will not work any more. Is is reasonable?

I said the customer service is sleazy because of this fact: When I purchased this device, I cannot find any information about return policy from their website. I find they have not included the wall charger and SD card in the package. But on the box, it has been specified the package should include those things. Okay, I called the sales representative and he promised me to have those things send to me quickly. Ten days past, I have not received the charger and the SD card. I called them and asked why, the guy sternly denied my request and said he has never promised to send the charger and the card to me. I felt that I have duped by the sales person. But I will put it behind, it is not big deal to have the wall charger and the SD card. the sales person has made a mistake to check the package including charger and card. Okay. I will not be bothered by that, I really enjoyed the product in the first month. It is a solid product if not for the short life. the customer service could be superb if they have been straightforward and honored their words. Now the return policy is available on their website. it says you can not get full refund if you have past the fifteenth day since the delivery. I believed the sales person have made the false promise to have me keep the flimsy product for 15 days so I can not return it for full refund. I really admire their shrewdness.

I will be very glad to answer any further inquiry.

Hey, don't think it is an April Fool's day joke, I lost 275 bucks and it is no fun.

Sorry to hear this...
Where did you buy your PB from?
Thanks.

Sounds a bit odd and totally out of character for anything I have read so far about Pocketbook - could you let us know where you bought the Pocketbook? I am still toying with the idea of buying a Pocketbook because of the great customer service feedback I see here on the forum.

Yes I am surprised as well. I have a 360 though and do not know if they are perhaps a bit more sturdy?

It was my understanding that the Pocketbooks normally only come with a USB cable for transferring data and charging.

The screen problem does sound like an issue, I would think they should send you a replacement.

My Cool-er has been replaced two times, due to firmware issues, but no problems so far with my pocketbook 360.

I don't know of any companies that could properly service a e-ink device other than maybe Netronix? The manufacturer of the screens.

When you were having this problem with the screen were you able to talk to the device on your computer? ie could you still send it books etc.

Amy

Thank you for your interest, let me answer your question.

When the device was down, I tried to connect it to my PC to download the PDF files on the device. My computer can not recognize this device. I can not reach the PDF files on the device. This clearly showed that there is internal problem with this device.

I placed order at http://www.dulinsbooks.com/

I have had many email/phone communication with the sales person. I have tried hard to forget this and move on. But many people have their Ebook readers works very well for one year plus, Why should I have a device only work for 45 days?

below are pictures to show that the original package has been marked to include adapter (charger) and SD card

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3790.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3791.jpg
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3793.jpg

This is how the screen looks alike right now. Since it has been shipped back and forth, the stripes of gray color has become darker and denser than two weeks ago.
http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3798.jpg

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3795.jpg

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3794.jpg

I placed order at http://www.dulinsbooks.com/
Then perhaps your problem is with Dulin's Books and not with Pocketbook themselves. Who, exactly, have you been communicating with?

It's like me saying I'm having horrible customer service with my iPhone, and that Apple sucks, but I've never directly talked to Apples, I'm talking to the guy I bought my phone from.

So, is it Dulin's Books you're having the problem with or Pocketbook?

You say you've put it behind you, yet you sign up here and post in the Pocketbook forum telling us to never buy from Pocketbook. I understand your frustration, I really do. I'd be really, horribly upset if anything happened to my PB360, which I've only had for few weeks. We just need to sort out who, exactly, you have a problem with.

Good luck!

ETA: I just saw the pictures you posted of your screen. I am new to e-readers, but from the many photos I've seen of broken screen on Mobileread, yours definitely looks broken to me.

here is the device with the black leather jacket

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3800.jpg

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/cxiaowei08/kkk/100_3799.jpg

That looks to me like a broken screen. You can see some angled lines, and appear to come to an intersection above the 5-way button about 3/4 of the way up the screen. Kind of suggests that was the impact area.

Is this (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77420) the same device we were already talking about?

I would say that the screen is indeed broken from the pictures. I am guessing its problem is on the underside, I think there are a couple of layers to the screen.

I am surprised that the screen is having that issue. With my Cool-er I am not exactly as careful as I could be, I put it in my purse without a cover on a regular basis (I do not recommend this) but so far I have not cracked or damaged the screen, now when it comes to firmware I have had problems.

With the PB360 I think there is less chance of a damaged screen because of the cover it comes with.

Amy

I have to second pocketbook support, broken screen.
Either it was hit and you don't remember (I never knew how my screen was hit, though marks on cover and screen said so). Or maybe you got bad luck, and got a defective screen... Can happen too.

Anyway, screen need changing.

I am surprised that the screen is having that issue. With my Cool-er I am not exactly as careful as I could be, I put it in my purse without a cover on a regular basis (I do not recommend this) but so far I have not cracked or damaged the screen, no firmware problems I have had.
They are the exact same screens. And sometimes, breakage happens.

You should look at contacting pocketbook support directly. While you probably would still get charged maybe they can work a deal for you. You never know unless you try.

Worst case sell it on here in the flea market forum for cheap and let someone else pay for the screen to be fixed. That way you make a little money and someone gets an ereader that can be fixed for a fairly decent price. Win win.

Then perhaps your problem is with Dulin's Books and not with Pocketbook themselves. Who, exactly, have you been communicating with?

.

No, he has only communicated with me once via email after having already sent it off to be checked when he started having his issue. I said i would look into it for him. I haven't seen the device in person only in pictures. He has been dealing directly with PocketBook. But by the pictures i have seen it is clear that the display is indeed broken. From my experience it looks like it was broken from a twisting force. Others who have seen the pictures here on this forum have said as much as well.

I am not laying blame as to how or why the screen is broken only that it is. Whether its a defect or an accident will be difficult to decide and satisfy all parties. I am still talking with PocketBook about this.

Author, thanks for the thread.

Before you uploaded pictures of your devices screen, I did so in this same forum, in this thread, with the survey: http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77420 - folks say that this is a mechanical damage of the screen.
You had opinions from 3 different sources that this is the cracked screen, which is the case not covered by our warranty.
We may continue increasing the number of specialists that look at your device and all them will say the same thing - broken/cracked screen.
But, anyway, thank you for bringing this up - I'm sure, we'll get a number of positive feedbacks from those folks who also had our service and were extremely satisfied with it.:D

...
But, anyway, thank you for bringing this up - I'm sure, we'll get a number of positive feedbacks from those folks who also had our service and were extremely satisfied with it.:D

After reading the entire thread, I need to chime in on this comment.

Rangrang, I'm sorry you're having problems with your device and not getting the resolution you want/expect. I know that can be frustrating.

From my own personal experience, I have to say I am blown away by the customer service I've seen before, during and after the purchase of my 360.

Before I purchased it, I sent a bunch of email questions to the info email address. I asked about charge times, battery life, screen resolution, book formats, DRM issues, you name it, I covered it. I got fantastic help on all topics.

Once I ordered, they kept me in the loop as to when I would receive my 360.

After a couple months of hard use, my 360 developed a screen issue. Not a broken screen, but I had some trace lines across the screen which made it hard to read. I sent pictures to the info email alias and asked what I should do. They said to send it in and it would be covered by warranty. Upon sending the device in, they felt it was taking a bit longer than expected to repair, so they just sent me a new device rather than make me wait for mine to be repaired.

From my experience, I've seen nothing but fantastic service.

You had opinions from 3 different sources that this is the cracked screen, which is the case not covered by our warranty.
Why not, if indeed the screen was defective at first, as in Piscean's case.

I read the other thread as well and never saw the consensus that the crack was the result of owner mishandling. I did see a few posts saying the substrate could have been set incorrectly during manufacturing. It seems that it is not known exactly what caused the crack.

I read the other thread as well and never saw the consensus that the crack was the result of owner mishandling. I did see a few posts saying the substrate could have been set incorrectly during manufacturing. It seems that it is not known exactly what caused the crack.

For about 1.5 months the device was working properly. Then - a crack. This may not be called 'mishandling', of course, most probably, the owner was careful, but you never know when you break the screen - I had two screens broken, not knowing when and how, although I'm maniacally careful with handling e-readers - I know that they are really fragile...

Does anybody know of any electronics manufacturer that replaces cracked screens, no questions asked? I don't but I'm sure some must exist somewhere...
Just curious.

(No, I'm not talking add-on warranties at the retail level; those I know exist and are regularly abused for free "obsolescence insurance".)

Does anybody know of any electronics manufacturer that replaces cracked screens, no questions asked? I don't but I'm sure some must exist somewhere...
Just curious.
Lots of manufacturers do.
Like Sony. All you have to do is to purchase an "Accidental damage warranty". It works basically like an insurance.
If you purchase Sony Reader Pocket Edition for $199 you can purchase
# 2 Year Replacement Plan with Accidental Damage from Handling $39.99
# 3 Year Replacement Plan with Accidental Damage from Handling $69.99

I am pretty sure this "warranty" is done by a third party and PocketBook might consider doing something like that.
I think we have been discussing something like this before.

Please note, that in USA you usually get a few weeks warranty, not like here in Europe where we get standard 24 months warranty (and very strong consumer protection laws) AND ALSO significantly higher prices ;-)

A very similar thing has just (this weekend) happened to my husbands PB360 - a crack (well actually, a visibly damaged screen) appeared overnight while it was resting on the sofa with the cover in place.

I have had very good service from pocketbook thus far, and will wait and see what they come back with.

I hope there wasn't a faulty batch, because I'm pretty sure I got mine around the same time your got yours Karen. I'm getting a little worried. I am extremely careful with my PB360, if I'm not reading it the cover is always on. I pick it up and put it down very gently. I don't use it outside the house, although being portable that shouldn't be a problem.

Just how fragile are these devices? It never occured to me that a crack could just appear in the glass and ruin the reader.

The device has fallen multiple times in my case, one of them in the street when I was running (it skated quite a bit :D) and the snap-on cover has already its good scratches. But the device is working as usual and no damage in the screen.

The device has fallen multiple times in my case, one of them in the street when I was running (it skated quite a bit :D) and the snap-on cover has already its good scratches. But the device is working as usual and no damage in the screen.
Thanks for that, it seems it can withstand a fair bit of knocking about, then.

Thanks for that, it seems it can withstand a fair bit of knocking about, then.
The screen has a glass pane underneath.
A piece of glass can be very strong and damage resistant. A typical glass pane can withstand surprising amount of force or shock. But if you hit it "wrong way" even a relatively small shock can cause a crack.
a Prince Rupert's Drop is a nice - even if highly exaggerated - demonstration on how strong and how weak at the same time a piece of glass can be.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Rupert%27s_Drop
Very nice video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6V2eCFsDkK0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-GOwtikSO0


At the moment all e-ink screens have glass substrate. We have been waiting AGES for plastic based e-ink screens to enter the production.
We were told they should start production of plastic substrate 9.7 inch screens Real Soon Now (TM)
But do not hold your breath, it will be quite a long time before plastic based 5 and 6 inch screen start to be manufactured.

The 360° is a very sturdy thing indeed. Mine lived through a car crash with only a little dent in the joystick. As for screen breaking, none of the modern readers likes to be twisted in whatever way. Twisting = no good.

Thanks, kacir. I'll check out those videos later. I love your TM there :)

mtravellerh, I can imagine that twisting would be a bad thing, and can't even imagine why someone would do that. Glad your PB360 survived the crash, that's pretty impressive.

My FB360 is very durable. She survived more than a few drops, some splashes, a few twist (tested out of curiosity how durable would it feel), burden under piles of printed books, and so on. Got only some scratches and was froze twice.

a tough girl indeed...:chinscratch:

My FB360 is very durable. She survived more than a few drops, some splashes, a few twist (tested out of curiosity how durable would it feel), burden under piles of printed books, and so on. Got only some scratches and was froze twice.

a tough girl indeed...:chinscratch:

Please don't twist MM, seriously!!

Easy there...I just wanted to try "all the way possible" with my girl. I'm quite a tough user so I want to know how much she can bear. It's a fact I need to know by myself.

Not that I want to break my PB or something...

Last time I twisted something for the fun of it it was an original game (Civilization III) I had been lent. Cue forking up 50 euro to replace the damaged disk with a new one :smack:

From there on I learnt my lesson :)

Interesting to read this discussion. Never realized this was a hazard.

I prefer my PB 360 over the Sony 600 I had, but it does seem that Sony's metal casing does make sense then (even though I still prefer the weight advantage of the PB plastic casing).

Interesting to read this discussion. Never realized this was a hazard.

I prefer my PB 360 over the Sony 600 I had, but it does seem that Sony's metal casing does make sense then (even though I still prefer the weight advantage of the PB plastic casing).

I think the PB 360 is sturdier than the large majority of the devices, including Sony's.

No, he has only communicated with me once via email after having already sent it off to be checked when he started having his issue. I said i would look into it for him. I haven't seen the device in person only in pictures. He has been dealing directly with PocketBook. But by the pictures i have seen it is clear that the display is indeed broken. From my experience it looks like it was broken from a twisting force. Others who have seen the pictures here on this forum have said as much as well.

I am not laying blame as to how or why the screen is broken only that it is. Whether its a defect or an accident will be difficult to decide and satisfy all parties. I am still talking with PocketBook about this.

I didn't realize that Dulin's Books (http://www.dulinsbooks.com/) has no control over their sales representative in the US. The website has no phone number for inquiry. I got the phone number from the package and made a call. The guy who took my call is a sales representative, I assume. So, he handles my case and doesn't need to feel accountable for Dulinbooks.com. It is so unusual.

I emailed to Mr. Dulin to complain, and forward to him all the emails between me and the sales representative and have never received his response since then.

I don't know who should I talk to, somebody suggest that I talk to manufacturer - pocketbook reader, some suggest that I talk to those from which I ordered the device.

The retailer website specifies that the package should not include charger and SD card, but the manufacturer's package specifies it should include charger and SD. That's why I have run into argument with the sales representative the first week I received the order. I believe I was deemed as a trouble-maker since then.

My suggestions:

(1) streamline the package information so buyer not get confused.
(2) supply the return policy as earlier as possible so buyer can make a sound decision. In my case. I got the return policy two weeks after I have had the product in my hand. It is a good product, I can't believe it is so fragile and short-lived.

Friends:

I will not visit this post again. I will accept my bad luck. Hope my post can remind you to be more careful and gentle with your e-reader. I will wait for several months to find a really dependable E-Reader.

Author, thanks for the thread.

Before you uploaded pictures of your devices screen, I did so in this same forum, in this thread, with the survey: http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77420 - folks say that this is a mechanical damage of the screen.
You had opinions from 3 different sources that this is the cracked screen, which is the case not covered by our warranty.
We may continue increasing the number of specialists that look at your device and all them will say the same thing - broken/cracked screen.
But, anyway, thank you for bringing this up - I'm sure, we'll get a number of positive feedbacks from those folks who also had our service and were extremely satisfied with it.:D

I have ready many posts where other mfgs have replaced a screen where the cause did not appear to be owner mishandling (which you admitted there was no proof of)...maybe not technically covered but goodwill towards keeping customers long term.

While that type of service may be going above and beyond -and- not judging who is "right or wrong", I have to admit that this type of response is not one I would expect from a customer oriented company.

While I understand that upset customers can be frustrating to deal with, the sarcasm and glee in being right made me empathize with the OP more so than his case.

I'm glad others have reported having better customer service experiences.

While that type of service may be going above and beyond -and- not judging who is "right or wrong", I have to admit that this type of response is not one I would expect from a customer oriented company.



I have experienced this kind of service from companies in the past (not regarding an e-reader). Ive been told point blank that the issue isn't covered under warranty (that it wasn't hardware related etc) but they would fix or replace the hardware anyway. And its created a customer for life to these companies. Sometimes taking a small loss gives big gains.

So your point is a very good point.

OK,ok...

A little loss really might be a bigger gain, you're right....

Here's the suggestion to the author of the thread: we, as the customer oriented company, don't want to leave anybody unsatisfied, and suggest the following:

- you ship us your device back once again, we take the screen off and take a picture of the crack, to show you and the folks on this forum that we were right about our judgment eventually;
- we ship you a new device for free;
- we will not make it a practice of replacing broken screens, making a little exemption exclusively for this specific customer.

I made this offer publicly, on the forum, to avoid any misunderstandings, plus I'll send RangRang an email with the link to this thread, as I know that he said he left the thread and will not return to it.

RangRang, please let us know here whether you accept this offer.

Sincerely,

Yaroslav Bondarenko,
PocketBook-USA

Wow!!!


Seeing this shows real commitment to the customer. My second ereader is going to be another PB! Seriously.

The fact that they can individualise cases like this up the point of losing money should tell us that they trust their product more than a bit. Even so, I consider Yar's backdraft a bit over the top as well as Boston does. Nevertheless, the opening post has its deal of venom as well (the title, the vagueness of some details) so I guess it's a mistake from both parties.

May you come to an agreement for the best.

One point there : 99% of screen looking like that looks like that because they where hit / twisted, so, pocketbook's answer was the excepted one. Plus it's hard to tell exactly what happened, with only photos.
Then you can still speak right ? It's a shame the only way to do so seam to be a rant on a message board... Well, personally, I would have flamed support directly, no need to bother the entire earth.

But I can very well understand rangrang's frustration. In my case, the only reason I didn't yelled at bookeen where the marks on the cover, that told me the screen was indeed hit, even if I don't know when or how.

RangRang (like some news outlets) seems to have gotten the wrong impression somewhere that I am the producer or importer of PocketBook devices. I am not.

I have "no control" over the sales agent- in this case Yaroslav- because he doesnt work for me. I am a retailer of various devices.

Yaroslav works for PocketBook who produce several of the items I retail. He also sells directly from his website which is where this customer purchased his device.

When rangrang contacted me I did respond to his email and I had a conversation with Yaroslav about it. But i wont presume to tell Yaroslav what to do.

Wow..very nice comeback Yaroslav/Pocketbook!

Admittedly, I wandered into this forum because of the rave reviews of the PocketBook 360. It was at the first reader that's really tempted me as a replacement for my Sony. But admittedly, the tone of your post was a big deterrent from giving it future consideration.

While I can't justify purchasing a new reader right now (as much as I try :rolleyes:), your offer (and product) has definitely put me back on the potential future customer list. (But please don't feel the need to post pictures to prove you are right..its not the point or necessary as we weren't questioning the screen damage itself).

A company that listens to its customers is one that I want to do business with and you are clearly doing that :)

I have ready many posts where other mfgs have replaced a screen where the cause did not appear to be owner mishandling (which you admitted there was no proof of)...maybe not technically covered but goodwill towards keeping customers long term.

While that type of service may be going above and beyond -and- not judging who is "right or wrong", I have to admit that this type of response is not one I would expect from a customer oriented company.

While I understand that upset customers can be frustrating to deal with, the sarcasm and glee in being right made me empathize with the OP more so than his case.

I'm glad others have reported having better customer service experiences.

I very much agree with Boston. I think the way the Pocketbook representative handled this case---the tone, the fishing for public opinion in a very public forum when the Pocketbook representative should be the expert on this, or at the very least have a more direct and private access to that expertise---is in very bad form. If MobileRead admins are not yet aware of how the MR forum is being used in such a manner in this case, then they should be and, I think, create guidelines for cases like this. Without knowing what the "truth" is in the case of this damaged eBook reader, I too empathize with the OP for the way his case was handled in this forum.

We are all human and we all have our good days and bad days. Customers aren't the only ones that have bad days. And keep in mind we are all trying to communicate in the written word which is a mess to begin with. And keep in mind that some of these guys probably are doing this outside their first language (on top of it being the written word). Its the end result that matters. And its the end result that determines whether a company is customer oriented or not. The stuff that happens in the beginning and the middle a lot times is just human beings being human beings (wow those last five words are crazy), mis-communications and frustrations all heaped on top of the written word which is easily entangled all by itself when no emotion is involved.

So before anyone starts being the judgement police and handing out tickets. Keep in mind regarding the written word, human beings and the end result.

And keep in mind that some of these guys probably are doing this outside their first language (on top of it being the written word).

Good point...one I didn't consider

We are all human and we all have our good days and bad days. Customers aren't the only ones that have bad days. And keep in mind we are all trying to communicate in the written word which is a mess to begin with. And keep in mind that some of these guys probably are doing this outside their first language (on top of it being the written word). Its the end result that matters. And its the end result that determines whether a company is customer oriented or not. The stuff that happens in the beginning and the middle a lot times is just human beings being human beings (wow those last five words are crazy), mis-communications and frustrations all heaped on top of the written word which is easily entangled all by itself when no emotion is involved.

So before anyone starts being the judgement police and handing out tickets. Keep in mind regarding the written word, human beings and the end result.

That completely misses the point. The Pocketbook representatives or sellers chose to be in this business, where presumably they are making some profit. As a business, even if a very small one, I assume they must have some business philosophy and practices. If the way they handled this case reflects that philosophy and those practices, giving the customer support in the appropriate manner only when challenged, and using this forum as their platform to resolve an issue with a customer in their favor, then they do not inspire much confidence from me as a consumer. In fact, it smacks of a very bad business practice at least in this case, to be honest.

Their English seems fine to me.

Seabound, I can tell from experience that the modus operandi from Pocketbook people is far away from this exceptional blurt. Yar, Fork, mtravellerh and even the Guys from Kiev are very receptive to consumer's feedback and friendly people.

OK,ok...

A little loss really might be a bigger gain, you're right....

Here's the suggestion to the author of the thread: we, as the customer oriented company, don't want to leave anybody unsatisfied, and suggest the following:

- you ship us your device back once again, we take the screen off and take a picture of the crack, to show you and the folks on this forum that we were right about our judgment eventually;
- we ship you a new device for free;
- we will not make it a practice of replacing broken screens, making a little exemption exclusively for this specific customer.

I made this offer publicly, on the forum, to avoid any misunderstandings, plus I'll send RangRang an email with the link to this thread, as I know that he said he left the thread and will not return to it.

RangRang, please let us know here whether you accept this offer.

Sincerely,

Yaroslav Bondarenko,
PocketBook-USA
Wow! I'm impressed - I don't think any other company would make such a generous offer. My PB360 is an excellent device and I can recommend it to anyone interested in a compact, reliable, easy-to-use eBook reader.

Friends:

I will not visit this post again. I will accept my bad luck. Hope my post can remind you to be more careful and gentle with your e-reader. I will wait for several months to find a really dependable E-Reader.
It's a pity RangRang vowed not to re-visit this thread and see this generous offer - if no one passes the info on somehow it seems the bad luck will continue... :eek:

Rangrang accepted our offer and even generously has sent us some compensation for the new device.
We've sent him the new PB301. I hope it'll be working alright and nothing will happen to it this time!:)

Rangrang accepted our offer and even generously has sent us some compensation for the new device.

Yep a little loss will probably end up being the companies gain.

Not only did he compensate you guys a little something (which wasn't required based on your posts). But you have probably created a customer for life. Verse having a former customer who would never consider one of your products ever again. He will end up praising PB and probably end up giving you new customers.

Its a gain for everyone in my opinion. More companies should be this forward looking.

Guns4Hire, thanks!:)

Btw, the saga is not through yet... by our mistake the other (not new, but refurbished) device has been sent to Ragrang a week ago, which he noticed, quite fairly)
We apologized and have shipped a brand new device to him today.
I hope everything will be fine with this one)))

PocketBook WebSite declared : "PocketBook 301+ Black E-Reader is a highly reliable device with 6” screen and build-in mp3 player..".
I had PocketBook 301+ and it is not true. Just the opposite. Device is not reliable, warranty not comprehensive and repair is costly. I've treated this device carefully, but could not avoid internal screen crack. Warranty does not cover the screen problems and replacement of the screen costs $125 in the time when Amazon Kindle price is $139.

So buy a ##### kindle and have fun with Amazon's policies.

No warranty in this world covers broken screens. Period.

(gee, I ranted in my first post. Sorry. Well, hello!)

So buy a ##### kindle and have fun with Amazon's policies.

No warranty in this world covers broken screens. Period.

(gee, I ranted in my first post. Sorry. Well, hello!)

Hi Spirit. Welcome. We are used to people complaining about the broken screen and no warranty. I only can say that I a really sorry about this, but really: nobody covers broken screens (but I think there's an insurance for these special cases)

Hi Spirit. Welcome. We are used to people complaining about the broken screen and no warranty. I only can say that I a really sorry about this, but really: nobody covers broken screens (but I think there's an insurance for these special cases)

Warranty is not the problem, if reader is really reliable. I've liked this device and recommended it to my friends. Four of them bought PocketBook 301+ too. Two devices got broken screens during several months. I've used my device for 10 months. PocketBook says that reader is very reliable saying nothing about very fragile screen. It is just the trap for customers.

Warranty is not the problem, if reader is really reliable. I've liked this device and recommended it to my friends. Four of them bought PocketBook 301+ too. Two devices got broken screens during several months. I've used my device for 10 months. PocketBook says that reader is very reliable saying nothing about very fragile screen. It is just the trap for customers.

:rolleyes:

Warranty is not the problem, if reader is really reliable. I've liked this device and recommended it to my friends. Four of them bought PocketBook 301+ too. Two devices got broken screens during several months. I've used my device for 10 months. PocketBook says that reader is very reliable saying nothing about very fragile screen. It is just the trap for customers.

Fragility of the screen pertains not only to PocketBook reader, all these screens for all kindles, sonys and nooks of the world are manufactured on the same two facilities in Asia and have the same fragility as any e-ink screen, because they are made from glass.
I always tell my customers to be very careful with readers not to break screens...

Fragility of the screen pertains not only to PocketBook reader, all these screens for all kindles, sonys and nooks of the world are manufactured on the same two facilities in Asia and have the same fragility as any e-ink screen, because they are made from glass.
I always tell my customers to be very careful with readers not to break screens...

I say again PocketBook appears to be not reliable. Following text is taken from PocketBook Web Site: "PocketBook 301+ Black E-Reader is a highly reliable device with 6” screen ..". This statement is wrong.

I say again PocketBook appears to be not reliable. Following text is taken from PocketBook Web Site: "PocketBook 301+ Black E-Reader is a highly reliable device with 6” screen ..". This statement is wrong.

Yeah, rrright. But I've seen worse:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeVyOKq-KXU

I've made mistake about one year ago. I've recommended PocketBook to my friends. Three of them purchased this device. Two of them got broken screens after half year. Third PocketBook finished with broken screen today.

Good to hear it all turned out fine for RangRang.
The real problem with all these things is an absolute absence of trust between the Customer and Firms in general. And the reason that distrust exists is simply because the majority of Firms are EXACTLY like RangRang described.

That said... maybe RangRang has a pet cat and she sat on the device and RangRang never noticed. I wouldn't be suprised that most of the cases where people find their eReader suddenly unresponsive with a broken screen are indeed caused by Pets simply sitting down on these devices. They tend to be slightly warm when put aside right after use. Just the type of things cats love to sit on.

Fragility of the screen pertains not only to PocketBook reader, all these screens for all kindles, sonys and nooks of the world are manufactured on the same two facilities in Asia and have the same fragility as any e-ink screen, because they are made from glass.
I always tell my customers to be very careful with readers not to break screens...

You know, I've been a Pocketbook fan ever since they became available here in North America. I wanted a large format ereader, and they were the first to hit the market with a great reader at a good price. Ideally, I wanted a touch-screen, but because I'd just broken my previous reader, I wanted something now and wasn't willing to wait for the 903. Since then, I've followed the Pocketbook and eReader forums pretty regularly, and I can't believe how self-centred or rude some of the forum members are. Firstly, the Pocketbook is my seventh ereader, I wore out two, broke the screens on three and passed one on to a friend. Since I bought my 902 at the beginning of December 2010, I have not had one single issue with it. I have done all the firmware updates, I've loaded just about every book format, and nothing has gone wrong. In addition, I've dropped it a couple of times, once hard enough to cause the back cover to fly off, and it still functions perfectly, but that's just luck.

No other ereader manufacturer offers a "broken screen" replacement warranty, why would you expect it of Pocketbook? Given their record for providing firmware updates and encouraging us to suggest improvements, I'd say they're far, far better than any of their competitors! The Sony PRS505 and the PRS700 I had didn't get updated once in the three years I owned them, but we've already had three firmware upgrades for the Pocketbook.

From what I read on these posts, seems to me that most people just want something for nothing, and have nothing better to do than complain without justification.

Sure, I'd like to see all the improvements we've requested in the next release, and I'd like that release to happen tomorrow, but be realistic. I've been involved in the firmware testing environment in the past, and it takes a long time to test each feature after each change to make sure nothing "broke" in the old functionality.

Stop griping and start encouraging instead. The old saying goes "you can can attract more flies with Honey than you can with vinegar", compliments and neutral comments will gain more than constant bitching and harping about the same thing over and over again.

Give it a rest, folks! :angry:

You know, I've been a Pocketbook fan ever since they became available here in North America. I wanted a large format ereader, and they were the first to hit the market with a great reader at a good price. Ideally, I wanted a touch-screen, but because I'd just broken my previous reader, I wanted something now and wasn't willing to wait for the 903. Since then, I've followed the Pocketbook and eReader forums pretty regularly, and I can't believe how self-centred or rude some of the forum members are. Firstly, the Pocketbook is my seventh ereader, I wore out two, broke the screens on three and passed one on to a friend. Since I bought my 902 at the beginning of December 2010, I have not had one single issue with it. I have done all the firmware updates, I've loaded just about every book format, and nothing has gone wrong. In addition, I've dropped it a couple of times, once hard enough to cause the back cover to fly off, and it still functions perfectly, but that's just luck.

No other ereader manufacturer offers a "broken screen" replacement warranty, why would you expect it of Pocketbook? Given their record for providing firmware updates and encouraging us to suggest improvements, I'd say they're far, far better than any of their competitors! The Sony PRS505 and the PRS700 I had didn't get updated once in the three years I owned them, but we've already had three firmware upgrades for the Pocketbook.

From what I read on these posts, seems to me that most people just want something for nothing, and have nothing better to do than complain without justification.

Sure, I'd like to see all the improvements we've requested in the next release, and I'd like that release to happen tomorrow, but be realistic. I've been involved in the firmware testing environment in the past, and it takes a long time to test each feature after each change to make sure nothing "broke" in the old functionality.

Stop griping and start encouraging instead. The old saying goes "you can can attract more flies with Honey than you can with vinegar", compliments and neutral comments will gain more than constant bitching and harping about the same thing over and over again.

Give it a rest, folks! :angry:

+1 :2thumbsup:2thumbsup:2thumbsup

+2 :thumbsup: , but still, is a little buggy and I agree that I have not found all tis functions in other reader, expect the Onyx Boox A9XXX, those looks promising. +1 :2thumbsup:2thumbsup:2thumbsup

Hi Spirit. Welcome. We are used to people complaining about the broken screen and no warranty. I only can say that I a really sorry about this, but really: nobody covers broken screens (but I think there's an insurance for these special cases)

This is actually total bullshit from Sales Manager Europe PocketBook.

If they sell it in EU they cover broken screens. It is the law. If it breaks in 6 months seller has to prove that break was caused by user or they have to replace it. Saying "screens only broke if mishandled" is not a proof and I am quite sure it is a lie. Even then they would need to prove it was mishandled by customer and not manufacturer, retailer, delivery etc.

If they refuse to cover it contact your country's customer protection agency. They will tell what to do.

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexapi!prod!CELEXnumdoc&lg=en&numdoc=31999L0044&model=guichett

If they sell it in EU they cover broken screens. It is the law. If it breaks in 6 months seller has to prove that break was caused by user or they have to replace it. Saying "screens only broke if mishandled" is not a proof and I am quite sure it is a lie. Even then they would need to prove it was mishandled by customer and not manufacturer, retailer, delivery etc.

Just out of curiosity, how would a screen break without being mishandled? And if the manufacturer, retailer or delivery company mishandle a device, wouldn't you notice that when you use the device for the first time? Why would you need 6 months?

If they sell it in EU they cover broken screens. It is the law. If it breaks in 6 months seller has to prove that break was caused by user or they have to replace it. Saying "screens only broke if mishandled" is not a proof and I am quite sure it is a lie. Even then they would need to prove it was mishandled by customer and not manufacturer, retailer, delivery etc.

If they refuse to cover it contact your country's customer protection agency. They will tell what to do.

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/smartapi/cgi/sga_doc?smartapi!celexapi!prod!CELEXnumdoc&lg=en&numdoc=31999L0044&model=guichett

Kameli,

Warrany applies if the defect was already present when purchased.
You've got a broken screen when you are unwrapping the parcel? Good!
That's a warranty case. I don't think a broken glass (and i think it's common believe that glass doesn't break by itself, does it?) after a period of use is a warranty case ar all.

Just out of curiosity, how would a screen break without being mishandled? And if the manufacturer, retailer or delivery company mishandle a device, wouldn't you notice that when you use the device for the first time? Why would you need 6 months?

+1, because there is nearly no way to build a device in a way it breaks after a longer time. Except from pressure from the outside (pet / kid / glass of water...) the only way I can imagine to crack it is a tension inside due to sloppy assembling, but this would appear in the first few days of usage, and even Pocketbook (Germany) replaced readers when this happened.

Just out of curiosity, how would a screen break without being mishandled? And if the manufacturer, retailer or delivery company mishandle a device, wouldn't you notice that when you use the device for the first time? Why would you need 6 months?

Internal tension, impurity in glass. I believe there has been reports of micro fractures that are invisible at start that have gone worse etc.

Anyways point is that if I noticed problem within 6 months I do not need to prove problem existed when I got it. They have to prove that it did not exist. That is what EU regulations say. This really isn't at all about how it happened. It is about law that says it is covered under warranty unless they can prove I broke it.

That said... maybe RangRang has a pet cat and she sat on the device and RangRang never noticed. I wouldn't be suprised that most of the cases where people find their eReader suddenly unresponsive with a broken screen are indeed caused by Pets simply sitting down on these devices. They tend to be slightly warm when put aside right after use. Just the type of things cats love to sit on.

somewhat -->:offtopic:

Or bat around. Back "in the day" when 250GB external hard drives were the craze, I had one on a coffee table backing up the data on my laptop before a re-image. Stinkin cat jumped up on the table and knock the HD off. Thing fell 2 maybe 3 feet onto a thick carpet. Yup, you guessed, the hard drive was making clicking noises....trashed the HD completely.

And to re-iterate what's been said about displays....they usually aren't covered under the standard manufacturer warranty because it's "assumed" that it's user abuse.

i also am having problems with pocketbook's customer service. I've been trying to contact them for the last two weeks, but they don't answer their phone or return their emails. I have a pocketbook 360 plus. I thought the firmware update for the 360 was for the 360 plus since they look identical on the pocketbook page and the older version of the 360 is displayed on the first page of the support site on the american page. So I was able to load the firmware, but now it doesn't start. I have tried everything to no avail and now would like to get some help from the "experts" but it has been frustrating to say the least.
I do have a pocketbook 902 as well and am loving it. I am a little weary now to do anything with firmware updates though.
Good products, bad customer service in my opinion...So hopefully nothing will go wrong for you if you have one

i also am having problems with pocketbook's customer service. I've been trying to contact them for the last two weeks, but they don't answer their phone or return their emails. I have a pocketbook 360 plus. I thought the firmware update for the 360 was for the 360 plus since they look identical on the pocketbook page and the older version of the 360 is displayed on the first page of the support site on the american page. So I was able to load the firmware, but now it doesn't start. I have tried everything to no avail and now would like to get some help from the "experts" but it has been frustrating to say the least.
I do have a pocketbook 902 as well and am loving it. I am a little weary now to do anything with firmware updates though.
Good products, bad customer service in my opinion...So hopefully nothing will go wrong for you if you have one

PM me please

you are trying to contact service@pocketbook-usa.com ?

Fragility of the screen pertains not only to PocketBook reader, all these screens for all kindles, sonys and nooks of the world are manufactured on the same two facilities in Asia and have the same fragility as any e-ink screen, because they are made from glass.
I always tell my customers to be very careful with readers not to break screens...

I don't want to be nasty - and I've reconciled with the fact that my screen broke - no hitting, no dropping, very careful handling.

But what you said is JUST NOT TRUE!

Nobody (including you) warned me about extreme fragility of the screen. Of course, this is not in the vendor's interest. True - all these screens (including Sony and Amazon) are fragile, but:
these devices have a much better hardware design, in terms of screen support inside of the device.
The Pocketbook 301 design is very sloppy (look at this thread

http://www.the-ebook.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15118&highlight=astak+pocketbook

That's the statistics of broken screens according to the above:

200 PB301
110 Lbook V3
70 Sony PRS 505
30 Orsio B731
7 Sony PRS 900
3 Azbuka n516
couple of Kindles

Well, I regret having told all my friends that PB 301 is a wonderful device.

I thought if I ever decide to buy a PB again I would purchase an extended warranty - however, according to this thread it would not cover a broken screen?!
In this case, nothing I can do but give my money to Amazon.

P.S. Ironically, my husband's Kindle is alive and well even though he is not careful with electronics at all. He got even the USB cord torn somehow, while carrying it in his bag where he also throws the Kindle. The poor Kindle looks awful, but works just fine (knocking on the wood :o)

I don't want to be nasty - and I've reconciled with the fact that my screen broke - no hitting, no dropping, very careful handling.

But what you said is JUST NOT TRUE!

...

I am certainly not careful with my Pocketbook 302 and it's survived for 2 years. I'd have to disagree with your assessment.

BTW, why are you resurrecting a four month old thread and replying to a year old post? Starting a new thread would have been better.

BTW, why are you resurrecting a four month old thread and replying to a year old post? Starting a new thread would have been better.

He did: http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=159677

I am certainly not careful with my Pocketbook 302 and it's survived for 2 years. I'd have to disagree with your assessment.

BTW, why are you resurrecting a four month old thread and replying to a year old post? Starting a new thread would have been better.

This is not an assessment - this is an experience.
Someone will combine mine negative and your positive and make an assessment - and decide to buy or not to buy.

I added to this thread because it matches my problem perfectly, talking about the screens.
I still believe that the PB software is superior, if you want me to make an assessment. I am going to miss the dictionaries very much.
The hardware sucks though. It's just a plain fact.

And if your positive experience with 302 is the result of improvements made by the company rather that just a strike of luck - I will be the first to applaud.
However, the company representatives are silent, or are using the argument that everybody's screens suck, which is not true.

Companies who respect themselves and the customers use sturdier designs and don't give us hard time with screen replacements.

I am not really happy with the firmware updates - they often introduce new bugs - but I am not sure about the design. Two days ago my 602 fell off bed with one front corner hitting the wood floor first. The device was on at that time and it was not broken - just a little scratch on the plastic.

The new Kindle and Sony haven't won me over yet. I expect my 602 to last at least for 4 years before I upgrade it. Hopefully e-book readers won't cost more than 50 $ then LOL

This is not an assessment - this is an experience.
Someone will combine mine negative and your positive and make an assessment - and decide to buy or not to buy.

To buy Pocketbook readers in general, or just the 301?

And regarding the statistics on the broken screens: consider the location of the poster. It is possible that Russians are more interested in buying readers that can display Cyrillic characters, and if a kindle is broken, they probably get it fixed or replaced by amazon, not a third party tech guy.

As far as I know the "old" models 301/2 and 360 were not manufactured by Foxconn but another company (forgot the name), but that was changed because of quality issues especially with 301 .
As for the statistic i agree with Sil_lis. PB has ~50% market share in the Ukraine, followed by Sony and Amazon (numbers from 2/2011), so they are not really comparable to Europe or the US.

To buy Pocketbook readers in general, or just the 301?

And regarding the statistics on the broken screens: consider the location of the poster. It is possible that Russians are more interested in buying readers that can display Cyrillic characters, and if a kindle is broken, they probably get it fixed or replaced by amazon, not a third party tech guy.

Pocket book has almost 50 % of the market in Russia

To buy Pocketbook readers in general, or just the 301?

And regarding the statistics on the broken screens: consider the location of the poster. It is possible that Russians are more interested in buying readers that can display Cyrillic characters, and if a kindle is broken, they probably get it fixed or replaced by amazon, not a third party tech guy.

The quality of later products might have improved,
and the statistics is very approximate, that's true.

There is a practice, however, of recalling bad products.
Or fixing/replacing broken devices of that category - not just abandoning the customer: OK, our next product will be better, try again.

That's why I will go to Sony or Kindle the next time.
(Kindle shows Russian + other characters, it is easy to try and return, etc.)

Every company has growing pains. I've paid my share for the product to let them grow - and no "thank you", no apology.

It might sound naive, but that's psychology of a consumer: I'll go to Amazon, where they would apologize and replace a bad product.

The new Kindle and Sony haven't won me over yet. I expect my 602 to last at least for 4 years before I update it.

Alas, I had expected mine to last, too!
Good luck to you

(Going to Kindle in this case is like an unrequited love story - I love PB, but he/she does not love me, I have to get married with a second choice) :)

You'll go to SONY because you expect better customer care???



:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

I expect a better product - meaning a thoughtful design, not just pieces slapped together.
The hardware design and implementation is also a part of customer service - thinking in advance how to minimize disappointments and complaints.

The software features you can figure out with the forum help if not too laizy. Nothing you can do if your screen breaks because it was supposed to: with this design even pressing on a button disturbs the screen.

Of course, the case was not taken in consideration either.
It is soft - supposedly to cushion hits.
But for these thin and fragile screens it must have a hard layer - Kindle has it.
I don't think it's random - they must have put some thought into the case design as well.

Customer service is taking care of possible problems before they arise.
(I have no experience with Sony readers - but thanks to the PB experience I will consider all this before buying.)

Good luck with whatever device you will choose. After all, this is why it's good that there are many readers around.

I have to say I had a good experience with Pocketbook when my reader broke. I contacted them and mailed them my reader, they sent me a new one. My screen was broke, not sure how I managed that (well other than my using it all the time LOL) anyway they replaced it and had me a new one in a little over a week.

I am still happy with my little PB360, its stylish and I love the way the buttons are placed.

I am getting a Kindle Fire for Christmas, but it is more for its extras than for reading.

I think most of the companies have some user issues, in my case I am not surprised when I break my reader because I am at the very high end of user, I usually read 3 to 4 books a week. So by default I am going to break mine faster than someone who only reads a book or less than one a week.



Amy

I have to say I had a good experience with Pocketbook when my reader broke. I contacted them and mailed them my reader, they sent me a new one. My screen was broke, not sure how I managed that (well other than my using it all the time LOL) anyway they replaced it and had me a new one in a little over a week.

same experience with a PB360 in the UK - replaecd in to time, even before I sent the broken one back. The 360 is very well constructed, I even unwittingly threw it off a train platform, and it survived all right (and this was months ago): I have stopped counting the number of times my parter's one fell on the ground (must be at least 3 or 4), and it is still working perfectly. Of course, that is a small screen - I would not trust my 902 to fall, and I treat it with kid's gloves, but the build feels sturdy. HAving said that, I've never held a 301, so maybe that is a different construction.

360 is too small, 90x are too big.
301 now a piece of junk.
So, I had to get Kindle Touch - it's light and has many nice features.

Alas, no screen rotation (landscape mode) in this one, as opposed to Kindle 3 (keyboard) which is again too heavy to carry around. Returning makes no sense, especially since there are no other choices.

Now back to Pocketbook line - waiting for the promised 611. Hopefully it will happen, and Kindle will go to my mom for her birthday (will they manage it until May?)

Now back to Pocketbook line - waiting for the promised 611.
PB611 is already being sold here in Europe.

Kindle Touch is on its way back to Amazon - no landscape mode, resolution inferior to that of Kindle 3, scanned-image pdf can be zoomed - but the settings are valid only for the current page!?
That's why it's cheap...
Europe is on the other side of the Great Pond

Kindle Touch is on its way back to Amazon - no landscape mode, resolution inferior to that of Kindle 3, scanned-image pdf can be zoomed - but the settings are valid only for the current page!?
That's why it's cheap...
Europe is on the other side of the Great Pond

You could reconsider the 360 Plus. Compared to the 301:
- same resolution of 800x600, because the pixel density is higher (200 dpi instead of 166dpi)
- better processor (533MHz instead of 400MHz)
- more memory (128Mb instead of 64Mb)
- more storage (2Gb instead of 512Mb)
- no audio

I've taken my device apart. It turned out that I was both lucky and unlucky.
The display is well attached to the motherboard - with glue, not scotch as they showed on some sites. It was not supposed to break because of minor hits or pressure: the crack started from an edge - likely a (Chinese) manufacturer's defect, a disaster in waiting.

It should have happened just 3 months earlier.

(360 plus looks good - but just a bit too small for reading pdfs and djvu) :-(

P.S. I am going to try it anyway

LOL, the "Chinese" is something that must be identified if something goes wrong.

Could anyone recommend a good-quality reader that is solely made in the U.S. or Europe? I actually scratched the words "assembled in China" off the back of my 602. I like to be classy, not cheap. I wish my 602 was designed and made in a small town in Texas.

LOL, the "Chinese" is something that must be identified if something goes wrong.


Sorry for misunderstanding - I only said "Chinese" to set this defect apart from an assembly flaw. Not to say that "Chinese" is always "bad".

P.S. I am going to try it anyway

Good luck!

No reader is assembled in Europe or USA. It would be way too expensive.

After taken apart my PB 301+ I witnessed a sturdy assembly (well, putting it all back was easy and nothing broke - except the glass display/circuit board assembly when I tried prying them apart, based on the Web pictures, but my system was different with the glass glued to the circuit board).
All the buttons went right in place, the case holding tabs snapped OK, not fell off (had happened with other electronic devices).
The glass had initially a little crack starting from an edge: this could be an original glass manufacturing defect (the glass I think goes through thermo-processing, etc.)
It might have developed in a weak spot due to a pressure from a button (mine was close to a button). Or just by itself - being one of a bad lot.
I would not blame the assembly.

A little travel on the Web shows cases like that with different devices: you finished reading at night, wake up in the morning, open the book and see horrible screen streaks. Then you start believing in little green people :-)

No reader is assembled in Europe or USA. It would be way too expensive.

Dittobook was trying to do that with the D9 but it never launched

http://www.the-digital-reader.com/2010/05/16/dittobook-increases-production/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wCS_IoTm1No

edit- their book store is still open http://www.dittostore.com/

A little travel on the Web shows cases like that with different devices: you finished reading at night, wake up in the morning, open the book and see horrible screen streaks. Then you start believing in little green people :-)


Yes, the moment that you hit that glass substrate too hard that it breaks and the moment that it actually shows can be hours or days or even weeks apart. That makes it hard for disappointed owners of broken readers to understand that they must have done something wrong.

The wrong is so far not with us, but with the technology.

My conclusion: I would certainly buy another PB reader similar to the 301+ as soon as it hits the US market (being careful not to fall into another "Kindle" trap - the cheaper Kindle Touch was cheap for a reason, it's much much inferior for serious readers than the Kindle 3).
I hope Pocketbook won't make the new model a nicely packaged toy - chasing the competition.
Whatever I took for granted in the PB 301+ (multiple formats, scaling, landscape mode with its own scaling, customizable fonts, ergonomics) lacks in the competition.

- EZ reader: pros: fonts selection, scaling, landscape, reads multiple formats
cons: small screen, buggy software, not much development.

- Kindle Touch: pros: ergonomical, scaling
cons: bad resolution, no landscape, scaling is not remembered for the next page!

- Kindle 3: pros: ergonomical, scaling, landscape, good resolution, selectable fonts (normal, condensed, sans - at least that)
cons: scaling too rough - 100, 150, 200%

- iriver Story HD: pros: good resolution, multiple formats, landscape
cons: landscape scaling absent, portrait scaling very small.
No font selection (even condensed or sans can't be selected)
What spoils the good resolution in my view: the screen is a little darker in the background.
Firmware updates don't make much sense: a year ago people were complaining about the lack of zoom in the landscape mode, and the recent (October) firmware still did not address the problem.
OK, I don't want to hijack this thread - the conclusion that I made after this accidental crash course in e-readers: I would buy a Pocketbook model again, if they keep making devices for a serious reader.

My conclusion: I would certainly buy another PB reader similar to the 301+ as soon as it hits the US market
Today I got chance to play with PB360+
Very nice machine. Very light 5 inch reader, that doesn't feel cheap in your hand. The same fantastic snap-on lid that the original PB360 had, but without embossed ornaments - I like that. Once I extracted extensions.conf from the inside of machine, installed third-party FBReader and CoolReader it is as close to perfect as they get.


It is my understanding that PB611 has the same type of firmware.