Nook or Sony PRS-900

[Rowen]

Hello everyone,

This is my first post on this forum and one spawned by countless hours reading this forum and reviews of different readers. I have managed to narrow it down to a Sony brand (specifically the PRS-900) or the B&N Nook. Even that decision was a tough one.

I've read pro's and con's to both readers. My primary use of the device will be reading of course. Mostly DRM free (or removed) books but I also want the option to purchase books from any store.

My confusion comes from the reviews that were designed to help me. One states the Sony 900 has glare, the other the Nook has a horrible library management feature.

Then again I've read the Nook has better screen contrast while the Sony boasts a slightly larger screen size.

I plan to use Calabrie as that seems to be a decent program no matter the choice in readers. Its just a very hard decision for me to make. The fear I will get a reader Ill end up hating (and thus not use) is gnawing at my subconsious.

Is it easy to load DRM free epubs to the Nook using Calabrie? Ive heard the Nook relies on signing up at B&N and a active credit card, does the Sony also require this? Is the Sony PRS-900 over hyped and I would benifit from a cheaper model? (But not the touch screen 600's I've read to many bad things about them).

These are all questions that have been flying around in my head that I just need to ask. Thank you all for taking the time to read my post and I appreciate any help given.

Thanks in advance,
Rowen

[Stitchawl]

Hello Rowen, welcome to the MobileRead forums. We have all been in your shoes, trying to decide which reader to purchase. Personally, I went with Sony, although it was the 505 model. I think e-readers are like anything else; there will be people who say x is better than y, and just as many people saying y is better than x. You've done your research and narrowed your field down quite well, so why not go out and try them out yourself, see which 'feels' better to you. I didn't have that option when I bought mine, but I got lucky. I'm 110% satisfied with my Sony. Good luck, and remember that which ever you choose, you can find some wonderful free books right here in the forums to download and read!

Stitchawl

[dorino]

Try (demo it at a store) the 600. I can't stress enough how good it is! It's pleasant to read on, and has the same size screen as the nook. Glare is extremely minor! I, personally, found the nook's little LCD more distracting than the glare I occasionally experience with my 600. The 900 suffers the same glare problems, though. It's simply got a bigger screen.

Go with the 600. It's much cheaper, and it's an amazing device... Try it and see

[Rowen]

Thanks for the replies!

I think Ill head to the store when next Im there. Unfortunatly there isn't a store close by that I can goto so it will have to wait for an out of town trip.

Dorino, I see your happy with the 600. I was scared away from that from reports of poor screen resolution (or was it contrast?). Also, are there buttons to turn the pages or do you finger swipe? I do that on my iPod touch and the screen can get such a mess from finger prints.

I'll take a good look at the ones they have displayed at Best Buy when I head there. My local Wal Mart only has the Sony 300, I believe that is the model..... I hear good things about that as well.

Thanks again everyone for the feedback.

[majidbhurgri]

I have used both of them, though for a short while, as I returned both of them. Here is my brief roundup of the two.

Over all I liked Sony 900 much better. Nook has better contrast and better screen readability. Sony has slightly grayish screen due to touch screen layer. It also has glare.

I was very excited in the beginning about Nook but I found that its navigation screen is too cramped for my taste.

If you simply read a book from beginning to end, Nook may not be bad, but if like me you often find yourself flipping through it, reaching for particular pages, you would hate Nook because it won't let you navigate to a specific page by number.

[dorino]

Originally Posted by Rowen

Thanks for the replies!

I think Ill head to the store when next Im there. Unfortunatly there isn't a store close by that I can goto so it will have to wait for an out of town trip.

Dorino, I see your happy with the 600. I was scared away from that from reports of poor screen resolution (or was it contrast?). Also, are there buttons to turn the pages or do you finger swipe? I do that on my iPod touch and the screen can get such a mess from finger prints.

I'll take a good look at the ones they have displayed at Best Buy when I head there. My local Wal Mart only has the Sony 300, I believe that is the model..... I hear good things about that as well.

Thanks again everyone for the feedback.

The screen resolution on the PRS-600 is the same as the nook, 800x600. It's standard for 6-inch screens. Now, the contrast on the PRS-600 is worse than the nook, but the 900 suffers the same problem, and to me this is really only noticable side by side.

The screen definately does get smudged if you choose to finger swipe. Nothing a quick rub with a dry cloth won't fix, though, and it's never an issue in good lighting conditions (nor sunlight!)
Alternatively, there is the ability to turn the pages with buttons! The PRS-600 features two buttons for page turning, right below the silver bar underneath the screen.

Reports of glare are mostly what upset people with the 600, but it's very minor in reality, and something very easily corrected by simply turning the device. Glare is minor on both the 900 and 600, and is extremely exagerated in reviews. One must see it to really decide whether it's that distracting.

In my opinion, the 600 is the way to go. I too was looking at the nook, 600, and 300, (900 was out of my budget), and inevitably went with the 600 because of it's numerous features and because I felt it's problems were so minor. Also, it was cheaper than the nook, and that was a plus. It was 200 when I got it, I hear it's even less now.

[boswd]

I think Stickawl has the best advice and he is right on the money, these types of threads usually turn into a "Buy what I bought because it is the Best" and I'm guilty of that as well.
Best Buy does have both but the drawback of that is Best Buy employee's and the store itself can give a rat's A$$ about e-book readers, their only concern is Flatscreen TV, Computers and anything Apple.

But anywho what I can tell you is why I bought the Nook over others. To start off while yes it is true there isn't a "go to page #" there is a strong rumor it will be available in the next software upgrade and frankly the way they have been responding to consumer's, I would be shocked if it wasn't there. So far I've read about 13 or so books on it and haven't yet found the need to use it yet but I can where it could come in handy for some people.

But I bought the Nook for quite few different reasons, over the Kindle was looks, color touch screen navigation, book cover art, e-Pub , wi fi as opposed to whispernet, styling, and In Store features such as Read in Store,(any book for any hour each day) More in Store (special coupons for Nook only owners, StarBucks Cafe specials and special price deals on some e-books) it makes it more than just a gadget, it makes alot of fun to own and make a day out of it with friends.
Also there is a growing Nook Community. Barnes and Nobles have Nook at Night, Nook Clubs etc.

As far as against the Sony, well again stlying and looks (though that is totally subjective) Color touchscreen but basically overall I just don't see any value in the Sony's.
The ones that have wireless downloading features are more expensive(as little as $50 more if you can find on one sale to as much as a $100 more) The PS 900 is not worth $100 more than the Nook. And the second touch screen really kills it IMHO.
As far as the others that are generally only around $50 cheaper but you get less in features, no wireless, most are smaller screens.
And also I perfer the Barnes and Noble bookstore platform vs Sony's bookstores.

Also the in store support in your local Barnes and Noble is something that is really nice to have if needed. If something is wrong, can't figure something out or just general help you can bring it in and someone will work with you.

but in the end you got to go with the one that suits your reading habits. In my case the Nook was hands down the clear winner for me.

[Rowen]

I really am starting to like what I see about the Nook. I do have a few questions about it though if any one can enlighten me.

Does the secondary color screen turn off, or go into sleep mode while reading a book?

And I noticed it does use epub, how easy is it to add my collection I have now? They are DRM free.

I also have Calibre, it is a good option to use with the Nook. I also read somewhere that it will upload book covers to the books I currently own, is that correct?

Thanks again for all your help. You all have been wonderful and very patient.

I really like this community!

[Lilly]

The Sony 900 is a much better buy. It's now on sale for $299 most places with no tax and free shipping. way better buy then the $259 Nook. Not only do you get touch screen, but an extra 1.1 inch in screen, a soft cover, and a hard case all for $299! Most of all, it's still the same size as the 6 inch Nook and smaller then 6 inch K2 even though it has a bigger screen. Here is a link where you can purchase it for $299!
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...&condition=new

[iandix]

Originally Posted by Rowen

Does the secondary color screen turn off, or go into sleep mode while reading a book?

And I noticed it does use epub, how easy is it to add my collection I have now? They are DRM free.

I also have Calibre, it is a good option to use with the Nook. I also read somewhere that it will upload book covers to the books I currently own, is that correct?

Thanks again for all your help. You all have been wonderful and very patient.

I really like this community!

You could say the touch screen goes to sleep, after about 30sec (you can set the time) it goes black so not to effect your reading, but when it's black you can use it to swipe for page turning.

To load books purchased from other sites or from your local library, you can use adobe digital editions if you already have a nice collection of books you can use Calibre without any problems (I use both of these programs to load books)

When you open a book to read the cover is displayed on the LCD screen.. it's nice but ..so what ..does not make the book any better :-)

I can not speak for the 900 I have not seen one, but I do have the Sony PRS 600. The Sony feels and looks like a much better made unit, but the major drawback is the screen. Okay if you have only used a 600 and have not compared it side by side with a nook, you may be happy with it. But once you have compared the two and read a page or two on the nook, going back to the 600 is a real pain and a major disappointment.

B&N had a $50 gift card deal going if you purchased a nook, they might still have that going, very good deal. They also have deals each week where you go into a B&N and get a voucher and you can download a book for free (on top of their normal free books) .. I can't do that ..no B&N store in Australia :-(

I hope you are happy with what ereader you end up buying and I am sure people here will give you advice if you have any problems.

[Rowen]

Okay just for fun....which reader is easier to navigate though all the books you have uploaded. I like to catagorize my books to make them easier to find. So if I want to look up by Author, or title, maybe even genre? Is that possible in both?

[Lilly]

Originally Posted by Rowen

Okay just for fun....which reader is easier to navigate though all the books you have uploaded. I like to catagorize my books to make them easier to find. So if I want to look up by Author, or title, maybe even genre? Is that possible in both?

I don't know about the nook but it's possible on the Sony PRS-900. Also you can make folders call Collections on the Sony Reader; like I have a couple of authors that I read a lot of their books, so I have a folder named after them and put all their books in that folder. I also use it for series; like I have a folder call Lora Leigh's Breed series and have all 21 books in that folder in chronological order.

[Rowen]

Okay Lily, I'm curious......I saw the link in your sig and followed it. Since you have a the Sony in question how are page turns handled with it? Buttons? or finger swipes? Since its mostly a touch screen is there the possibility of scratching the screen with the stylus?

Also have you ever used Calibre? or do you just use the default sony software? and if you use the sony software does it allow you to load books you purchased elsewere?

Thanks again everyone, you have all be great!

[iandix]

I don't like the basic nook's system for cataloguing books, you can list them by author, date and name.. but when you start having a large number of books it becomes harder to use.

Now after saying that, that is the main thing uses have been asking B&N to fix and B&N has shown in that past that they are willing to update the firmware.. every 6 weeks so far has been a firmware update with new features (that should start to slow down) ... You can also root your nook and install 3rd party apps.. such as Trook which used with Calibre had the best catalogue system I have seen on a reader..

SO out of the box.. the sony wins with cataloguing books .. but that might/should change soon and a rooted nook wins ..

so you need to ask yourself .. are you willing to root your nook or wait for the next upgrade..


If I was you I would go and see a 900 in person (like I said I have not seen one, so I can not say) and compare the screen to a nook.. reading books is the main thing you want to do.. if the screen is about the same ..then look at all the little side features


I use calibre with my PRS600 without any problems and if you buy books from another site just use Adobe digital editions.. they both work well with the Sony ... only problem you can not read B&N epubs on a Sony.. so you are limited there

[Lilly]

Originally Posted by Rowen

Okay Lily, I'm curious......I saw the link in your sig and followed it. Since you have a the Sony in question how are page turns handled with it? Buttons? or finger swipes? Since its mostly a touch screen is there the possibility of scratching the screen with the stylus?

Also have you ever used Calibre? or do you just use the default sony software? and if you use the sony software does it allow you to load books you purchased elsewere?

Thanks again everyone, you have all be great!

Yeah, I might be bias since I own a Sony Reader Forum but I've own both Kindle 1 & 2. I actually sold my K1 on this board in order to buy a K2 when it was released. I've own a Sony PRS-505 since it was released in 2007 and it's still going strong. I've only held the Nook once, a co-worker received one for Christmas (in fact she was one of the 1st people to own one). I did not get to see it until around January 5th when I came back after my 2 weeks vacation, but I know the Nook has come a long way because she had a lot of complaints and now she loves it!

Anyway, you can change the page by both (buttons or finger swipes); I myself use the buttons 95% of the time to change pages. There are 5 buttons at the bottom and when the cover is folded your thumb falls right on the page turn buttons. There's also a home button take takes you back to the home page, a size increase button, and an option button that brings a menu up that you can choose a bunch of functions. The stylus will not scratch the screen and I have a touch screen phone and I'm used to using my finger so I'm one of these people who hardly ever use the stylus. I probably use my fingers 99% of the time, I hardly remember to use the stylus.

Calibre is a must have. I use it way more then the Sony Reader software. I'm sorry to say, I shop wherever I want so I'm not bound to the Sony Software. Of course if the price it right, I buy an ePub book (never PDF-worse format for books). I'm able to liberate all my books. So I don't even care about format, I will buy a Mobi, ePub, Lit, PDB, or AZW format without batting an eye. So that leaves me to just shop for the reader I love, not bound to a bookstore.

In conclusion, I think the Sony PRS-900 is the best mid-size reader out there (6-inches - I count it as such since it's the same size but with the benefit of a larger screen).