PRS-500 Screen is broken, looking at options

kichigai · 03-23-2012, 07:44 PM

Well, it seems an ordinary drop is all it takes to break the screen of my PRS-500. The same kind of spill my Nokia N73, BlackBerry 8900 and Nexus S have all taken on the exact same surface (and the Nexus S has a screen made of curved glass).

What, realistically, are my options here? I doubt Sony will bother to repair it, given the age of the PRS-500 (and that it's, what, four generations removed from their current readers?). I've got enough technical know-how to be confident in replacing the screen myself, but I have no idea who are reputable vendors of compatible e-ink screens (Google wasn't exactly helpful either). Or I could just replace it with another reader.

Here's the thing: money situation isn't so flexible right now, and this is just one of a number of set-backs suffered in the past few days (highlights include my phone's screen breaking, and Fitbit has gone missing), so I'm trying to keep costs low. Realistically I only use my Reader for long-form Internet content. Essays, long analytical articles, collections of documents from the Wikipedia, and most recently screenplays and documents for productions I'm working on (sure beats printing out 100+ pages, or reading it all on my laptop). If the cost of a new screen is >$100, I'm just going to throw up my arms and go for a new Reader in the $100-150 range, so any recommendations that fit reading of PDF, RTF and ePub documents well would be welcome.

gardenstate · 03-28-2012, 10:30 AM

If funds are limited, consider getting a used Sony PRS-505 or 300 from ebay to keep the costs down. The e-ink screen offers better contrast on these models compared to the 500.

Ripplinger · 03-28-2012, 11:30 AM

It might be worth contacting Sony and see what they say. Sometimes they offer a refurbished unit which is an upgrade at a very reasonable cost.

Or the newer T1s can be found on sale for $89.99 at various times, you might check that out. The PRS-350s are $69.95 right now refurbished at Sony, but you might not like the 5" screen for the content you use.

03-23-2012, 07:44 PM	#1
kichigai Member Posts: 11 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Minnesota Metro Device: PRS-500	Screen is broken, looking at options Well, it seems an ordinary drop is all it takes to break the screen of my PRS-500. The same kind of spill my Nokia N73, BlackBerry 8900 and Nexus S have all taken on the exact same surface (and the Nexus S has a screen made of curved glass). What, realistically, are my options here? I doubt Sony will bother to repair it, given the age of the PRS-500 (and that it's, what, four generations removed from their current readers?). I've got enough technical know-how to be confident in replacing the screen myself, but I have no idea who are reputable vendors of compatible e-ink screens (Google wasn't exactly helpful either). Or I could just replace it with another reader. Here's the thing: money situation isn't so flexible right now, and this is just one of a number of set-backs suffered in the past few days (highlights include my phone's screen breaking, and Fitbit has gone missing), so I'm trying to keep costs low. Realistically I only use my Reader for long-form Internet content. Essays, long analytical articles, collections of documents from the Wikipedia, and most recently screenplays and documents for productions I'm working on (sure beats printing out 100+ pages, or reading it all on my laptop). If the cost of a new screen is >$100, I'm just going to throw up my arms and go for a new Reader in the $100-150 range, so any recommendations that fit reading of PDF, RTF and ePub documents well would be welcome.

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03-28-2012, 10:30 AM	#2
gardenstate Groupie Posts: 195 Karma: 1069472 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Chicago,IL USA suburb Device: Sony PRS-T1 and PRS-950	If funds are limited, consider getting a used Sony PRS-505 or 300 from ebay to keep the costs down. The e-ink screen offers better contrast on these models compared to the 500.

03-28-2012, 11:30 AM	#3
Ripplinger 350 Hoarder Posts: 3,574 Karma: 8281267 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Midwest USA Device: Sony PRS-350, Kobo Glo & Glo HD, PW2	It might be worth contacting Sony and see what they say. Sometimes they offer a refurbished unit which is an upgrade at a very reasonable cost. Or the newer T1s can be found on sale for $89.99 at various times, you might check that out. The PRS-350s are $69.95 right now refurbished at Sony, but you might not like the 5" screen for the content you use.