Small (~5") ebook readers?

[HaydnH]

Hi All,

I've been using a Trekstor Pyrus Mini for a few years, I've gone through a few of them due to sitting on them or whatever! I've just broken my last one and they appear to have stopped making them and the Kobo Mini also seems to be discontinued. I now can't find any small ebook readers which are currently being produced!

Anybody know of any small ebook readers? I'm really not too bothered about specs as long as it supports epub & mobi and fits easily in a back pocket with a little room to spare.

Thanks,

Haydn.

[AnemicOak]

The only thing I can think of that's still being made would be the Ectaco JetBook Lite and JetBook Mini. They both have a 5" TFT LCD screen (not eInk) and support both ePub and Mobi, along with some other formats. AFAIK there are no 5" eInk readers currently made.

[HarryT]

Small-screen eInk devices have essentially been superseded by mobile phones, just as large-screen ones have been by tablets, unfortunately.

[rkomar]

I was going to suggest the PocketBook Mini, but that also seems to no longer be sold.

Some of the latest 6" devices have much smaller bezels than they used to, so perhaps they are small enough to fit into your pockets.

[barryem]

I bought a Kobo Mini on Ebay for a neighbor a few weeks ago. It was used but you'd never know that from looking at it and it was very cheap. I forget the exact price but I think it was $35 with free shipping. Maybe $40. I'm not sure now.

Anyway it was like new. The battery was just fine. It didn't come with the original box or original charger but there was a cable and a charger included and my neighbor is very happy.

Of course you never know with Ebay but I've been buying things from them for years and so far I've never had any problems. A few things weren't in as good condition as was stated but nothing was in poor condition and if the descriptions of those items had been more honest I probably would have bought them anyway.

I've only ever returned one item because it was defective and I got a full refund for that with no problems. I only buy from sellers who offer refunds.

Barry

[cromag]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

The only thing I can think of that's still being made would be the Ectaco JetBook Lite and JetBook Mini. They both have a 5" TFT LCD screen (not eInk) and support both ePub and Mobi, along with some other formats. AFAIK there are no 5" eInk readers currently made.

I think they're both discontinued, although there are some still on the market. I have both and would advise you to avoid the JetBook Mini unless you really understand the limitations AND can get it very cheap. Most of the "new" ones I've seen out there are priced in the $80 to $110 range, and you will feel sorely ripped off at those prices!

On the other hand, if "cheap" is important you might look into small Android tablets. Newegg has several 4-inch models for under $40. I had one for more than a year before I damaged the touchscreen on a vacation. It ran several ereader Apps, had wifi, had a camera, etc. Not much built-in memory, but it could take a micro-SD card for storage. It was slightly smaller than my cell phone, so it easily fit in my pocket.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by cromag

I think they're both discontinued

Could be. I did a quick check of their site before posting but didn't do any other checking.

[dickloraine]

Isn't the trekstore just 4"? I had a sony prs 350 and now have a kobo aura. Despite being 6" the aura is only marginally bigger than the sony. There are better e-ink readers then the aura, but it is a very small device, has 6" and frontlight. The Trekstore has no frontlight and not a very good display.
Think about how big/small your reader should be and look for the physical dimensions, maybe you find some 6" that fits. Here for comparison the dimensions for the trekstore (4") the sony (5") the pocketbook mini (5") the aura (6") and the kindle pw (6") all in cm:
Trekstore: 8,5 x 0,9 x 12,8
Sony: 10,5 x 0,9 x 14,6
Pocketbook: 10 x 0,7 x 14,2
Aura: 11,4 x 0,8 x 15
Kindle: 11,7 x 0,9 x 16,9

The jump of the Trekstore is of course big, but that is only a 4" display. But the aura is very similiar to the two 5" readers.

[HaydnH]

Thanks for the info guys. I used to read books on a phone screen in the past, but I found that in conjunction to staring at a screen at my desk all day my eyes would ache if I stared at an LCD on the commute as well.

The CoverBook looks really interesting, it's a shame they only have it for the Galaxy 4S phone though: http://www.pocketbook-int.com/us/pro...ok-coverreader

I guess a slightly larger device is my only option and just hope I can get on with it. I'm surprised that every manufacturer seems to have discontinued them though, I would've thought there'd be a lot of commuters like myself that want something small to put in a pocket.

Haydn.

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by HaydnH

Thanks for the info guys. I used to read books on a phone screen in the past, but I found that in conjunction to staring at a screen at my desk all day my eyes would ache if I stared at an LCD on the commute as well.

Then don't stare at the screen but blink once in a while

But seriously, I don't know what size your phone is, but if you get a larger LCD screen and change the default glaring brightness to a more mildly brightness (and don't forget to blink!), especially on a commute a good quality phone screen might work just as well.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by HaydnH

fits easily in a back pocket with a little room to spare.

Putting a Reader in a pocket like that is a really bad idea. It can become broken (screen shattered) and you'll then be without your Reader. Too many people have put too many Readers in a pocket and have ended up with a broken screen,. So if you are wanting a 5" Reader so you can fit it in your back pocket, buy one that's too big so cannot fit it in your back pocket so you won't end up with it being broken.

[HaydnH]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Putting a Reader in a pocket like that is a really bad idea. It can become broken (screen shattered) and you'll then be without your Reader. Too many people have put too many Readers in a pocket and have ended up with a broken screen,. So if you are wanting a 5" Reader so you can fit it in your back pocket, buy one that's too big so cannot fit it in your back pocket so you won't end up with it being broken.

That's one of the reasons I loved the Pyrus mini, it was so cheap as long as you got 5 or so books out of one it was still cheaper than buying paperbacks.

[MJPeters83_02]

Nice thread. Came in here to post this very question. I'm new to readers and want one....but want something I can keep in my pocket if need be.

[vaichuong]

Originally Posted by HaydnH

Hi All,

I've been using a Trekstor Pyrus Mini for a few years, I've gone through a few of them due to sitting on them or whatever! I've just broken my last one and they appear to have stopped making them and the Kobo Mini also seems to be discontinued. I now can't find any small ebook readers which are currently being produced!

Anybody know of any small ebook readers? I'm really not too bothered about specs as long as it supports epub & mobi and fits easily in a back pocket with a little room to spare.

Thanks,

Haydn.

WithEctaco jetBook LITE eBook: You will usually get about 20-22 hours on a single set of 4 AA battieres which is awesome if you're traveling or on the go and don't have time to charge your jetBook

[Quelch]

I'm considering a five inch smart-phone (phablet) for reading while commuting
Replacing my Nexus 7 and old phone
Less things to carry around and keep charged
I wear a vest when it's not too hot here in the sub-tropics
The Nexus 7 fits in the inside pocket and is in no danger of being sat on, but it's a bit heavy
A smart-phone is around 150gram while the Nexus is 400gram

The Cool-Reader app has a parchment type screen, looks like old faded yellowing paper
I find this much more restful for reading than stark black on white or white on black

I'll never go back to a basic e-ink reader, a tablet or smart-phone is so much more versatile

Quelch