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ratzee · 03-29-2009, 03:29 PM

I did as suggested, and just returned from Borders to compare my 500 with the 505 and 700 on display.

As I walked up to the display, my reaction from a good 10' away to the 700 was 'oh, wow, they're right, that screen is BAD'. My first impression was that the device still had some sort of opaque screen protector on the screen. While I liked the speed, and the touch screen was cool, the display was just too poor to be worth any upgrade. It was fuzzy and the reflection from overhead lighting was awful.

I spent about 10 minutes comparing my 500 and the 505. First impressions were that there really wasn't that much difference in the display - the text didn't appear that much darker, and the background, whilst a little 'whiter', wasn't really *that* different. Sure, the pages turned a bit faster, but honestly, that's never been a concern of mine with the 500. Had the page turn been instant, then maybe a different story.

So my conclusion - I'm sticking with the 500. I don't use ePub, using widely available tools to convert PDFs to reader format. If all ePub gives me is DRM content, I'd rather be without it to be honest.

For anyone who is coming into the Sony Reader family afresh, unless you absolutely need the touch screen, I'd recommend the 505. If you've already got a 500, stick with it and wait for the next gen device.

03-29-2009, 03:29 PM	#9
ratzee Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Sony 500	I did as suggested, and just returned from Borders to compare my 500 with the 505 and 700 on display. As I walked up to the display, my reaction from a good 10' away to the 700 was 'oh, wow, they're right, that screen is BAD'. My first impression was that the device still had some sort of opaque screen protector on the screen. While I liked the speed, and the touch screen was cool, the display was just too poor to be worth any upgrade. It was fuzzy and the reflection from overhead lighting was awful. I spent about 10 minutes comparing my 500 and the 505. First impressions were that there really wasn't that much difference in the display - the text didn't appear that much darker, and the background, whilst a little 'whiter', wasn't really that different. Sure, the pages turned a bit faster, but honestly, that's never been a concern of mine with the 500. Had the page turn been instant, then maybe a different story. So my conclusion - I'm sticking with the 500. I don't use ePub, using widely available tools to convert PDFs to reader format. If all ePub gives me is DRM content, I'd rather be without it to be honest. For anyone who is coming into the Sony Reader family afresh, unless you absolutely need the touch screen, I'd recommend the 505. If you've already got a 500, stick with it and wait for the next gen device.