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Old 11-13-2008, 10:32 PM   #1
Marcela
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Another undecided newbie

Hi everybody!

I've been lurking for sometime now and see you have a very nice and helpful community here.

My situation is this. I'm mexican living in Mexico. I'm new to ebooks but already have some titles in mobi format in my computer, and I've decided it's time to get an ebook reader and stop hurting my eyes reading them in my laptop.

My problem deciding which device to buy comes from both price and availability. I think I like the kindle functions and I'm pretty sure I could get someone to bring it to me from the US, what I'm not so sure about is if I would still be able to buy from the kindle store using gift cards (I read some post about it but I couldn't see if it is indeed working or not) and if I would be able to read the ebooks I already own in it (I don't know if they are DRM protected or not, what's the way to do it?). I'm not set on the kindle and I'd love to hear people's experiences with the different options.

In short, I would be using the device basicly for reading novels, I'd really love to save some money if at all possible but at the same time I don't want to get something and not be able to use it either because content is restricted or unavailable in my country, so I'm willing to consider anything.

Thanks a lot for any help you can give

Last edited by Marcela; 11-15-2008 at 12:03 AM.
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Old 11-14-2008, 03:43 AM   #2
HarryT
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If you have a lot of MobiPocket books, I'd suggest a device which fully supports MobiPocket, such as the CyBook or BeBook.
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Old 11-14-2008, 09:16 AM   #3
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I'd probably go with HarryT on the kindle vs something else. The kindle is a great little device, but I think it really benefits from whispernet, which you can't get (I expect). This means you'll be connecting it up to the computer to load new books. It also means that the keyboard is much less useful than it would otherwise be (there are only two reasons I have to use it, neither of which happen very often). Also, the newspaper subscriptions only work with a US credit card, and not gift vouchers (as far as I've heard).

It is perhaps worth thinking about what sort of books you would be reading, where you would get them from and, assuming you are not reading free out-of-copyright books (e.g. from Mobile Read and/or Project Gutenberg), see how the prices and availability vary from the sources you are likely to get them from. That might help you decide.
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Old 11-14-2008, 11:18 AM   #4
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Originally Posted by HarryT View Post
If you have a lot of MobiPocket books, I'd suggest a device which fully supports MobiPocket, such as the CyBook or BeBook.
Actually for the North and South American market the EZ Reader would be better than the BeBook since support will be easier. See http://www.mobiebook.com which should come live at the end of this month but an email can get you a unit sooner and cheaper.

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Old 11-14-2008, 12:39 PM   #5
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Good point - I'd forgotten about that one! Yes, that would be an excellent choice, I agree.
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Old 11-14-2008, 01:35 PM   #6
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Your best options are probably the EZ Reader, which supports DRMed MOBI ebooks, or the Sony PRS-505.

The EZ Reader is new, but it is just a re-branded Hanlin V3 (like the BeBook and others) so we don't expect any surprises. If you want to be sure, wait until some of us get one and report back. The post on how to buy today is here.

The Sony PRS-505 is a good choice because it is available in thousands of stores in the US, so you can probably get someone to pick it up for you. There is are issues with buying ebooks from the Sony store without a US credit card. These can be worked around (Sony Connect gift cards, sold at Borders and Target stores in the US), but I suggest buying MOBI or LIT (MS Reader) ebooks instead and stripping their DRM. DRM-free ebooks of any kind can be converted for the PRS-505 using Calibre (which has its own sub-forum). I don't know what the legal status of DRM stripping and format shifting is in Mexico, but doing this for personal use on ebook you bought harms no one.
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Old 11-14-2008, 11:53 PM   #7
Marcela
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Thanks a lot for your responses.
I am seriously looking at the Cybook and the EZreader now. I have read a lot of people complaining about broken Cybook screens. Am I right? Is it any flimsier than the ezreader's? Price is about the same on both and for what I can tell the both support the mobi format. I'm still new to ebook reading and mobi is all I really know, I don't know if later I will want to benefit from multiple format support; is there another format that has, I don't know, bigger selection or cheaper prices or any other advantage I should know about? In short, is there any significant advantage to one over the other? I'm sorry if this has been asked a million times, it's just that I will be spending the big bucks in this (I'm in a third world country, remember... ) and I want to make the best decision I can...
Again, thanks for all your help.
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Old 11-15-2008, 04:11 AM   #8
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Mobi is the format which will give you the widest selection.

There's no evidence whatsoever that the CyBook is more prone to breakage than any other make. Treat it with a certain amount of care (and ALWAYS keep it in its case) and it's fine.
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Old 11-15-2008, 06:10 AM   #9
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One thing to remember is that this is still very much early adopter technology, and changing rapidly.

By this time next year I'd expect to see readers similar to the current crop of 6" readers, but with robust plastic substrate displays instead of the current (relatively) fragile glass displays.

I'd also expect to see the price a lot lower.

So it might be that your best option at present would be to wait, and make do for now with an old high-res palm os device (like a sony clie). Not as nice a display as eInk, but a lot cheaper while you wait for better/cheaper devices to arrive

On the other hand, I'd extremely pleased with my CyBook Gen 3.

Paul

Quote:
Originally Posted by Marcela View Post
I'm sorry if this has been asked a million times, it's just that I will be spending the big bucks in this (I'm in a third world country, remember... ) and I want to make the best decision I can...
Again, thanks for all your help.
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