[jabberwock_11]

Recently I was looking to upgrade from the Sony PRS-505 to something new and exciting, so of course I wandered around this forum, cnet.com, several of the manufacturer's sites, and several electronic sites looking at reviews and specs for various ereaders. In all of this research I discovered two things. One, my 505 is still as spifftastic as it was when I first bought it, so why upgrade? Two, a lot of reviews and manufacturers are using some questionable marketing tactics and false logic as selling points for various devices.

For example, on no fewer than three sites the PRS-505 was listed as being inferior to the Kindle because it didn't have as many books available to it...this is a half truth at best. Amazon may have more books than the Sony store, but from what I understand the Kindle is unable to use books from other sources where as I have books from dozens of different on-line stores, free sites, and download sources on my Sony. The fact that because the Sony store has fewer books available for sale than Amazon does not equate to the Sony PRS-505 having fewer overall books available than the Kindle...and I am certain that most of the reviewers are well aware of this fact.

There were plenty of other serious omissions and half truths used on various sites to attack or praise various devices, but the above one bothered me the most. I am not advocating any device over another, each one has its pros and cons, but I do expect reputable sites to act in a reputable manner. I am wondering if other folks have noticed questionable marketing and half truths being used in what would otherwise be considered above board review sites or on manufacturer's home pages. Let me know if I am totally off base or if you agree.