No ePub for PRS-500, but Sony offers $100 trade-in credit to upgraders - Page 4

FizzyWater · 08-07-2008, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nesagwa

Do you have to have the 500 boxed with all the cords and stuff it came with I wonder.

I just looked at the web site and it not only doesn't need the cord, it specifically tells you not to send it back because you'll want it for your new 505. I didn't notice if it mentioned the USB cable or original cover, though.

bobbarkerissatan · 08-07-2008, 08:10 PM

The gesture is appreciated, but this really is too little, too late.

This all amounts to very little.

1. sell our PRS500s to Sony for less than if we were to sell it privately.
2. buy PRS505 from Sony for full MSRP instead of buying it used or looking for a discount, thus negating a significant portion of the credit.

mojochris · 08-07-2008, 08:15 PM

Why is everybody saying this is a good deal...this is what we had a week ago. Sell it off (although now we have Sony's lowball offer, which nobody in their right mind would take) and buy a new one.

So yeah nothing here but a slap in the face.

slayda · 08-07-2008, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mojochris

Why is everybody saying this is a good deal...this is what we had a week ago. Sell it off (although now we have Sony's lowball offer, which nobody in their right mind would take) and buy a new one.

So yeah nothing here but a slap in the face.

And their offer isn't really money that you get, it's credit! But only for a new Sony.

I don't really care whether this is a good deal or not. I just wish Sony would sell the device they advertise for the price they advertise. If they told me the RTF & PDF were crippled I might have still bought it & definitely would not be upset with them now.

Jusin · 08-07-2008, 11:13 PM

Very great service from Sony.

I think they value the future market of e-book reader.

This time it's loss. But will bring more things later on.

Donnageddon · 08-07-2008, 11:13 PM

Very surprising, and generous move from Sony! And it does demonstrate a real commitment to the Reader.

Great job Sony! And great job MobileRead mob!

TheMooch · 08-08-2008, 12:07 AM

I think that Sony's response to the community request for a firmware upgrade to the PRS-500 is a fair one.

"After lengthy discussion and investigation of different solutions, we determined that such an upgrade would not be technically feasible."

I feel that this indicates that they took a serious look at providing an upgrade, but it just wasn't possible either financially of technically. Providing a (what I consider to be) a more than generous discount I think it shows that they are at least making an effort to work with their customers. Too often in the past Sony has just shugged and said "Oh Well". I applaud their discount and will be looking to upgrade very soon

Thanks Sony!

AprilHare · 08-08-2008, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NatCh

On the matter of e-ink readers, I have all the sympathy in the world for those who live outside the U.S., however, how could Sony take any other position on this point? Officially they never sold any PRS500 units outside the U.S.

Doing so would have evidently violated the distribution agreements they apparently had at the time (they didn't even get to Canada untill well after the 505 was out).

The extra-U.S. PRS500 units were out of bounds to begin with: third pary buys, no warranty ... not ideal perhaps, but that's the way it's been all along.

You left out visitors to the U.S. who return finding their electronic gizmo isn't supported due to them being born elsewhere.

QueridaNegra · 08-08-2008, 12:43 AM

I traded my (oft-dropped, case slightly cracked) 500 today at the SonyStyle store in King of Prussia, with little more than a 10 min delay for the kid to look up the offer on Sony's website. Considering I know I couldn't get $100 for it on eBay, although it works just fine, I'm grateful for the discounted upgrade!

Now I just have to buy a new handbag so the cover with light will fit - btw, the built-in lightwedge (at least that's what it looks like) is awesome.

Ovydake · 08-08-2008, 01:36 AM

I see it as disrespect, rather than respect, they should have updated the software also the real value is 200 on eBay.

kovidgoyal · 08-08-2008, 01:59 AM

As far as epub support is concerned, you can just convert epub to LRF using calibre and view it happily on your 500s.

iacchi · 08-08-2008, 02:19 AM

Kovid: even DRM'ed ePubs?

kovidgoyal · 08-08-2008, 04:04 AM

No not DRMed epubs. Calibre never removes DRM from ebook files.

seajewel · 08-08-2008, 04:49 AM

The amazing thing is posts like these.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ovydake

I see it as disrespect, rather than respect, they should have updated the software also the real value is 200 on eBay.

NatCh · 08-08-2008, 05:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hansl

Well, Sony for sure is well aware that they did sell a lot of PRS-500s to outside the US.

I'm afraid you are mistaken.

Sony never sold a single PRS500 outside the U.S. All the extra-U.S. 500s were sold by third parties, either individuals, or retailers. I'm given to understand that Sony is a bit perturbed with those retailers for their international sales, actually. You are correct in that Sony knows that there are a lot of 500s outside the U.S. (they couldn't help but be, since the follow MR!), but as I said earlier, they were bought outside official channels. The distribution agreements I mentioned above mean that they can't recognize those units in any case: they're disavowed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hansl

Not to speak of the 10000 pages fairy tale or the undocumented stand-by mode which cannot be turned off.

It was 7,500 pages, and they probably did manage that under a specific, unlikely set of circumstances -- it's Marketing.

Sure, it's annoying, and borderline deception, but it's also not any secret. If you plan to avoid every company that uses it, you're not going to be buying very much at all.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hansl

BTW any green soul around here who cares about the extra electronic waste?

Heh, somehow I find I'm not too bothered by electrical waste that causes a dinky 1,800 mAh battery to take more than three weeks to run down. I have 2,500 mAh AA rechargeables that run down in less time than that just sitting on a shelf!

You have to decide what's best for you to do with early adoption. It's always a bit painful on the 'Bleeding Edge' and if you don't want to ride it, no one would blame you for it in the slightest.

08-07-2008, 08:10 PM	#47
bobbarkerissatan Member Posts: 21 Karma: 298 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: prs500	The gesture is appreciated, but this really is too little, too late. This all amounts to very little. 1. sell our PRS500s to Sony for less than if we were to sell it privately. 2. buy PRS505 from Sony for full MSRP instead of buying it used or looking for a discount, thus negating a significant portion of the credit. Last edited by bobbarkerissatan; 08-07-2008 at 08:14 PM.

08-07-2008, 08:15 PM	#48
mojochris Junior Member Posts: 5 Karma: 14 Join Date: Aug 2007 Device: none	Yeah this sucks Why is everybody saying this is a good deal...this is what we had a week ago. Sell it off (although now we have Sony's lowball offer, which nobody in their right mind would take) and buy a new one. So yeah nothing here but a slap in the face.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Ended Sony Reader PRS-500 to trade for 5" or touchscreen device	NoHolyGrail	Flea Market	3	05-06-2010 01:31 AM
Sell Sony PRS-500 (for trade-in, parts, or repair)	writ	Flea Market	1	03-03-2010 04:14 AM
SONY PRS-500 Reader Trade In Program?	bookratt	Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links)	2	05-11-2009 02:17 PM
Sony PRS 500 trade in deal? Experiences?	mizo9999	Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links)	6	11-18-2008 08:27 AM
Trade Trade for my Sony Reader PRS-500 Leather Cover and Cradle	eskin	Flea Market	5	09-27-2008 02:43 PM

08-07-2008, 11:13 PM	#50
Jusin Junior Member Posts: 6 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2008 Device: sony prs-505	Very great service from Sony. I think they value the future market of e-book reader. This time it's loss. But will bring more things later on.

08-07-2008, 11:13 PM	#51
Donnageddon Now you lishen here... Posts: 2,494 Karma: 479498 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Seattle-ish Device: Sony PRS-650. Kobo Touch, Kindle Fire	Very surprising, and generous move from Sony! And it does demonstrate a real commitment to the Reader. Great job Sony! And great job MobileRead mob!

08-08-2008, 12:07 AM	#52
TheMooch Member Retired Posts: 102 Karma: 226 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: San Jose, CA Device: PRS-500 Sony eReader	I think that Sony's response to the community request for a firmware upgrade to the PRS-500 is a fair one. "After lengthy discussion and investigation of different solutions, we determined that such an upgrade would not be technically feasible." I feel that this indicates that they took a serious look at providing an upgrade, but it just wasn't possible either financially of technically. Providing a (what I consider to be) a more than generous discount I think it shows that they are at least making an effort to work with their customers. Too often in the past Sony has just shugged and said "Oh Well". I applaud their discount and will be looking to upgrade very soon Thanks Sony!

08-08-2008, 12:43 AM	#54
QueridaNegra Member Posts: 23 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2006 Device: Sony Reader, Sony Reader!!	I traded my (oft-dropped, case slightly cracked) 500 today at the SonyStyle store in King of Prussia, with little more than a 10 min delay for the kid to look up the offer on Sony's website. Considering I know I couldn't get $100 for it on eBay, although it works just fine, I'm grateful for the discounted upgrade! Now I just have to buy a new handbag so the cover with light will fit - btw, the built-in lightwedge (at least that's what it looks like) is awesome.

08-08-2008, 01:36 AM	#55
Ovydake Junior Member Posts: 9 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2008 Device: iRex iLiad	I see it as disrespect, rather than respect, they should have updated the software also the real value is 200 on eBay.

08-08-2008, 01:59 AM	#56
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 43,850 Karma: 22666666 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	As far as epub support is concerned, you can just convert epub to LRF using calibre and view it happily on your 500s.

08-08-2008, 02:19 AM	#57
iacchi Zealot Posts: 122 Karma: 66 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Melbourne Device: PRS-500; Boox C67ML; Boox Max	Kovid: even DRM'ed ePubs?

08-08-2008, 04:04 AM	#58
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 43,850 Karma: 22666666 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	No not DRMed epubs. Calibre never removes DRM from ebook files.