MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - PRS-600 today I decided to return my PRS-600

Haesslich · 09-13-2009, 01:22 AM

I wonder if everyone can find common ground in saying that the PRS-600, whatever its faults are, is a better reader outside than either the PRS-700 or an iPod Touch?

I recently had a chance to borrow a PRS-600 to play with outside in sunny weather (both in direct sunlight and in a shaded area where there was no direct sunlight, merely ambient 'glare' from whatever light was being reflected into the shaded area), and compared it to an iPod Touch with an anti-glare screen protector applied to it. The difference was pretty clear, although I don't have photos to show the level of glare and reflection; the iPod Touch was pretty much washed out unless it was directly in sunlight, which allowed the TFT to reflect light off the back for maximum contrast, while the PRS-600 did equally well in shade and direct sunlight with a creamy white background and sharp contrast, with glare being an issue that did not impact reading to any degree.

Inside, the iPod Touch did better but still lost out to the eReader in terms of contrast in a room with normal ambient lighting without a lamp shining directly on the screen. With a reading lamp shining directly on said screens, the glare was more noticeable on the reader (about at the same level that the iPod Touch with antiglare screen had), perhaps due to the fact that the touch-sensitive surface is a rather smooth plastic. I suspect this type of glare due to direct lighting (over the shoulder, pointing directly at the reader) is the major source of complaints directed at the PRS-600.

I haven't had any opportunity to use a PRS-300 except at Sony Store displays, so can't comment on it or the PRS-505 which came before it. I would suggest that the relative lack of glare with those models even with a direct light shining on them has, for lack of a better word, spoiled people. Either this means Sony managed to create a perfect reader (which, given the complaints about some of the 505's quirks with bookmarks and storage, seems unlikely), or else people got used to the style of screen the PRS-505 had, and which the PRS-300 doesn't quite have... being smaller, and sharing the same hardware as the PRS-600.

In the end, from what I've seen on the forums, it's nowhere near '99 percent of the other people' are on the 'the PRS-600 is the worst reader yet' camp - maybe 50 percent is closer to the mark.

Again, it all comes down to personal preferences and the reading environments people are using. Outside, the PRS-600 seems to do quite well... especialy compared to the iPod Touch's and iPhones that I see everyone else using. However, whether the PRS-505's quirks outweigh its strengths, especially versus the PRS-600, is probably something more based on a person's own personal judgement than any objective measures... since everyone wants something different. Given the tone of some of the posts and reviews I've seen here as well as around the Net, JSwolf1 isn't the only person who likes the PRS-600, although the tone of his posts make him sound more like an apologist for its genuine faults than anything else (it really DOES reflect more than some screens, even in the Sony Store displays I was at... if not to the same level as the PRS-700, which was indeed horrible).

Now, if only the PRS-300 had SD card or MS slots... or better yet, a larger screen to go with it. At the $199 price point, it's almost perfect for actually making ebook readers popular, especially with its rather nice looks (refined from the PRS-505's dual disc controls). But then, at that point, there'd be too little differentiation from the -600, which is why I suspect Sony crippled the PRS-300 the way it did. Imagining a PRS-505 successor with the faster CPU, a clear screen, support for open standards and PDF's, the one-disc control system, and without the library issues....

09-13-2009, 01:22 AM	#37
Haesslich Fanatic Posts: 572 Karma: 1138182 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: Kobo Touch,Glo,Mini,Aura/HD/One,H20, Sony PRS-300/600, Kindle 3-PW	I wonder if everyone can find common ground in saying that the PRS-600, whatever its faults are, is a better reader outside than either the PRS-700 or an iPod Touch? I recently had a chance to borrow a PRS-600 to play with outside in sunny weather (both in direct sunlight and in a shaded area where there was no direct sunlight, merely ambient 'glare' from whatever light was being reflected into the shaded area), and compared it to an iPod Touch with an anti-glare screen protector applied to it. The difference was pretty clear, although I don't have photos to show the level of glare and reflection; the iPod Touch was pretty much washed out unless it was directly in sunlight, which allowed the TFT to reflect light off the back for maximum contrast, while the PRS-600 did equally well in shade and direct sunlight with a creamy white background and sharp contrast, with glare being an issue that did not impact reading to any degree. Inside, the iPod Touch did better but still lost out to the eReader in terms of contrast in a room with normal ambient lighting without a lamp shining directly on the screen. With a reading lamp shining directly on said screens, the glare was more noticeable on the reader (about at the same level that the iPod Touch with antiglare screen had), perhaps due to the fact that the touch-sensitive surface is a rather smooth plastic. I suspect this type of glare due to direct lighting (over the shoulder, pointing directly at the reader) is the major source of complaints directed at the PRS-600. I haven't had any opportunity to use a PRS-300 except at Sony Store displays, so can't comment on it or the PRS-505 which came before it. I would suggest that the relative lack of glare with those models even with a direct light shining on them has, for lack of a better word, spoiled people. Either this means Sony managed to create a perfect reader (which, given the complaints about some of the 505's quirks with bookmarks and storage, seems unlikely), or else people got used to the style of screen the PRS-505 had, and which the PRS-300 doesn't quite have... being smaller, and sharing the same hardware as the PRS-600. In the end, from what I've seen on the forums, it's nowhere near '99 percent of the other people' are on the 'the PRS-600 is the worst reader yet' camp - maybe 50 percent is closer to the mark. Again, it all comes down to personal preferences and the reading environments people are using. Outside, the PRS-600 seems to do quite well... especialy compared to the iPod Touch's and iPhones that I see everyone else using. However, whether the PRS-505's quirks outweigh its strengths, especially versus the PRS-600, is probably something more based on a person's own personal judgement than any objective measures... since everyone wants something different. Given the tone of some of the posts and reviews I've seen here as well as around the Net, JSwolf1 isn't the only person who likes the PRS-600, although the tone of his posts make him sound more like an apologist for its genuine faults than anything else (it really DOES reflect more than some screens, even in the Sony Store displays I was at... if not to the same level as the PRS-700, which was indeed horrible). Now, if only the PRS-300 had SD card or MS slots... or better yet, a larger screen to go with it. At the $199 price point, it's almost perfect for actually making ebook readers popular, especially with its rather nice looks (refined from the PRS-505's dual disc controls). But then, at that point, there'd be too little differentiation from the -600, which is why I suspect Sony crippled the PRS-300 the way it did. Imagining a PRS-505 successor with the faster CPU, a clear screen, support for open standards and PDF's, the one-disc control system, and without the library issues.... Last edited by Haesslich; 09-13-2009 at 01:25 AM.