Sony Readers Missing from Stores?

[mwheinz]

So, due to a complicated series of events involving a birthday and a broken Kobo Reader, I gave my PRS600 to my son yesterday, on the assumption I could walk into any number of stores and pick up a 650 - but both Target and Staples seem to have stopped carrying them and Amazon not only does not carry them, 3rd parties seem to be selling them at a big mark-up.

What's up? Is Sony discontinuing these models? Do I need to crack the DRM on all my books and switch to the Nook?

[Ripplinger]

Most of my local Best Buys still have the 350 and 950 in stock for $129 and $299. The 650s have been out of stock for quite awhile though. You can buy them from the Sony Store online but you need to check their site often for when they get some in and be quick, they sell out fast.

There's numerous threads about this issue in the forum already, probably on the first few pages.

[JSWolf]

The 650 is in stock now from SonyStyle in both black and red.

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/...52921666257807

[mwheinz]

Thanks for the tip but, perversely enough, my local Sony Style store appears to have closed - I'd have to drive quite a distance if I wanted to pick up a replacement today.

It was also the SS website that sent me on my futile quest to Target to pick one up the SS store said Target carries them, the lady at Target, on the other hand....

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by mwheinz

Thanks for the tip but, perversely enough, my local Sony Style store appears to have closed - I'd have to drive quite a distance if I wanted to pick up a replacement today.

Sony will ship to you. So go on and order it online and get it shipped to you.

[mwheinz]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Sony will ship to you. So go on and order it online and get it shipped to you.

I wanted to pick up a replacement today.

Paying extra for shipping so I can receive it next week doesn't really work since I'm leaving on a trip tomorrow.

[Ripplinger]

If it's a must for enjoyment on your trip, you might want to consider the 350 if you have Best Buys near you. I bought mine thinking the screen would be too small and I'd end up exchanging it for the 650 when they got them in, but I fell in love with the size of the 350 and wouldn't part with it for anything, I take it everywhere with me. And at the sale price of $129, it's a pretty good deal right now. It does everything the 650 does but no expansion slot and no audio, but since it's a reader that can still hold around 1200 books, neither one is an issue.

[mwheinz]

Originally Posted by Ripplinger

If it's a must for enjoyment on your trip, you might want to consider the 350 if you have Best Buys near you.

I'm going to take a look at the 350 over lunch.

Interestingly, there are a couple of reports stating that the 650 has been end-of-lifed, although Sony denied it:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Re...dition_PRS-650

http://www.mediabistro.com/ebooknews...-edition_b8225

As you noted, Sony claims the 650 just sells out too fast.

[Pomtroll]

I think the sony 350 is perfect for carrying with. I have larger e-readers & find myself reading more & more with my 350. Good luck & have a nice trip.

[mimosavj]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The 650 is in stock now from SonyStyle in both black and red.

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/...52921666257807

Thank you very much JSWolf. I bit the bullet again and ordered myself a RED 650. I'll keep my fingers crossed

[mimosavj]

Originally Posted by Pomtroll

I think the sony 350 is perfect for carrying with. I have larger e-readers & find myself reading more & more with my 350. Good luck & have a nice trip.

I like the 5" pocketbook360. But when I compared the 5" sony 350 with the 5" pocketbook, even with very similar font settings, the number of words displayed on the 350 screen "seemed" (I stress the word "seemed") 10%-20% less than on the PB360. I read a lot, especially thick books with thousands of pages, e.g. Haggard's volumes composed by HarryT, and the whole thought of scrolling through these monsters on the prs 350 is scarry (I tried, trust me!). That's why I sold the 350 and have just ordered the 650 in hope that with a bigger screen, these huge books won't be so much a menace. So I guess it's all depending on your reading habit.

[Prestidigitweeze]

I realize you were being polite, but the PRS-350 didn't just seem that way. It actually was that way.

For it to behave differently, I believe one needs to install PRS+ (or perform "the Bulgarian Fig Maneuver" or whatever it's called), load different fonts with one's virtual wheelbarrow and add css scripts via calibre. All of which is nothing for a veteran geek, I suppose, but makes many of us want to impale our corneas on tiny swizzle sticks.

[mwheinz]

Okay - just a heads up for everybody; when I went into Best Buy, the space for the Sony 350 was empty and there was a little sign on it that said "clearance" - so it does seem likely that either Sony is getting ready to replace the current models or else vendors just don't want to carry them any more.

[HistoryWes]

They may be clearing them out to make way for the Sony tablets. If so, it will be sad because the Sony Readers were really well made devices.

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/...haped-devices/

[mwheinz]

Originally Posted by HistoryWes

They may be clearing them out to make way for the Sony tablets. If so, it will be sad because the Sony Readers were really well made devices.

Agreed - that's the main reason I was still considering Sony despite their weak Mac support.