PRS-300 Just got a PRS-300, my first dedicated ereader

[donovan1983]

Yesterday I went to the SonyStyle store and picked up a PRS-300 in navy blue as my first ever dedicated ereader. I've been reading ebooks for over 8 years now, starting with a Handspring Visor Pro then moving to a Sony CLIE SJ30 for a few years. An iPod touch and then an iPhone were used after that. Nearly all of my books had been purchased from eReader.com which I have to leave behind on my iPhone. Another lesson learned about DRM.

Anyway, I was drawn to the PRS-300 because of its low price, good reviews, solid and attractive look and feel, and it's focus on just reading. Given the devices I have been using over the years, the screen size and resolution is a nice improvement. The user interface is dead-simple and really could not be easier. The button controls are perfect for me and easy to control with either hand. For an entry-level device it feels very well built and seems like it will last a long time. The dark blue with purple trim color scheme is quite nice.

The fact that it supports EPUB is a big deal to me since it seems to be the upcoming standard for ebooks. Since two of the major ebook stores, Amazon and Sony, use DRM schemes that are easily stripped and Calibre has excellent MobiPocket to EPUB conversion, I don't have to worry about losing access to purchased books again either through DRM or obsolescence. Not to mention Calibre is quite nice ebook library management software that works well with the PRS-300. I don't even have the Sony Reader software installed on my Mac.

The e-ink screen did take some getting used to for its responsiveness, or lack thereof. The number keys on the side make navigating menus faster than it would be with just scrolling though. I was also concerned both when reading about e-ink readers as well as when playing with this thing in the store that the flashes between page turns would get annoying. Likely because of the lack of a backlight, I got used to it rather quickly and didn't find it terribly annoying at all. The screen's non-backlit nature and true 180 degree viewing angle made it much easier on my eyes than I expected. I just spent 4 hours reading on the thing with the font set to the smallest size and was amazed that I did not have a headache like I would if I spent the same amount of time on my iPhone. It was very much like reading an actual paperback novel. For those that have either been using e-ink devices for a while or who first started reading ebooks on an e-ink device this may not seem quite so noteworthy, but for someone who has been using backlit LCD devices for so long it's quite something.

The battery life has been surprising too. I fully charged the thing and spent 4 hours reading, getting about halfway through Clive Cussler's Treasure of Khan, and not a single bar has disappeared from the battery meter. My iPhone would be down in the 30% range for that kind of use. I like that it takes the PSP wall charger since I already have a PSP and it gives me another charging option.

I haven't purchased a device that is so specialized in a long time and was counting on quickly getting buyer's remorse. Especially considering that I own multiple devices that also function as ebook readers. Yet I certainly don't regret getting the PRS-300 at all. In the very short time I have used it, it has already changed my electronic reading experience for the better.

[Latinandgreek]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the prs-300, I'm glad that you are happy with your new reading device. You might already know this, but there are lots of public domain books on this site in .lrf or .epub that you can download to read on your reader, be sure to check them out. The link is under e-books at the top of the page.

cheers!

[justanut]

Welcome to the club!

[Bremen Cole]

Agree with you 100%

I know to many the 5" screen is small. But when you have been reading ebooks for 7 years on Pocket PC's, Palms and iPhones..... the screen seems huge. The slow response does take a bit of getting used to, but you will find it becomes a rhythm of it's own.

Be careful of the Amazon DRM. While many of their books are easy to liberate, the "topaz" scheme is still not cracked. I had a few Kindle for PC books before I got my reader, and about half of them I was able to liberate, but the other half was a no go. Kobo is an excellent book store as well.

Calibre, as you know is an excellent tool.

[King Windom]

I like the size of the PRS-300, it fits easily into a jacket pocket for easy access and reading on the morning bus ride to work. I graduated from a Palm TX and found the 5" screen to be a luxury. Dan

[enygmatic]

Welcome to the club !!
Initially even I thought that the 5" screen would be small, however after using it for a while now, I find that's more than adequate for a portable reader

[igorsk]

You can liberate your eReader books. Look for ereader2html.

[donovan1983]

Originally Posted by Bremen Cole

Be careful of the Amazon DRM. While many of their books are easy to liberate, the "topaz" scheme is still not cracked. I had a few Kindle for PC books before I got my reader, and about half of them I was able to liberate, but the other half was a no go. Kobo is an excellent book store as well.

I had read about that before I purchased any Kindle books. I download a sample of the book to make sure it is in MobiPocket format and only buy it if it is. Ideally I'd just buy more of my books from the Sony Reader store since they are already in EPUB format, but too often the price difference is non-trivial.

Originally Posted by igorsk

You can liberate your eReader books. Look for ereader2html.

I can't actually find that tool although I looked around for it quite a bit. Closest I found was ereader2pml. It works, but Calibre won't convert them without losing all the images. I also noticed that cover images and metadata were lost. So for now I'm stuck.