Buying my first e-ink device, but which one?

[Zetmolm]

The web browsing option isn't quite as great as I had hoped

The web browsing option on my Onyx Boox is OK, but of course it's not like browsing on a PC. The screen size is only 6", and most web sites don't look good at that size. Refresh rate on an e-ink reader is slower than you're used to on a PC. And instead of using a physical keyboard to type a URL you need to use the slower virtual keyboard (included in recent versions of the firmware).

These restrictions are inherent to the type of device an e-reader is, and have nothing to do with the quality of the browsing software. The primary goal of the reader is reading, not browsing. If browsing is more important for you than reading, you should buy another type of device.

[Zetmolm]

I recently got the BeBook Neo and I really like it. It's not quite as user friendly as the Sony readers.

Before I got my Onyx Boox I had the opportunity to use a Sony reader for a couple of weeks. I don't agree that the Boox is less user friendly than the Sony, but that might have to do with personal preferences. Just one example: some people may prefer to operate a touch screen with their fingers, but I'm glad I have to use the stylus on my Boox. The problem I had with the Sony was that whenever I removed a speck of dust from the screen, I was taken to another page of the book I was reading. With the Boox that cannot happen.

But anyway: both readers are a lot more user-friendly than the one or two other readers I laid my hands on.

[paulpeer]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I have a BeBook Neo. Excellent device - thoroughly recommended.

But it is based on ADE, am I right? So people reading lesser used languages, such as Latvian or Greek or Esperanto cannot use it without first uploading new fonts ... Actually I'm looking for devices that are not based on ADE, but maybe I can open another thread about it.

[Zetmolm]

What do you mean by 'based on ADE'?

ADE is something you need to be able to handle PDFs and Epubs with DRM. I don't think ADE has anything to do with character sets that are available on your reader.

The only reason I use ADE (on my computer, not on my reader) is when I download books with DRM. For the rest I can perfectly well do without it.

I could read Russian books on my Onyx Boox without uploading any fonts. But anyway, adding fonts to the Boox/Neo is as simple as copying the font to the corresponding folder on your SD card.

[paulpeer]

Originally Posted by Zetmolm

What do you mean by 'based on ADE'? I don't think ADE has anything to do with character sets that are available on your reader.

This is not quite right. You are thinking of the laptop version of ADE, but a mobile version of ADE's engine is also used on the Sony Readers and the vast majority of other portable reading devices that can display epub books. So all of these devices inherit ADE's shortcomings and they cannot show texts in e.g. Greek, Latvian, Rumanian, Esperanto, without changing the system font.

But I'm happy to learn that is your device adding fonts is easy. In my Sony PRS 505 this is not very simple.

[Zetmolm]

@paulpeer
Thank you for the explanation. I was not aware of that shortcoming of ADE. But then I don't read any of those languages you mention.

But I'm happy to learn that is your device adding fonts is easy.

That's also one of the reasons why I selected the Onyx Boox rather than a Sony.

[Delta Tango]

Now that it is mentioned, I suppose Boox/Neo has support for these (click me, I'm a link) letters?
Not that it's crucial for me since I mostly read English, but I'd be a bit disappointed every time I see some hieroglyphs instead of proper letters.

Oh, I have one question for Boox/Neo owners.
How do you read a .doc file that has lots of pictures and tables in it? I suppose you need to convert it to something else since the device can't read .doc directly, right? What format gives the best results?

Also, on my mobile phone which I currently use for reading (Sony Ericsson V640i) I have a program called Read Maniac which is able to read files (.txt, .rtf, .html,...) directly from a zipped file, so I just zip books I want to one folder and send that one folder to my phone and it uses them directly without extracting them.
Can Boox/Neo do the same?

Thanks

[Zetmolm]

I suppose Boox/Neo has support for these letters?

Yes

How do you read a .doc file that has lots of pictures and tables in it

In Word, save as RTF, which is supported on the Boox/Neo

I just zip books I want to one folder and send that one folder to my phone and it uses them directly without extracting them.
Can Boox/Neo do the same?

I tried this with an fb2.zip file, and it did not work.

[LenzGr]

Originally Posted by Delta Tango

Now that it is mentioned, I suppose Boox/Neo has support for these (click me, I'm a link) letters?
Not that it's crucial for me since I mostly read English, but I'd be a bit disappointed every time I see some hieroglyphs instead of proper letters.

I guess that depends on the document format and encoding. If it's a PDF, there should not be a problem. For other doc types like ePub, you may have to install a suitable font before. But I'm just guessing here. If you have a sample document, I could give it a try.

Oh, I have one question for Boox/Neo owners.
How do you read a .doc file that has lots of pictures and tables in it? I suppose you need to convert it to something else since the device can't read .doc directly, right? What format gives the best results?

As of today, the Boox can't read .doc files natively. To my knowledge, this is planned for future firmware releases. The best option is probably to convert it into a PDF. The Boox/Neo has excellent PDF reading capabilities.

Also, on my mobile phone which I currently use for reading (Sony Ericsson V640i) I have a program called Read Maniac which is able to read files (.txt, .rtf, .html,...) directly from a zipped file, so I just zip books I want to one folder and send that one folder to my phone and it uses them directly without extracting them. Can Boox/Neo do the same?

I just tried it - the Boox can open a ZIP file, but seems to open the first file in there by default only. I have not found a way to browse the content of the ZIP itself. So it works for zipping individual files, but not for an entire folder. However, you can easily create folders in the file system directly, if you want to organize/arrange your files.

[Delta Tango]

Well, I just saved a 25 MB .doc file as RTF and it increased to more than 300 MB

LenzGr, I hate to bother you, but if you wish, there is an article on Croatian Wiki http://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elektroni%C4%8Dki_papir
My browser decodes it in UTF-8
This is what it looks like when properly formatted:
http://i39.tinypic.com/fmhog3.png

thanks

As for zipped folders, that's just software so I guess it could come in some future firmware update...

[Zetmolm]

Well, I just saved a 25 MB .doc file as RTF and it increased to more than 300 MB

If a .doc file is 25 MB, PDF might be a better option after all (I sort of overlooked your comment that it has lots of tables and pictures in it). Make sure you created a "tagged PDF" (if you save to PDF in Word 2007 make sure the "Document structure tags for accessibility" option is active). This increases the chances that the e-reader reflows the text correctly. Also, to avoid a lot of zooming on your reader you can experiment with reducing the page size in Word before your create the PDF.

[jabberwock_11]

To answer the previous questions in regards to my statements about the drawbacks of the Neo and Boox:

Although the Neo and Boox have a ton of customization options the way that the files and books are listed and the ability to organize files requires a bit more work than the Sony Readers, also if you are used to the Sony set up the Neo takes some getting used to. The touch screen on the Neo and Boox can only be operated via the included stylus, not by hand or by any other device, so if you lose the stylus you are out of luck until you can purchase another...and some things can only be accessed by using the stylus. It is a great reader, but like I said--a bit less user friendly than the Sony Reader.

The web browser on the Neo does not have an address bar and has some difficulty with logging into certain sites unless you are on the mobile version of that site (for example I can only log onto fictionwise's mobile version, not their regular web site and I can not log onto kobo at all because they do not have a compatible mobile site). The address bar should be coming with the new frimware, but as of now unless you use the Boox 1.3 firmware there is no address bar.

There are several threads on www.mybebook.com regarding the ability to add fonts so that the Neo can read other characters in languages such as Esperanto and Greek, from what I understood there is a way to allow this, but I only glanced briefly at those threads.

Over all it is an excellent device and I highly recomend it.

[Delta Tango]

Thanks everybody for your input.

I'm proud to say that I ordered it (Boox) (from Dulin's Books).

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by jabberwock_11

The touch screen on the Neo and Boox can only be operated via the included stylus, not by hand or by any other device, so if you loose the stylus you are out of luck until you can purchase another...and some things can only be accessed by using the stylus.

But the nice thing about it is that the user interface can be operated (extremely well) with the navigation buttons, as well as with the stylus. There are very few things that you have to use the stylus for - annotation and dictionary lookup are the only things I can think of off-hand.