[dmaul1114]

I'm starting to research ereaders and it looks like the Sony PRS-505 and Kindle are best of the lot (with the 700 having screen issues and being more expensive).

I've been trying to gather what the strengths and weaknesses of each are, and here's what I've come up with and I'd love any corrections or additions from users here!

Kindle 2
Pros
-wireless access to store
-store has larger selection and cheaper prices vs. Sony store
-keyboard for searching etc.

Cons
-books tied to Amazon with DRM--in the unlikely event Amazon goes under you couldn't redownload (though seems there are ways to strip drm and back up to PC).
-No SD card slot (not a biggy for me, kindle 2 has plenty of space)
-battery not removable, $60 for Amazon to replace
-supports less formats, PDF support is "experimental" (though I mainly would want PDF support for scholarly journal articles, and it sounds like neither do well on those since they're full of tables and figures)
-costs 10 cents to send word documents, pdfs etc. to it (can you do it for free over USB hook up to your PC?)
-Plastic, so likely more fragile to drops etc.

Sony PRS-505
Pros
-cheaper--$269 at Amazon currently, was a deal for $205 recently, and could ge tit for $150 with the $150 credit for using Sony card on $299.99 and up purchase.
-nicer looking design
-metal so seems more durable
-supports more formats
-some libraries offer titles for borrowing in formats it supports

Cons
-book store has fewer titles and many are more expensive (including some wants I looked up)
-have too hook up to PC to transfer books
-no wireless network or WIFI capabilities


So that's what I've gathered so far. I lean toward the Kindle for the wireless access, and the broader selection and cheaper prices. But $359 is a good bit out of my grad student budget and I don't see Amazon making any big price cuts any time soon. Thus the Sony is more affordable, especially with the Sony Card deal.

So I'm torn. At the moment I'm still leaning toward just waiting a few months, hoarding my Amazon Visa reward gift certificates and picking up a Kindle 2 in the fall after I finish the Ph D and start my new job.

I suppose picking up a used Kindle 1 cheaper on Craig's List may be an option--but it would have to be very cheap (say $150 or less) for me to take a chance on a used one and that's probably unlikely. And I'd like the better screen and design of the Kindle 2 as well.

Some general questions to help on this decision:

Is there a difference in the amount of free books you can get across the two?

Is it true that PDFs with lots of figures and tables and in 8.5x11 page design (again scholarly journal articles) are a lost cause on both and will probably always bee on small ereaders?

Thanks in advance for any feedback!