360 striped screen?

[paola]

jedd, thanks for the update - I haven't heard anything for a while now, I'll write to Pocketbook Europe then.

[jedd]

Hey Paola,

How did you go with this? I've not seen the problem crop up on my 360 (original) for months now. I've mostly been reading (gasp) paper books, but have gone through about 1500 page turns across two ebooks in that time, and books I was reading previously would incur this stripey problem every 100 pages or less.

I was starting to wonder if it may be triggered by ebook content - though this goes against my understanding of the problem - but on the off-chance, I loaded up one of my old Flashman ebooks that used to exhibit the problem, and just hit page-next while watching some TV one night. No joy at all (well, joy insofar as no stripey-screen). Very frustrating, especially as I'm coming up to the anniversary of the machine, and I just know it's going to manifest again as soon as that day comes and goes.

[paola]

Originally Posted by jedd

Hey Paola,

How did you go with this? I've not seen the problem crop up on my 360 (original) for months now. I've mostly been reading (gasp) paper books, but have gone through about 1500 page turns across two ebooks in that time, and books I was reading previously would incur this stripey problem every 100 pages or less.

I was starting to wonder if it may be triggered by ebook content - though this goes against my understanding of the problem - but on the off-chance, I loaded up one of my old Flashman ebooks that used to exhibit the problem, and just hit page-next while watching some TV one night. No joy at all (well, joy insofar as no stripey-screen). Very frustrating, especially as I'm coming up to the anniversary of the machine, and I just know it's going to manifest again as soon as that day comes and goes.

Hi Jedd,
well I corresponded with Pocketbook Europe and I sent it back for service: I presume it only just arrived, though, as I prepared the box but forgot to mail it for two months! (well, actually I thought somebody in the house had mailed it for me, but this is another story). Remember you have two years of warranty, which is one of the reasons that pushed me towards Pocketbook in the first place. Sadly I read just today on the Ukranian forum that they've ceased producing the 360, so I'd suggest you get cracking on it straightaway.

I had problems with all epubs, regardless of the reading programme (Coolreader, adobereader, fbreader) - but I cannot recall having the same issue with pdf files. However, I had the stripes also in the menus and on the "screensaver" picture.

I'll let you know what happens with repairs.

[jedd]

Oh, I should add, yes, I had it in menus, main screen, pop-ups, etc - once it triggered - and then after some number (one, two, a few dozen) page-turns, it would clear itself. So, yes, I think we have the same problem.

And, yes, my purchase date was in early March 2011 -- that, with the fact that I'm also seeing almost zero availability for the 360(+) models anywhere, worry me. It seems the trend is back to the over-sized 6" models, or worse, LCD / touch devices. None of which come with the clip-on plastic cover. Frightening times ahead.

Anyway, please do let me know how it goes with the service on it. I guess if they decide to replace it, the worry there would be that if they can't replace it now with any residual 360 stock, they'd try to talk you over to a different model?

[paola]

Originally Posted by jedd

I guess if they decide to replace it, the worry there would be that if they can't replace it now with any residual 360 stock, they'd try to talk you over to a different model?

yes, that is my fear, too: keeping my fingers crossed, I'll let you know!

[paola]

update: sadly, it did not work. I sent it in for service, and it came back in a timely way looking like it had been tested, or so the accompanying letter said according to Google translate (it was in German): but alas as soon as I switched it on, the stripes were there. I don't think I should blame them, as in my own experience it could go looking fine for days, and then start going bad, especially after it had not been used for a while, so it may be that the "rest time" in transit did the trick, i.e. they did not see the problem.

So sadly these are the last days for my beloved 360, and with no 5 inch from pocketbook, I think I'll have to migrate to a Kobo mini. I did see an announcement of a new 5" device from pocketbook on the Russian/Ukranian forum, but it is a vague post on something happening next summer, so I am not holding my breath. Though if anyone has any news, glad to hear it!

[jedd]

That is a bit sad. I suspect a combination of intermittent (so they may not have been able to observe the problem at all, despite your accompanying photographs?) and the fact they're unlikely to have any spare components, or indeed spare stock.

For my part it's been some months since I've seen the problem manifest, and while it was annoying when it happened, it would usually clear up after 10-20 page turns (or the next time I went back to use the device). I've probably done about 3,000 page turns since I last saw the problem, too. So I'm hopeful the problem stays away, or at least doesn't get any worse than I've seen it.

And yes, an alternative 5" device would need to be sought - thanks for the heads up on the Kobo hint - it's probably more palatable to my other half than stealing her 360+ when she's not looking.

But tell me - your 360 is simply not usable, or you just think it's not long for this world?

[paola]

Originally Posted by jedd

But tell me - your 360 is simply not usable, or you just think it's not long for this world?

more like the latter: at the moment is still usable, but at every page turn I run the risk of not being able to read. Sometimes the stripes are predominantly clear, sometimes they are predominantly dark, and in the latter case reading is almost impossible, and very tiring - so travelling with it for a few days is not a great option, as I could be left with nothing. I am extremely disappointed, but there you go.

I've discovered that the Kobo mini (which, incidentally, is smaller than the PB360) can be opened up and the internal card substituted with one up to 32GB, so that the lack of micro SD slot can be circumvented. Good to know that is an option, and I hope my 360 survives a little bit longer, but before I sent it in was so bad as to make it unusable, so I suspect that with regular use it will die on me in the next couple of days.

Best of luck with yours, hope the problems keeps off it!

[troll05]

There's at least one 360+ available at amazon.de, maybe they ship to GB.

[paola]

Originally Posted by troll05

There's at least one 360+ available at amazon.de, maybe they ship to GB.

many thanks troll, but in fact I am a little bit weary of buying a new one even if they did ship over here at a reasonable rate, as Pocketbook have stopped producing the 360 model as far as I know, so I imagine that any future problems may be harder to solve e.g. because of missing parts and similar issues.

I can only hope this one lasts until we have at least some official announcement for the new 5" device!

[bense2k]

I had a similar problem with my 602. After opening the back and removal of some screws there was a loose cable for the display. After reinserting it worked kike new.

bense2k

[paola]

sadly my baby reached the end of the line (no lose cables, unfortunately), so got a Kobo mini yesterday. It is incredibly light, and the screen is quite crisp, plus there is the ability to vary the sharpness and weight of each font - yet I miss so many things: no automatic orientation, very limited customization options (only two ways of listing books). In fairness, I still have to study the Kobo forum, but I am missing my 360 terribly!

[troll05]

I think the time of automatic orientation has passed, no newer reader has a G-sensor built in.
As for storing and organizing books there is still no way to pass the PBs, the structure of the newer models is similar to your beloved 360, and from my 602 to 622 was lightyears in reaction time, weight and contrast.
I tried the Kobo, the T1, Kindle Touch and the Odyssey befor laying my hands on the 622, and all failed in one or the other point (mostly multiple), but all had in common that organisation of 100+ books gets difficult to impossible

[paola]

Originally Posted by troll05

I tried the Kobo, the T1, Kindle Touch and the Odyssey befor laying my hands on the 622, and all failed in one or the other point (mostly multiple), but all had in common that organisation of 100+ books gets difficult to impossible

how true!