How it compares to the 505 | Shops selling it

coredump · 11-17-2009, 05:12 AM

Hello, I was initially going for a PRS-505 but apparently nobody sells those anymore :\

So I want to know how the Hanlin devices compare to the 505 from Sony. Is contrast worse? Is the software too unstable? Does it support PDF reflow?

I am going to read mostly fiction books and maybe some technical PDFs or the occasional RPG book.

Also, I would love indications of what brand/store to get it on EU, mainly in Belgium/France.

tigran · 11-17-2009, 03:37 PM

Both Sony PRS-505 and Hanlin V3 have Adobe reader which supports reflow. Hanlin also has XPDF which can handle files too complex for Adobe.
Hanlin V3 also supports a LOT more formats than Sony, e.g. fb2, DjVu (all scanned books are in this format as it is more efficient than PDF for this), CHM, RTF etc etc.

But the most important reason why Hanlin V3 is better is because it supports normal directory browsing of the files and directories. Sony does not and as a result (i.e. reading all metadata of ALL files on startup in order to present them as a tree based on things like Author/Title/Date etc) it takes about 15 minutes to start up on a moderate collection of books (about 5000 or so). Hanlin takes 3 seconds to start up on the same collection. The reason why nobody noticed this is because most users have a few hundred books and think "this is good enough" even though it takes a minute or so to start up on such a tiny collection as well.

I use Hanlin not just as a reader but as a digital library, i.e. each 16GB (ah, I forgot to mention that Hanlin V3 supports 16GB SDHC cards whilst Sony is limited to 2x4GB with both slots occupied.) is a reasonable window (of about 6-7000 books) into my collection (of about million books, i.e. practically all _interesting_ books ever written (inc manuscripts) from 1st century BC to the present

Besides, I have written a DjVu viewer (see http://www.bibles.org.uk/libdjvu) for Hanlin V3 so for accessing scanned books Hanlin V3 now has no equals...

(I am still working on the DjVu viewer, so the current version should be considered "beta" --- but soon I'll release the latest stable version with lots more features etc)

wallcraft · 11-17-2009, 07:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coredump

Also, I would love indications of what brand/store to get it on EU, mainly in Belgium/France.

BeBook is the most popular Western European brand for Hanlins.

keng2000 · 11-17-2009, 09:42 PM

One major problem on PRS505 is non-folder list. It show properties of File instead of filename. Sometimes, it is garbage.
Second, when you change the SD card or disconnect USB from PC , it will refresh all files. More files, longer delay.

coredump · 11-17-2009, 10:59 PM

BeBook seems sold out on its page. Bummer.

rireed3 · 11-18-2009, 05:01 AM

One thing the Sony does better: It turns pages faster.

In Hanlin V3's favour, it's sold with a variety of firmwares from its variety of sellers, and you can reflash back and forth to find the best one. I find the EZReader firmware of 28 October 2009 from Astak turns a bit faster. If you want do deal with DRM outside the reader, apparently Openinkpot has the best performance.

BeBook will have a new 6" reader someday (seen at shows), but I think it has touch, and judging from the Sony 600 I've seen, I wouldn't want it - makes the E-Ink dimmer.

Richard

11-17-2009, 05:12 AM	#1
coredump Enthusiast Posts: 33 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Brazil Device: Pocketbook 360	How it compares to the 505 \| Shops selling it Hello, I was initially going for a PRS-505 but apparently nobody sells those anymore :\ So I want to know how the Hanlin devices compare to the 505 from Sony. Is contrast worse? Is the software too unstable? Does it support PDF reflow? I am going to read mostly fiction books and maybe some technical PDFs or the occasional RPG book. Also, I would love indications of what brand/store to get it on EU, mainly in Belgium/France.

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11-17-2009, 03:37 PM	#2
tigran Zealot Posts: 140 Karma: 23528 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: London Device: Kobo Aura One,HD,H2O,Touch,Mini,Kindle 3+DXG,Nook Simple Touch	Both Sony PRS-505 and Hanlin V3 have Adobe reader which supports reflow. Hanlin also has XPDF which can handle files too complex for Adobe. Hanlin V3 also supports a LOT more formats than Sony, e.g. fb2, DjVu (all scanned books are in this format as it is more efficient than PDF for this), CHM, RTF etc etc. But the most important reason why Hanlin V3 is better is because it supports normal directory browsing of the files and directories. Sony does not and as a result (i.e. reading all metadata of ALL files on startup in order to present them as a tree based on things like Author/Title/Date etc) it takes about 15 minutes to start up on a moderate collection of books (about 5000 or so). Hanlin takes 3 seconds to start up on the same collection. The reason why nobody noticed this is because most users have a few hundred books and think "this is good enough" even though it takes a minute or so to start up on such a tiny collection as well. I use Hanlin not just as a reader but as a digital library, i.e. each 16GB (ah, I forgot to mention that Hanlin V3 supports 16GB SDHC cards whilst Sony is limited to 2x4GB with both slots occupied.) is a reasonable window (of about 6-7000 books) into my collection (of about million books, i.e. practically all _interesting_ books ever written (inc manuscripts) from 1st century BC to the present Besides, I have written a DjVu viewer (see http://www.bibles.org.uk/libdjvu) for Hanlin V3 so for accessing scanned books Hanlin V3 now has no equals... (I am still working on the DjVu viewer, so the current version should be considered "beta" --- but soon I'll release the latest stable version with lots more features etc)

11-17-2009, 09:42 PM	#4
keng2000 Researcher and Consultant Posts: 210 Karma: 364 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Bangkok, THAILAND Device: MACBOOKPRO17" HP2400TX SONYUX27	One major problem on PRS505 is non-folder list. It show properties of File instead of filename. Sometimes, it is garbage. Second, when you change the SD card or disconnect USB from PC , it will refresh all files. More files, longer delay.

11-17-2009, 10:59 PM	#5
coredump Enthusiast Posts: 33 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Brazil Device: Pocketbook 360	BeBook seems sold out on its page. Bummer.

11-18-2009, 05:01 AM	#6
rireed3 Connoisseur Posts: 85 Karma: 358 Join Date: Jul 2009 Device: BeBook 1, Cybook Gen3	One thing the Sony does better: It turns pages faster. In Hanlin V3's favour, it's sold with a variety of firmwares from its variety of sellers, and you can reflash back and forth to find the best one. I find the EZReader firmware of 28 October 2009 from Astak turns a bit faster. If you want do deal with DRM outside the reader, apparently Openinkpot has the best performance. BeBook will have a new 6" reader someday (seen at shows), but I think it has touch, and judging from the Sony 600 I've seen, I wouldn't want it - makes the E-Ink dimmer. Richard

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