06-09-2011, 06:58 AM | #91 | |
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I doubt they would have Sony back, as the lack of support for both ordering and customers complaint procedure - through the stores - has been a real struggle, apparently. [ A manager mentioned that when the store dealt with Sony direct, regarding a customer's problem (UK law, SOG Act), the answer/solution over the phone was usually sensible, simple, and satisfactory. BUT getting that successful conclusion was always a struggle, and rarely straightforward. ] And I recall PC World, Comet & Currys used to have X50's on display, but not very long in my local stores. Sony, shot, and foot seem to make a firm connection in most people's minds........ |
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06-09-2011, 06:59 AM | #92 |
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Best Buy has discontinued the 950, the 650 and is clearancing out the 350. As for the covers being available on SonyStyle, you are not correct on this, as, at one time, there were AT LEAST 3 different types of covers for all three readers (cover, cover with light, and the slip in sleeve) and, now, there are VERY few left.
And, you are also incorrect in that, if you click through, a couple of them are not availble. They are on backorder. Go to bhphotovideo.com and you will that there, too, the readers have been listed as discontinued. |
06-09-2011, 07:05 AM | #93 | |
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By the way, have you bothered to actually check with Best Buy. In their system, they have all three readers listed as "discontinued." When I asked them, they indicated that Sony was discontinuing them, which, by the way, I do NOT believe. I believe that they might no longer be carrying them and, possibly that Sony is discontinuing their retail distribution channels in the US, but I don't think they are being done away with altogether. But, the point is, when you state they are still available there, you are actually not correct. They might have some left over stock of 950's (almost impossible to find now) or 350's (which they are clearancing out at $119.99) but, they are no longer readily available there. Furthermore, go ahead and show me where on earth I can get a 950 cover (with or without light), cause I've beem looking for one for some time, for my own 950 and honestly can't find one. So, when you say they are still available, again, I don't know what you are referring to, cause I can't find one. If I had a 650 (which I don't), I ALSO wouldn't be able to find one for that reader. I think you might have to recheck your facts on some of this stuff. I have, because I was looking for a 950 for some time before finally finding a store that carried them. |
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06-09-2011, 07:49 AM | #94 |
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The claims about five major U.S. chains still carrying Sony Readers are wishful thinking. Sony has not been updating stock at any retailers for quite some time. The shipments received months ago are being slowly sold out. And that's that. Out of three current models of readers only one, the 350, can still be found outside Sony's own online outlet in the U.S. With the notable exception of a few speculators, i.e. Datavis, who resell with high markup over the official price. Salespeople in local Sony stores make claims to the effect of the readers being discontinued. They haven't been getting any stock either.
I don't see what is there to argue about - these are obvious facts. It is possible that Sony decided to pull back to a single source retail via its own store. It is also possible that Chinese manufacturers of accessories have disappeared overnight with all the design information, so Sony cannot possibly remanufacture any significant number of covers in half a year they have been missing. Or that the whole thing is part of some brilliant marketing strategy to make the readers so hard to find that everyone wants them. Or that the entire stock has gone to satisfy Japan's demand, the Western markets being left to pick up scraps. Once every Japanese has been allocated a reader, Sony will come back to us? Sony didn't bother to address any of these questions officially. Sony's PR people will talk about their great TVs and cameras, but they seem to have forgotten about the Sony Reader. The technoblogs don't bother asking. Isn't it indicative of something, when Engadget writes that Kobo is the first ebook reader with pearl screen and UV touch? Do they remember Sony? Not until some fans remind them... Where is Steve Haber? Still at Sony? |
06-09-2011, 08:58 AM | #95 | |
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Apparently. His bio links are still there:
http://news.sel.sony.com/en/corporat...eve_Haber.html http://www.linkedin.com/pub/steve-haber/6/613/621 "Current: President Digital Reading Business at Sony Electronics" Maybe someone can email him and ask what's going on . Quote:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/11/28/s...arket-by-2012/ "Sony aims for half of Japan's e-reader market by 2012 Perhaps more stunning, however, is Sony's intentions to "sell 300,000 Readers in the first year and win half the domestic market by 2012" -- that's according to Sony Marketing Japan president Nobuki Kurita. " So it's news like this that makes me doubt Sony will exit the ereader market wholesale. Maybe it'll scale back its presence in the US. The ereader market is exploding. It'll be bigger than the phyiscal book market. I doubt Sony will ignore a piece of the ereader market. Plus Sony is coming out with two Android tablets that'll augment the Sony ebookstore, as Sony has announced that they'll ship with the online services Qriocity and Reader Store. Retailers clearing Sony Readers is troubling. There are many niche ereaders such as Pocketbook. No one is saying those are end of line as they aren't in Best Buy. Maybe Sony's plan is to be a niche player in the US. To do that they don't need to sell in Best Buy, just their Sony Stores. Last edited by sonyreaderfan; 06-09-2011 at 09:02 AM. |
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06-09-2011, 08:58 AM | #96 |
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Whether they are entirely pulling out of the US market is entirely speculation, although I agree that the writing is on the wall and in all likeliehood are doing just that, however, the fact that they have pulled out of Best Buy, which EatingPie refutes, is not open to debate. Best Buy has been clearancing out their 950's and 350's for some time and both are listed as "discontinued" in their computers. I know because I went to about a dozen stores before finding my 950, and each store told me the same thing.
There are other retailers that claim "discontinued" status as well. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search...tialSearch=yes http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search...tialSearch=yes Further proof is that getting a cover for the 950 or 650 is impossible. I have yet to find one. Although on this, I would love to be proven wrong. Please EatingPie, show me where the abundance of the 950 covers are, cause I desperately need one. |
06-09-2011, 09:43 AM | #97 | |
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I tried a couple of months ago. He of course didn't bother to reply. Neither did Valerie Motis, who is responsible for Reader Division's PR. On the second try (when trying to inquire about availability of 650 covers) I got a reply from someone at SonyListens team:
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I agree that it is highly unlikely that Sony is killing the Reader. There are markets to be had, with high margins and hungry customers. They have been talking about officially selling in Russia, they are hot in Japan, South Pacific, Europe. I am afraid for the U.S.A. the Sony Reader is pretty much over. I wouldn't be surprised if the next year's models were not released here at all, or continued with limited availability via SonyStyle.com. Essentially, Sony has given up the U.S. market, having realized that the content sales cannot compete with better entrenched albeit younger competition. And they have only their own people to blame for U.S. marketing failure. Too cautious and too greedy, Japanese style... |
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06-09-2011, 11:42 AM | #98 | ||
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There are others listed, but those were just the ones I checked. Quote:
EDIT: I just saw the post quoting Sony on the lack of availability, so I stand corrected (though the crappy pink one is still there for the taking ). In terms of the "16" other accessories that used to be there, what were they? Sony had covers, adapters, and cables. There are no adapters because they're not required. The cables (cable singular) are on another page. That basically leaves covers, which is all that you see on that page. The PRS-650 is perpetually out of stock, so it's no surprise its main cover is too. The PRS-950's cover has been MIA since January, and even then was hard to find. EDIT: Here's the adapter: http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/...ionalImage1%22 In terms of the reader stock issues, keep your ducks in a row. The Black PRS-650 is the only reader that has been consistently out of stock, and that has been the source of nearly every rumor for the whole line being discontinued. And that has been going on since December. The Reader line was introduced, and 4 months later, rumors started it was being discontinued. Now it's 7 months later still, and this thread is going strong on the same level of misinformation. -Pie Last edited by EatingPie; 06-09-2011 at 12:15 PM. |
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06-09-2011, 12:08 PM | #99 | ||
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A BB employ claiming BB is no longer selling the Reader seems to settle that matter then. Thank you for checking. However, a BB employee claiming that Sony is discontinuing the Reader is not at all a reliable source. Sony is the only ones to ask. And, indeed, they may be getting out of the US market, but as I have said repeatedly, the evidence still does not support that. The PRS-950 is available now on Sony Style. Quote:
I already stated in a previous post that I had incorrectly lumped the PRS-950 cover in with the others. It has been nearly impossible to find since release, with me citing a January post where ABT electronics had it, and people were amazed and ecstatic because even then it was so hard to find. ABT doesn't have it any more, sorry. To find a cover for the 650, you need to click on it at Sony Style, and then select the alternate color (red/pink). At that point it comes up as "Add to Cart," meaning in stock. -Pie |
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06-09-2011, 12:11 PM | #100 |
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Wow. There is simply no reasoning with some people. Trust me, Best Buy has discontinued carrying all the Sony Readers, and, so have other retailers. But, if you insist, go for it.
You are incorrect in all your assertions and simply CALLING best buy will prove that to you. Not only are they out of stock on the 650 but the 950 as well (there was one store in my ENTIRE state that had the 950 and they had to ship it to my local store). And, they are clearancing out what is left of the 350. Saying that Google brought something up doesn't make it so. See if you can find any of the readers at your local best buy, THEN come back to this thread. I have done that, so, unlike you, I speak from experience. I've also been unable to find a cover for my 950, so, again, unlike you, I speak from experience. Nobody here is making up the shortages in inventory. You seem to be offended by what people are saying almost as if we were making it up. Why would we? Most on here LOVE their Sony readers. I wish to God I could find a cover for mine, or that I had been able to find my 950 without jumping through a thousand hoops. Alas, I was not. By the way, I demonstrated to you another major electronics retailer (B and H) that has also listed "discontinued" under the 650 and 950, and they, too, have no covers for them. Last edited by Japes; 06-09-2011 at 12:14 PM. |
06-09-2011, 12:15 PM | #101 |
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I just checked Target, and, they too, have no 950 or 650 on their website. They list ONLY the 350. So, again, your claims of anecdotal evidence to the contrary not withstanding, it does seem like it's becoming harder and harder to procure a 650 or a 950 from any retailer OTHER than Sony direct.
I also just did a google search and at least on the first two pages, there isn't a single result citing ANY major retailer with stock OTHER than the 350. Office Depot: Older PRS300 and 600 ONLY. Dell.Com: ONLY 350 in stock Newegg: ONLY 350 in stock I could go on, but, it's redundant, and the results are similar. Nobody has the 650 or 950 in stock, which, once again, is evidence that it's possible that Sony is closing up US distribution channels for their ereaders. Further evidence is the fact that they ARE available at SonyStyle.com, which means it's not really an issue with supply. Although, even there (SonyStyle) there are no covers for the 950 and only less than desireable colors for the other readers. There is no blue cover for the 350 at all. Even the one listed is listed as out of stock. Which is another point nobody has mentioned. Normally, they list them as backordered or out of stock. Which further leads me to believe that if the cover is not listed at all, they are no longer carrying it. Last edited by Japes; 06-09-2011 at 12:23 PM. |
06-09-2011, 12:33 PM | #102 |
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This thread is getting long.
I just want the unlighted cover for my black 650. |
06-09-2011, 12:37 PM | #103 |
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I had no problem loading books purchased from the Nook store onto my Sony. I don't buy anything if I can't remove the DRM. I don't do it to pirate, I just refuse to be locked into a device or manufacturer. I've bought books in the past that I had to just throw away when the device in question died or became obsolete, and I won't do it again.
Even now that I have a Nook STR, when I buy a book from B&N, I load it on Nook for PC, crack the DRM, pull it into Calibre, sometimes add cover art (why the heck does B&N not include cover art on everything?) and side-load it onto the Nook. |
06-09-2011, 12:50 PM | #104 | |
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What you saw was the zipper cases. Those are not covers. Repeat: not covers. Yes, there are blue and pink zipper cases, which fit both 350 and 650, and black zipper cases fitting 950. They cannot be used as covers for the readers. As far as "google search" showing stock at major retailers. You should realize something. Most of those major retailers are selling off the remainder of their 350 stock. None of them are getting new stock. Most of them never got 650 (except Borders, which got some originally, and sold them out before X-mas), or 950 (except BB, which is clearing them out as we speak). Target for one didn't even bother selling this year's Sony Readers in stores. Amazon Marketplace is not a retailer. Check your sources carefully please. If you are seeing it as a major marketing push into U.S. market, you must be totally blind. Anyway, keep dreaming. |
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06-09-2011, 12:58 PM | #105 | |||||
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I actually state, specifically, that someone being told by BB that they're no longer selling the Reader settled the issue. Up there. Above. In one of my posts. (It does not settle the issue for Sony, but just that BB itself is no longer selling the Reader.) Quote:
Quote:
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Just some examples. PRS-950 not in stock on Sony Style? Yes it is. Covers not available on SS? Yes, they are, depending on (no 950 covers, but yes to red 650 covers). Accessories not available on SS? Covers, cables and adapters are all in stock on Sony Style. Quote:
But let's take a step back. The premise of this thread and your post: all Sony Readers are being discontinued. The evidence supplied is lack of accessories, and stores stopping sales. My claim: The PRS-650 has been very hard to find, but Sony is not discontinuing all readers. Feel free to double-check my posts. My claim: Stores are still selling Readers I cited stores that sell Readers, and I checked the sites directly. Availability was called "wishful thinking," by one person, but it's 100% true. Yes, the PRS-350 in general. But, once again, the claim is all readers will be discontinued, which the 350 availability denies, and Sony Style denies with the availability of all readers except Black PRS-650. My claim: Accessories are still available. This is demonstrated easily by Sony Style, which keeps getting linked and then claimed that nothing is available! Okay, no cover for the 950, but that's long standing (previously posted by me). No black cover for the 650 (previously posted by me). Other covers are available. The Cable is available. The adapters is available. Completely counter to claims made in this thread. This thread is not new. Claims of the Readers being discontinued go back to December. But those have been based on the lack of black PRS-650. As evidence, look at the following thread from December: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=118181 It was wrong then, and given the availability of Readers now, it's still wrong. All readers except black 650 are on Sony Style. -Pie |
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