The screen

[alehel]

A lot of people complain that the screen isn't as good as on the 505 but I'm really interested in being able to take notes on what I read and the kindle is a no go due to the fact that I live in Norway. I was therefore wondering if someone could tell me how bad the difference is. Can you still easily read it in regular light conditions, e.g. using a lamp that I would otherwise use to read regular books or would this create screen glare? The only way I can get hold of these devices is through online purchases so I won't be able to compare them myself. Ebook devices are very rare to see in Norway. The only one I've seen is the Cybook which is not an option as I want ePub support, not mobipocket.

[dhbailey]

The glare issue is very over-stated, in my opinion. It is there, but it is very easy to adjust the angle of the 700 so the glare isn't an issue.

I can easily read my 700 in the same lighting conditions in which I read paper books, as well as the same lighting conditions in which I could read my older 500. The built-in lights of the 700 will significantly shorten the amount of reading time between charges, but if that is an issue you can simply use the same sort of book-light you would use with a paper book (not the light-wedge, though) and leave the 700's internal light off.

I have been delighted with my 700 during the past month in which I have owned it, and the many user-interface improvements, coupled with the huge increase in speed and ability to handle memory cards, make it a huge improvement over the 500 or the 505 in my opinion. I know others disagree because the screen of the 700, due to the touch screen, doesn't look as crisp as the 505 screen. But for me the other factors are much more important, since the 700 is still very readable.

I don't regret my purchase one bit, and I have read 6 different books on it already. I haven't really played around with the note-taking other than to test it, but I think you will be happy with it.

You could even create your own "empty" book with lots of pages as a journal to take notes on if you wish, or simply create notes in the books you are reading to augment them.

Looking at the pictures of the 700 and 505 posted in the various threads in this forum can show you some of the difference, but also looking at the video review posted in a different thread can show you that it's difficult to take pictures which accurately show the two devices.

If I were you I would buy a 700, but I also add a warning that only when you are holding it and using will you really know if you like it. Of course, you may be able to sell it on ebay if you don't like it.

One further suggestion -- if you buy one, be sure to buy the PSP (PlayStation Portable) charger, since it charges the reader without needing to hook up to a computer, and you can read it while it's charging!

[Palladin]

I sold my 505 about 4 weeks before I got my 700. With my 700, I only noticed a slight glare but didn't even think about it being hard to read. I was so happy to have the side light, improved PDF reading (larger fonts) and faster processor (page turning). Most say you can tell the screen difference if you had them side by side.

I am much happier with the 700 other than the fact that my battery seems to require recharge faster than I want.

[reggaejames]

I finally got my 700 here in Thailand after waiting two months for my friend to fly over with it from the U.S.A.

It is my first reader so I can't compare it to anything other than my co-workers Kindle.

The 700's screen contrast isn't as sharp as the Kindle's but it handles all of my PDF formatted files quickly and allows me to zoom in when need be.

There is a slight glare on the screen at times however, it is not difficult at all to find a "sweet spot" where it looks stunning.

I am very happy with my PRS 700. I would purchase it again in a minute!

The only problems I have had have been with the 8 GB SD card that I installed on it.
Calibre wasn't recognizing the card for a while and when I finally managed to get my 350 book collection on it, the meta data wasn't there for many of the books even though I had entered it separately into Calibre days before.

I also had the same problem with the Sony software.

After separating the books into collections, I had over 500 books in 16 collections. (200 on the main memory and 300 on the SD card)
All the books were tagged properly. But that evening, my meta tags on the SD card memory reverted back to their original style. (titles, authors names changing or disappearing) The collections were gone for the books I loaded with the Sony software.

Two days later, using Calibre, I add added six more books to my SD card collection. When I awoke the next morning and looked at my reader, it had over 2650 books on it in 26 collections!
Impossible I thought,
so I hooked it up to the computer and only the original 300 books were on the SD card. (The main memory collection was untouched.)

In the end, I gave up using the SD expansion card. The 225 books I now have on the main memory will have to suffice until Sony sorts out the card issues.

Has anyone else had trouble getting there SD cards to work properly?

Anyhow, I love the Sony PRS-700!
After reading the comments here , I seriously thought about canceling my order. Glad I didn't.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to comment on their readers.

[shighfield]

I agree, I was worried about the screen glare but took a chance and I think people are freaking out over nothing. Also the lights are great for reading in the dark, so IMO it's the best of all worlds and I would tell my wife to buy it for me again in a heart beat. <Laugh>

[Palladin]

Reg, concerning the SD Card, I only update it using the Sony software and then only a few books at a time. I had problems when I transferred many books at one time.

My SD card seems to not always show the correct books if I just drag and drop the ebooks instead of using the software. On my 505, I had to reformat the entire drive so I avoid this on my 700.

[Liviu_5]

Regarding the SD card - I do not use one but I tested speed on a 1 GB one earlier and I just dumped lots of books, lrf and pdf, up to 1050, on it by drag on drop on my PC, inserted in my 700 and had no problem with meta, indexing, search, jumping around...

I am not sure Calibre supports 700 transfer for now so when I do lrf's in Calibre, I just transfer them with the Sony software by first importing them there, and for PDF's I use PDF software to edit the metadata directly in it and then I import in Sony software and then on the 700 internal memory and it works.

[dhbailey]

I've had no problem with my SDHC card, but if someone is using an SD card larger then 2GB (the original limit of the SD standard) be sure it's really an SDHC card, and not one of the early larger cards which used workarounds in the SD standard rather than adherence to the SDHC standard.

[sayhello]

If the note-taking feature is important to you, then it is probably more important than the loss of clarity you get over the 505. The 700 is *not* by any means completely unreadable; it is just much *less* readable than the 505. I didn't really *need* any of the new features (nice as they are!) as much as I needed a really clean, readable screen, so that's what I went for. It's really personal preference & what is most important to you!

Sayhello

[macthekitten]

I keep hearing about this glare problem, maybe I can't see it for the rose-coloured glasses LOL but I literally had the 505 and 700 side by side for comparison and the 700 is better to my mind. I do not notice a glare (inside reading with a lamp, overhead lighting, even outside in sun and snow LOL). And the page turning & high lighter are so much fun I give it two thumbs UP. I wish it wasn't so awesome, maybe I'd get some sleep

[dhbailey]

I will add to macthekitten a couple of other features that make the 700 such an awesome device to my mind -- the huge increase in internal memory size and the much improved (at least over the 500) ability to handle memory sticks and any books on them.