PRS-600 e-Ink Power Consumption

[bakura82]

So, I was thinking about how I think e-Ink works and went to this site to confirm it. They said that, "Electronic ink ... requires no power to maintain an image." If this is true, I was wondering if I could leave my PRS-600 on all the time. My habit it to always turn off electronics, but if I understand this technology right, powering off only removed the elements from the screen and that's it. Is it actually powering off anything else?

All in all, I am just trying to figure out if there is a good reason to shut off the reader. If not, I will probably leave it running. Any experts out there have a thought on this?

Thanks.

[emonti8384]

When you turn the reader off by the switch it doesn'y actually turn off; it goes into, I don't know what you would call it, like a sleep mode. A lot of people here do it that way. Or you can shut it down (actually turn it off) by holding the power switch over until you get the message,"Are you sure you want to shutdown the device?" If you hit yes wait a minute and it will completely shut off. When you turn it on it will take about minute to get to the main menu or wherever it starts up at.

I don't usually fully shut mine down, I just put it into "sleep mode." I don't really notice anything crazy with the battery, I usually charge it once every week and a half, or twice a week if I listen to a lot of music while I'm reading.

Hope this answers your question!

[bakura82]

Thanks. Funny thing is, from the time I posted this until just a few seconds ago, it went to sleep by itself! lol. So much for leaving it with the display on. My only wish if that I could hit a key on the face to turn it back on. My case covers the switch and I have to undo a strap every time i want it back on.

[Solitaire1]

From what I understand, although it takes no power to maintain an image on the screen in eInk, the ereader's processor does run and consumes power. This results in a small but steady drain on the ereader's battery even without turning the epages (it also occurs if you put the ereader to sleep). This could be a reason to power off your reader if you are not going to use it for a long time, especially if don't have a ready way to charge it.

[lilac_jive]

They go into sleep after an hour of non-use. You should shut it off fullly if you aren't going to be using it for a while, because the battery will drain slowly. I've actually never shut my reader down after almost two years of owning it.

[bakura82]

Cool. Thank folks.

[Mike_73]

The manual states that by default it goes into sleep mode after 1 hour unless the reader is connected to a running pc or you are listening to music. The default can be changed though. I just don't know if you can make it stay on all the time. I'm not completely shutting off either, and I have a run time of about 1 1/2 weeks like stated by others. I just wonder how much longer it would run if I turned it off completely. There would be the startup minute then though.

[DrZoidberg]

I've found that the power drains even when I'm not changing pages. Not much, but still does it to a noticeable level. I have no idea why.

[jamadams]

Originally Posted by DrZoidberg

I've found that the power drains even when I'm not changing pages. Not much, but still does it to a noticeable level. I have no idea why.

See the reply above. Whilst it doesn't need power to maintain the screen, the operating system is still ticking away in the background, draining power slowly.

[warrend405]

What is the impact of a memory card. I've read there isn't much impact but the battery seems to drain faster when I have one in regardless of whether I use it.

[Kolenka]

There will be a small drain to keep it powered, but I'm still wondering if there is a bug with the 600. I never saw such a drop with either the 505 or 900 using both an SD card and a MS Pro Duo.

[gchase]

Hi .... I'm new to the forums. Great info here. I have a PRS-600 and I have noticed that the power usage goes up when I have an SD card plugged in. Not a lot but it is noticeable. I'm a Linux nut and got the reader on Christmas day so immediately found Calibre ... cool. I love the reader and have probably read 25 novels on it already. I also noticed that a normal USB cable is all you need to charge it on a computer so if it runs short of juice while I'm on my way to work, I just hook it up to my computer at work while I'm doing other things.

[bakura82]

because I still plug it in daily, I am not sure when I will actually get to test and see how long it lasts. Like you though, I have an SD card inside.