Sony PRS-650 Touch, Pocketbook Pro 603... Other suggestions?

[ST-One]

Originally Posted by AnneT

Well, here you're underestimating tiny little Belgium... We don't have just two, but three official languages... In the east of Belgium is a region where the primary language is... German!

Damn

[AnneT]

Originally Posted by jocampo

And please do not say Kindle users are locked into Amazon online bookstore, that's not correct. We are not. We are NOT forced to buy from Amazon bookstore. As long as the ebook is DRM free, we can sideload books on mobi or ePub format (via Calibre conversion)

As long as the ebook is DRM free...
And indeed, I forgot to mention that my primary language isn't English, but my requirement about multiple dictionaries, and a search-functionality 'not only in English' could have told that I would like to read books that aren't English... (And my English grammar and spelling should have told you that it's not my primary language )
And so I will have to turn to European bookstores, who sell DRM-protected content, that can't be read on a Kindle.

I know, I forgot to mention lots of things that are important to me in my first post... but that's partly because I only have an ereader for a week, and don't realize yet what could be an important factor...

Don't want to start an argument pro or contra Amazon, pro or contra Kindle... I just think Kindle isn't exactly the right ereader for some-one in Europe who wants to read in Dutch, French, German and Italian, apart from some English books.

[ST-One]

Originally Posted by AnneT

Don't want to start an argument pro or contra Amazon, pro or contra Kindle... I just think Kindle isn't exactly the right ereader for some-one in Europe who wants to read in Dutch, French, German and Italian, apart from some English books.

To be fair, Amazon.de offers quite a few ebooks in German... if you don't mind the *cough*lock-in*cough*

[AnneT]

Originally Posted by ST-One

To be fair, Amazon.de offers quite a few ebooks in German... if you don't mind the *cough*lock-in*cough*

... but those German books are not (always?) available for customers outside Germany.
After reading your message, I browsed through the available titles on Amazon.de, and indeed, I got the message that, since I'm not in Germany, I have to order through Amazon.com. But there I was told that the title I was interested in, 'was not available for my country'.

[ST-One]

Originally Posted by AnneT

... but those German books are not (always?) available for customers outside Germany.
After reading your message, I browsed through the available titles on Amazon.de, and indeed, I got the message that, since I'm not in Germany, I have to order through Amazon.com. But there I was told that the title I was interested in, 'was not available for my country'.

Ah, Geo-restrictions - do they give you that nice warm feeling of ... anger too?

[AnneT]

Indeed... like it angers me to see that some ebooks are cheaper on amazon.co.uk than on amazon.com. (But amazon.co.uk doesn't like to see me as a customer... although I'm a citizen of the E.U.)

[jshzh]

I like my PB 602 but the word log and annotation function on PRS-650 is tempting.

If I closed a pdf book on PRS-650 and reopen it, will I get the previous settings automatically? For instance, locked zoom-in and margin cut settings ?

I heard with the alternative firmware, one can install custom dictionaries on PRS-505. Do the custom dictionaries work as the pre-installed ones (with pop-up function in a book)? Can I expect custom dictionaries to work on PRS-650 soon?

Is 650 easy to hold for a long time in landscape mode with a cover?

Thank you.

[sonyreaderfan]

Originally Posted by jshzh

If I closed a pdf book on PRS-650 and reopen it, will I get the previous settings automatically? For instance, locked zoom-in and margin cut settings ?


Thank you.

Sort of.

I have a pdf that I have set with zoom lock. When I return to that pdf the setting is still there.

I have another pdf that I read with larger fonts for reflow and that setting is remembered.

Unfortunately page mode like margin cut, two columns, etc. and landscape mode aren't remembered.


I have a cover on my PRS 950 and I feel it's easy to hold in landscape mode.

[jshzh]

Originally Posted by sonyreaderfan

Sort of.

I have a pdf that I have set with zoom lock. When I return to that pdf the setting is still there.

I have another pdf that I read with larger fonts for reflow and that setting is remembered.

Unfortunately page mode like margin cut, two columns, etc. and landscape mode aren't remembered.


I have a cover on my PRS 950 and I feel it's easy to hold in landscape mode.

Thanks. I think I can cut the margin permanently with Adobe Pro. But landscape should be remembered. Most of my books are pdfs and I read them all in landscape mode :-(( My PB 602 remembers every setting...but no "word log" function

[sonyreaderfan]

Originally Posted by jshzh

Thanks. I think I can cut the margin permanently with Adobe Pro. But landscape should be remembered. Most of my books are pdfs and I read them all in landscape mode :-(( My PB 602 remembers every setting...but no "word log" function

I wish landscape setting would be remembered also. One thing to note is that the home screen can be in landscape mode too. This is annoying because if you read a pdf in landscape mode and press the home button, the home screen you return to is in landscape mode.

At least it's pretty fast and simple to switch orientations (than say with Kindle because of the touchscreen).

[CommonReader]

Originally Posted by AnneT

... but those German books are not (always?) available for customers outside Germany.
After reading your message, I browsed through the available titles on Amazon.de, and indeed, I got the message that, since I'm not in Germany, I have to order through Amazon.com. But there I was told that the title I was interested in, 'was not available for my country'.

In a German book forum I came across a reader from Luxembourg who complained that she couldn't get ebooks from German sellers even though the books were not only available to buyers in Germany and Austria but to Swiss buyers as well.
Georestrictions within the EU are completely unjustified and it is about time for the commission to come down on the publishing industry like a ton of bricks. I guess that Barroso is more concerned about establishing an EU tax than about such a humble issue, though.

[jshzh]

Originally Posted by sonyreaderfan

I wish landscape setting would be remembered also. One thing to note is that the home screen can be in landscape mode too. This is annoying because if you read a pdf in landscape mode and press the home button, the home screen you return to is in landscape mode.

At least it's pretty fast and simple to switch orientations (than say with Kindle because of the touchscreen).

One thought. If you zoom and lock the page in landscape mode then close the pdf, when you open it again, I suppose even the zoom and lock settings will be gone because the screen is now in portrait mode. Is that the case?

[sonyreaderfan]

Originally Posted by jshzh

One thought. If you zoom and lock the page in landscape mode then close the pdf, when you open it again, I suppose even the zoom and lock settings will be gone because the screen is now in portrait mode. Is that the case?

Not always, depend on the orientation when you open the document.

If you set a lock for document in landscape mode then return to open the document in portrait mode, you will lose the lock. But if you put the device in landscape mode before opening the document, then lock will be there.

The same for setting a document in portrait mode.

It's more natural to read in portrait mode and fortunately, I never had to set the lock in landscape mode. In landscape mode the text are bigger because the document is cut in halves or thirds. In fact, the zoom scale is set to the max in landscape mode. I only need to set the zoom lock in portrait mode.

[jshzh]

Originally Posted by sonyreaderfan

Not always, depend on the orientation when you open the document.

If you set a lock for document in landscape mode then return to open the document in portrait mode, you will lose the lock. But if you put the device in landscape mode before opening the document, then lock will be there.

The same for setting a document in portrait mode.

It's more natural to read in portrait mode and fortunately, I never had to set the lock in landscape mode. In landscape mode the text are bigger because the document is cut in halves or thirds. In fact, the zoom scale is set to the max in landscape mode. I only need to set the zoom lock in portrait mode.

Thank you. Can I set the device to landscape mode, i.e. every time I turn on the device, everything will be in landscape orientation?

[sonyreaderfan]

Originally Posted by jshzh

Thank you. Can I set the device to landscape mode, i.e. every time I turn on the device, everything will be in landscape orientation?

Yes, if you power off while the Reader is in landscape mode, the next time you turn on the Reader it will revert to landscape mode.