Cheap, durable ereader

Grayle · 07-23-2011, 12:21 PM

Hey guys,

my sister is in the market for an e-reader, and has turned to me to help her in her quest. All she really needs it for is reading ePubs, BUT, we live in Belgium and about half of her books are in Dutch meaning she buys them from local online stores. ECI Club mostly. I assume they just mail the ePub file, and I have no idea if it's DRM protected or what have you. They don't have a custom eReader, so I imagine they'd be DRM free and she could just drag 'n drop them onto whatever reader she buys, right? Or are readers such as the Kobo and Nook configured in such a way that only books bought from their stores can be put on them?

Secondary uses would be reading DOC(x) and PDF files for school. She might go for a touch screen, if she can then use the eReader to take notes and basically replace the notepad and pen.

But most importantly is that it does what it needs to do well: read books. She was looking at the iRiver Story HD, but apparently it'll sometimes forget what page it was on, or what magnification level was used and really, if it can't even do that then what's the point. If she can have some file management system on the eReader itself that'd be swell, so she can keep her school files, Dutch books and English books separate and easy to find.

In summary:

needed:
Pearl e-Ink screen
No glare, so no first-gen touchscreens
Must be able to drop any ePub file she has onto it without much hassle, she will rarely buy from the "big" suppliers like Amazon or... whatever else there is.
Sturdy, or at least it shouldn't disintegrate the first time she throws it in her backpack.

Important:
Reads PDFs and DOC(x) well
File management system

Would be nice:
Use it to replace notepad and pen, so a fully featured notetaking and underlining in PDF and DOC files machine.

price range: €150-230ish. But just suggest what comes to mind, really.

jbcohen · 07-23-2011, 12:36 PM

I have spoken to a lot of people and they have told me there is one electronic reader that specializes in non-English books, that's the bookeen, I do not think that it happens to be one of the cheaper ones but it certainly supports many different spoken languages. http://www.bookeen.com/en/cybook/?id=2

robko · 07-23-2011, 02:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grayle

In summary:
needed:
Sturdy, or at least it shouldn't disintegrate the first time she throws it in her backpack.

Realize that this is pretty much impossible for all current readers without some care. If it's going into a backpack you're going to want a hard cover case (not just a leather sleeve type of case) of some sort or you're asking for a broken screen (from something pushing into it or from twisting the case of the reader).

I have a Kobo Touch and love it. It will allow you to directly add your own fonts (basically drag and drop) so I think that would let you read the Dutch books. E-pub friendly - drag and drop if they aren't DRM, Adobe loadable if they are. No e-reader is perfect for PDF and depending what you like Kobo is good or bad. It doesn't reflow so you may have to scroll around to read. This is good if you have table or diagrams that you don't want ripped apart by reflow. I haven't used reflow capable reader, but it will reformat pdf text (assuming it was OCR'ed and not just scanned as an image) fit the screen.
Kobo doesn't currently have options for organizing, but it may come in future as they have been very good about adding features (no guarantee).

Lots of info in the forums here to see what features are offered on each.

Dulin's Books · 07-23-2011, 02:19 PM

There are no ebook readers that meet your criteria. There is no Pearl display ereader directly available to you that supports Doc(x) and PDF for €150-230ish, especially with underlining /highlighting ability with a pen.

The only one that is close would be the Onyx Boox A60 "Hamlet" Series which goes for about €200

Its meets all your criteria but is only currently available from the Russian distributor
http://www.onyx-boox.ru/boox_a61s_hamlet
http://www.onyx-boox.ru/boox_a61s_bianca

they might sell you one but the only way to find out is tho contact them directly.

The Onyx Boox A60 and its branded clones are excellent readers. The firmware is very mature and stable and offers everything you are asking for. The pearl display versions are just launched and should be just as superb. Of course they support multiple languages and its just a settings change to fix the UI to English.

Dulin's Books · 07-23-2011, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robko

Realize that this is pretty much impossible for all current readers without some care.

Not the case actually. Onyx is very fond of showing of the ruggedness of the A60 and X60 design by dropping them to the floor over and over again

at about 1:30 mark

I have also dropped my own PocketBook 360 on several occasions with no breakage, once even onto the brick fireplace from about 4 ft.

here also is the NextPapyrus PageOne being drop tested. Its only available in Korea

robko · 07-23-2011, 02:34 PM

Fair enough. I have dropped my Kobo Wifi a number of times and even put a dent in the one corner when it fell on a hardwood floor and it still works fine. I have no doubt that there are variations in ruggedness between brands, but I wouldn't feel comfortable regularly putting any of them in "hostile" environment unprotected and not expect to run into an issue eventually.

carpetmojo · 07-23-2011, 02:50 PM

Play safe - paperback and a torch (covers all eventualities.....)

Grayle · 07-23-2011, 05:59 PM

That Onyx Boox looks interesting. Especially because it seems to be a BeBook Neo which is readily available here, or rather, the BeBook Neo is a branded Onyx Boox with different firmware (seems to be able to handle less formats for some reason). Although they're interchangeable, if this site is to be believed. Booxusers seems to be down so no idea how to run the Onyx 'OS' on a BeBook Neo.

Quick question: can you also make notes on PDF files, or only on "books" and, I assume, a separate sketching app of sorts?

Dulin's Books · 07-23-2011, 08:56 PM

Yes Bebook Neo is a branded Onyx Boox. but the Neo and the Boox available outside of the Russian distributor do not have the pearl display yet. I've just had an email today that says my distributor is out of Boox A60 and X60 and will be until Aug 20th. Im waiting for a reply to find out if the new batch will be the pearl display or more of the Vizplex display.

Yes you can scribble right on a PDF. You can even zoom in scribble and then zoom back out and the scribble will reduce in size with everything else- it does not stay with the pdf if you move the pdf back to a pc or print it but there are ways to export it separately

Booxusers is a great user community. Lots of good information there and yes the firmware is interchangeable and it is easy to do.

I was actually on Booxusers myself this morning, Im sure the down time is temporary.

ucfgrad93 · 07-23-2011, 10:30 PM

I have dropped my K2 from about waist height on to a hardwood floor with out any damage.

Dulin's Books · 08-26-2011, 08:45 AM

Update!

Very excited to announce that the improved Pearl display version of the Boox A60 is now in the US and available from our store.

KunoK · 08-26-2011, 05:53 PM

I disagree, that the boox software is that mature. My boox is the one with the least mature software and I am on the latest release from the onyx site. Here are examples of problems I have:
The interface for the dictionary lookup is clumsy. Even though the boox has a touch screen and the kindle doesn't, it is easier to look up words on the kindle.
Sometimes the dictionary stops working, then I can fix by going to the main menu then into the book again.
When I try to go to the contents for an Oreilly book I have, the boox crashes.
For the Sherlock Holmes omnibus from this site, one of the short stories, doesn't display the last couple of pages.
The formatting problems are only seen on the boox, the same displays correctly on my cyborg gen3 and on calibre on my pc.

Rizla · 08-26-2011, 09:08 PM

You might consider a Sony x50. The most sturdy of ereaders. Includes Dutch->English English->dictionaries. Handles PDFs as well if not better than any other 5-6 inch ereader and includes high-lighting. Concert Doc(x) to RTF or Epub. Add Prs+ to get a file management system. Includes note taking. Not sure about the price though...Oh, and Sony should be announcing a new model early September so you might want to wait for the new model or reduced prices on the existing models.

07-23-2011, 12:21 PM	#1
Grayle Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: none	Cheap, durable ereader Hey guys, my sister is in the market for an e-reader, and has turned to me to help her in her quest. All she really needs it for is reading ePubs, BUT, we live in Belgium and about half of her books are in Dutch meaning she buys them from local online stores. ECI Club mostly. I assume they just mail the ePub file, and I have no idea if it's DRM protected or what have you. They don't have a custom eReader, so I imagine they'd be DRM free and she could just drag 'n drop them onto whatever reader she buys, right? Or are readers such as the Kobo and Nook configured in such a way that only books bought from their stores can be put on them? Secondary uses would be reading DOC(x) and PDF files for school. She might go for a touch screen, if she can then use the eReader to take notes and basically replace the notepad and pen. But most importantly is that it does what it needs to do well: read books. She was looking at the iRiver Story HD, but apparently it'll sometimes forget what page it was on, or what magnification level was used and really, if it can't even do that then what's the point. If she can have some file management system on the eReader itself that'd be swell, so she can keep her school files, Dutch books and English books separate and easy to find. In summary: needed: Pearl e-Ink screen No glare, so no first-gen touchscreens Must be able to drop any ePub file she has onto it without much hassle, she will rarely buy from the "big" suppliers like Amazon or... whatever else there is. Sturdy, or at least it shouldn't disintegrate the first time she throws it in her backpack. Important: Reads PDFs and DOC(x) well File management system Would be nice: Use it to replace notepad and pen, so a fully featured notetaking and underlining in PDF and DOC files machine. price range: €150-230ish. But just suggest what comes to mind, really.

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07-23-2011, 12:36 PM	#2
jbcohen Wizard Posts: 3,025 Karma: 11196738 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Piper College Device: Samsung A21	I have spoken to a lot of people and they have told me there is one electronic reader that specializes in non-English books, that's the bookeen, I do not think that it happens to be one of the cheaper ones but it certainly supports many different spoken languages. http://www.bookeen.com/en/cybook/?id=2

07-23-2011, 02:19 PM	#4
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	There are no ebook readers that meet your criteria. There is no Pearl display ereader directly available to you that supports Doc(x) and PDF for €150-230ish, especially with underlining /highlighting ability with a pen. The only one that is close would be the Onyx Boox A60 "Hamlet" Series which goes for about €200 Its meets all your criteria but is only currently available from the Russian distributor http://www.onyx-boox.ru/boox_a61s_hamlet http://www.onyx-boox.ru/boox_a61s_bianca they might sell you one but the only way to find out is tho contact them directly. The Onyx Boox A60 and its branded clones are excellent readers. The firmware is very mature and stable and offers everything you are asking for. The pearl display versions are just launched and should be just as superb. Of course they support multiple languages and its just a settings change to fix the UI to English.

07-23-2011, 02:34 PM	#6
robko Wizard Posts: 2,454 Karma: 5469320 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: Kobo	Fair enough. I have dropped my Kobo Wifi a number of times and even put a dent in the one corner when it fell on a hardwood floor and it still works fine. I have no doubt that there are variations in ruggedness between brands, but I wouldn't feel comfortable regularly putting any of them in "hostile" environment unprotected and not expect to run into an issue eventually.

07-23-2011, 02:50 PM	#7
carpetmojo Wizard Posts: 3,117 Karma: 9269999 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: UK Device: Sony- T3, PRS650, 350, T1/2/3, Paperwhite, Fire 8.9,Samsung Tab S 10.5	Play safe - paperback and a torch (covers all eventualities.....)

07-23-2011, 05:59 PM	#8
Grayle Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: none	That Onyx Boox looks interesting. Especially because it seems to be a BeBook Neo which is readily available here, or rather, the BeBook Neo is a branded Onyx Boox with different firmware (seems to be able to handle less formats for some reason). Although they're interchangeable, if this site is to be believed. Booxusers seems to be down so no idea how to run the Onyx 'OS' on a BeBook Neo. Quick question: can you also make notes on PDF files, or only on "books" and, I assume, a separate sketching app of sorts?

07-23-2011, 08:56 PM	#9
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	Yes Bebook Neo is a branded Onyx Boox. but the Neo and the Boox available outside of the Russian distributor do not have the pearl display yet. I've just had an email today that says my distributor is out of Boox A60 and X60 and will be until Aug 20th. Im waiting for a reply to find out if the new batch will be the pearl display or more of the Vizplex display. Yes you can scribble right on a PDF. You can even zoom in scribble and then zoom back out and the scribble will reduce in size with everything else- it does not stay with the pdf if you move the pdf back to a pc or print it but there are ways to export it separately Booxusers is a great user community. Lots of good information there and yes the firmware is interchangeable and it is easy to do. I was actually on Booxusers myself this morning, Im sure the down time is temporary.

07-23-2011, 10:30 PM	#10
ucfgrad93 Wizard Posts: 2,360 Karma: 9026681 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Colorado Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2nd Gen	I have dropped my K2 from about waist height on to a hardwood floor with out any damage.

08-26-2011, 08:45 AM	#11
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	Update! Very excited to announce that the improved Pearl display version of the Boox A60 is now in the US and available from our store.

08-26-2011, 05:53 PM	#12
KunoK Connoisseur Posts: 63 Karma: 558 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Device: Gen3, Boox 60, K3, Sony T1, Sandra has a Sony505, 650, K3	I disagree, that the boox software is that mature. My boox is the one with the least mature software and I am on the latest release from the onyx site. Here are examples of problems I have: The interface for the dictionary lookup is clumsy. Even though the boox has a touch screen and the kindle doesn't, it is easier to look up words on the kindle. Sometimes the dictionary stops working, then I can fix by going to the main menu then into the book again. When I try to go to the contents for an Oreilly book I have, the boox crashes. For the Sherlock Holmes omnibus from this site, one of the short stories, doesn't display the last couple of pages. The formatting problems are only seen on the boox, the same displays correctly on my cyborg gen3 and on calibre on my pc.

08-26-2011, 09:08 PM	#13
Rizla Member Retired Posts: 3,183 Karma: 11721895 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Nook STR (rooted) & Sony T2	You might consider a Sony x50. The most sturdy of ereaders. Includes Dutch->English English->dictionaries. Handles PDFs as well if not better than any other 5-6 inch ereader and includes high-lighting. Concert Doc(x) to RTF or Epub. Add Prs+ to get a file management system. Includes note taking. Not sure about the price though...Oh, and Sony should be announcing a new model early September so you might want to wait for the new model or reduced prices on the existing models.

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