Reconsidering Cybook vs. Sony Reader

[HarryT]

I'm sure you'd be happy with either a Gen3 or a Sony - both are excellent machines. The Sony is somewhat cheaper (especially with the low value of the US$), but the Gen3 does (IMHO, at least) somewhat more, in terms of its support for MobiPocket, dictionary lookup, etc. You really can't go wrong with either, though.

If you're into SF and Fantasy, check out Baen. They are the "good guys" of the eBook industry, selling all their books in open DRM-free formats at very reasonable prices.

[sonnyred]

Yes Baen books is a good site. I downloaded some free David Weber books from that site, infact that was the reason I am now hooked on e-books.
I will probably go for the Sony prs505 because it's a lot cheaper (about £170) compared to the Gen3 (£320 for the deluxe).

[HarryT]

Don't forget that you'll have to pay import duty and VAT on the Sony - that will probably add around £50 to the price. That makes it not too disimilar to the £245 of the Gen3. My suggestion would be not to bother with the "Deluxe" pack of the Gen3 - all you need is the basic machine and the leather case. All the other odds and ends you can buy much more cheaply than Bookeen sell them for, and some (such as the spare battery) are simply not necessary at all.

[gwynevans]

Strictly:
£245 (reader) + £10 (shipping) + ~£30 (case) = ~£285 for the Cybook
~£150 (reader) + ~£20 (shipping) + ~£50 (duty+VAT) = ~£220 for the Sony

(You have a chance to avoid paying duty+VAT if shipped by USPS, but I've no idea how big a chance!)

What you would be missing with the Sony, however, is any real form of warranty support in the UK, (as they reportedly will only return repairs to US addresses,) which might well be worth the extra cost.

[cmbs]

Originally Posted by lmarie

I'm researching this site to try to ascertain the actual significant differences between the Cybook and the Sony 505. I'm planning to get one or the other, but this thread has seemed to wander off to a discussion of a pdf format. So, a few questions (maybe I should have started a new thread?):

Has anyone compared the number of (actual) problem issues between the two devices? (I've read and reread the wiki and the matrix several times, btw.)

I've been reading about screen blackout problems, button pressing and placement problems, warranty problems, cover problems, support problems, library listing problems, saved page problems, etc. Because I'm in the US, it might be "safer" to get a Sony, but then again, reading another long thread about support problems with Sony leads me to believe that may not be true either.

Is one or the other more "update-able"?

Any feedback appreciated. Thanks.

I think it depends a lot on what you consider to be "significant differences". For me, the Cybook is the only one I'd buy. From what I've read, it has the features I want.

Cybook reads many file types without having to convert them. Mobipocket books are available from many sources, and can be read on your desktop if you have Windows. Mobipocket isn't connected to the Cybook, it will work on other readers, giving you options for the future rather than forcing you to buy another Cybook if you want to keep reading your books. I read the Sony has three font sizes - small, med, large. Cybook has 12 font size options. And I can add any font I want to the Cybook. I can't list all the differences I've read about, but the Cybook seems to me the most flexible, and to me that is important.

I think button placement is irrrelevent unless it's really poorly designed. You're going to get used to the buttons no matter where they're placed. I don't have any problems with the buttons on the Cybook.

I had a problem one time with my page not being saved, so now I save bookmarks often.

I don't have any problems with the Cybook's library. Author information has to be put into the book file's metadata to show up, that is an issue with the book file, not the device. Sorting could be improved, and Bookeen may do something about that. But I don't have a problem with that either since I don't intend to keep 5000 books on the device. It's easy to manage if you keep the book number low. There are other ways of managing it too. You can use folders and then sort by file path. You can keep just one type of book per sd card (which will keep the number of books on the device at one time lower too). Whatever. I'm sure there are many ways.

The Cybook can be updated if and when the company decides to release an update. It should be as easy as downloading the file and putting it on the Cybook. Drag and drop or copy and paste, like moving any file anywhere.

Bookeen's customer support leaves me extremely unimpressed, and their website has absolutely no troubleshooting information on it. Some people have posted here that they have had good service from them with problems.

I feel like buying any of these devices is a huge risk, the support seems to be lacking, the cost is stupidly high. How much are you going to invest in DRM'd books that eventually you will probably lose the ability to read? I think it's a personal decision based on what you're planning to do with the reader, what features are important to you, etc.

I wouldn't have bought any of the others. If I hadn't bought a Cybook, I'd have waited a few more years to see what new developments take place.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by cmbs

I wouldn't have bought any of the others. If I hadn't bought a Cybook, I'd have waited a few more years to see what new developments take place.

I've been reading eBooks for something over 20 years now, using a huge range of different devices. The Gen3 is by far the best book reader I've used so far.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I've been reading eBooks for something over 20 years now, using a huge range of different devices. The Gen3 is by far the best book reader I've used so far.

Harry, what makes it the best for you? Is it the dictionary or???

At times I've thought maybe I should have waited for the Cybook to be released instead of getting the 505. I've decided the 505 is right for me since with either device I'd be buying LIT's & converting (so the Mobi library isn't an incentive) and since I see no need for the dictionary & I'm fine with the three font sizes. I know you've had other e-ink stuff though so I'd like to know what makes it by far the best for you in case I've overlooked something that would be useful for me.

Thanks

[cmbs]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

Harry, what makes it the best for you? Is it the dictionary or???

At times I've thought maybe I should have waited for the Cybook to be released instead of getting the 505. I've decided the 505 is right for me since with either device I'd be buying LIT's & converting (so the Mobi library isn't an incentive) and since I see no need for the dictionary & I'm fine with the three font sizes. I know you've had other e-ink stuff though so I'd like to know what makes it by far the best for you in case I've overlooked something that would be useful for me.

Thanks

You're still going to have to buy another Sony or re-convert all your already converted books. Which may or may not be a problem for you. Like I say, I think it's personal, not one size fits all.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by cmbs

You're still going to have to buy another Sony or re-convert all your already converted books. Which may or may not be a problem for you. Like I say, I think it's personal, not one size fits all.

All my books started out as LIT's. Easy enough to re-convert when needed.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

Harry, what makes it the best for you? Is it the dictionary or???

At times I've thought maybe I should have waited for the Cybook to be released instead of getting the 505. I've decided the 505 is right for me since with either device I'd be buying LIT's & converting (so the Mobi library isn't an incentive) and since I see no need for the dictionary & I'm fine with the three font sizes. I know you've had other e-ink stuff though so I'd like to know what makes it by far the best for you in case I've overlooked something that would be useful for me.

Thanks

A number of factors:

1. The screen. This is of course the same screen as the Sony 505, but it's a huge improvement over the 500's screen, which is what I was using before.

2. MobiPocket support. To avoid the problem of all the different book formats I've decided to standardise on Mobi as my personal preferred format.

3. Dictionary support. When you read 19th century novels, as I love doing (especially Dickens) you come across all sorts of words you don't know the meaning of. Just the "technical words" associated with horses and carriages - the standard means of 19th c transport - for example, are generally completely unknown today.

It's just a "classy product" all round, IMHO. I'm sure that there will be better products in the future, but for me, now, the Gen3 is the best there is. Others will doubtless feel the same about the Sony 505. Both are fine machines.

[curtw]

cmbs,

Is that the Albertus font in your thumbnail? It sure would be a hoot to read one of "The Prisoner" novels in that font...

[curtw]

Originally Posted by HarryT

<snip>...When you read 19th century novels, as I love doing (especially Dickens) you come across all sorts of words you don't know the meaning of. Just the "technical words" associated with horses and carriages - the standard means of 19th c transport - for example, are generally completely unknown today.

HarryT,

You're much braver than I. After reading Gene Wolfe's "The Doctor of Death Island," I would never take a chance by loading Dickens onto an electronic device. Are you sure you feel safe?

And yes, this is an off-topic plug for Gene Wolfe. If you're looking for the story, please be sure you aren't mistakenly reading "The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories," "The Death of Doctor Island" or "Death of the Island Doctor." They're all excellent, but only the first has the connection between an "e-book" and Dickens.

[cmbs]

Originally Posted by curtw

HarryT,

You're much braver than I. After reading Gene Wolfe's "The Doctor of Death Island," I would never take a chance by loading Dickens onto an electronic device. Are you sure you feel safe?

And yes, this is an off-topic plug for Gene Wolfe. If you're looking for the story, please be sure you aren't mistakenly reading "The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories," "The Death of Doctor Island" or "Death of the Island Doctor." They're all excellent, but only the first has the connection between an "e-book" and Dickens.

Judging by these book titles, Gene Wolfe novels are too confusing for me. That's hilarious.