PRS-950 Sony Reader Daily PRS-950 not recognized on my Macbook Pro!

[Isles8008]

My Sony PRS-950 (just purchased used on eBay) is not recognized by my Macbook Pro (Mac 10.5.8). It will not charge (states "no power source found") and it will not show up on my drives list. Every other Sony device I have owned (Sony Pocket, PRS-T1, PRS-600) has been recognized by my computer, my Reader software, and Calibre. The PRS-950 shows up on nothing. I tested the USB ports, the cord, and the device, and all work perfectly on my wife's PC. It recognizes in Calibre on PC. I have done a hard reset and restarted my computer, to no avail.

After an exhaustive search on Google, I am stuck without a fix. Can anyone help me with this issue?

[FredM]

Does your Macbook boot up in 32 or 64 bit mode? If the answer is the latter Sony's software will not work on a Mac running in 64 bit and you'll need to start in 32 bit mode (hold down the 3 and 2 keys when you switch on, before the Apple symbol appears). You should then be able to see your Sony ereader.

Note that the latest version of the Mac OSX (Mountain Lion, 10.8) will only run in 64 bit.

[Isles8008]

Here is something I found in my "about this Mac" window.

Color LCD:
Resolution: 1280 x 800
Depth: 32-Bit Color


I'm not sure what it boots in, so I will try your solution! Do I have to reset anything to get it to reboot normally back in 64 bit mode (hold down the 6 and 4?) if that is the case?

This is a strange problem since I am running 10.5.8 Leopard and all other Sony devices are recognized by my computer, going all the way back to the PRS-600 and 300, up to the PRS-T1.

[EldRick]

Does your Macbook boot up in 32 or 64 bit mode? If the answer is the latter...

That's not correct. My iMac is running in 64-bit mode and 10.8 with no issues with my 950. The Sony SW may not run, but he's not trying to use it, he's using Calibre instead.

I'd verify that the USB ports on the MacBook still work correctly with other devices. lf so, check under the Apple menu - About This Mac/More Info/System Report and see what the USB section reports when you plug in the 950, and when you remove it.

If USB looks OK, I'm stumped - I guess you'll have to use the wife's PC to load and charge it.

[Isles8008]

Eld, my USB ports are all working fine, and my Sony PRS-300 and PRS-T1 are both recognized by my computer, the Reader software, and Calbire. This is why I am so confused. There must be a specific flaw in the device that makes it unreadable on my Macbook Pro.

• The USB cord works
• The USB ports work on my Mac, and the device is recognized on PC
• All of my other Sony devices are recognized. Nook and Kindle as well.
• Nothing shows up on my computer showing that the device is plugged in.

[Sonylistens]

Originally Posted by Isles8008

My Sony PRS-950 (just purchased used on eBay) is not recognized by my Macbook Pro (Mac 10.5.8). It will not charge (states "no power source found") and it will not show up on my drives list. Every other Sony device I have owned (Sony Pocket, PRS-T1, PRS-600) has been recognized by my computer, my Reader software, and Calibre. The PRS-950 shows up on nothing. I tested the USB ports, the cord, and the device, and all work perfectly on my wife's PC. It recognizes in Calibre on PC. I have done a hard reset and restarted my computer, to no avail.

After an exhaustive search on Google, I am stuck without a fix. Can anyone help me with this issue?

Hello! And good afternoon! My name is Amanda Maffei here with the SonySupport team. We're sorry to hear the trouble that your Reader™ is causing you. I would recommend contacting our Technical Support team to see if they can help you further with this issue by calling: Priority Service: 239-768-7678 Hours:

■Mon-Fri 8:00am-12:00am (Midnight) ET
■Sat-Sun 9:00am-8:00pm ET

We do hope this helps! Thanks! =)

-Amanda Maffei

Sony Support USA

[EldRick]

Wow! I'm impressed by Sony customer service for the first time in many years.

P.S. - perhaps try a different USB cord - some do not connect all the lines.

[Bookworm_Girl]

There were several threads on this subject when the 950 first came out. Some people were not able to get their 950 to mount as a drive on both Macs and PCs even though other models of the Sony Readers worked just fine on the same computer. A definitive fix was never found that I've seen posted. When the issue is isolated to the old Sony Reader Library software not recognizing your reader, then a solution is to boot in 32-bit mode. However, it sounds like you have other issues too. You may just have to use your 950 with your wife's PC.

Here is one of the old threads that sounds similar to your problem.
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=130513

[FredM]

I should have asked the first time I responded before but have you tried the latest version of Reader for Mac (I recognise that the problem appears to be with Calibre, not Reader for Mac, but it may be worth checking if the problem is not confined to Calibre)?

I updated to the latest version (1.1.05.13310) very recently and this resolved all the technical issues I had previously experienced (including incompatibility with OSX 10.8), admittedly with a different model of Sony ereader.

[Isles8008]

@Sony support - I already called the customer support line, and they didn't have a clue. I'm not sure the associate even understood English that well...

Thanks for your help all. I guess my only alternative is to buy another mini USB cable (not micro, so I can't use one of the four USB cables I already own). My computer, the port, and my software (both Calibre and Sony) are updated and fully functional. Unless this USB cable is not completely connecting somehow, then I have no clue what the issue could be.

[Sonylistens]

Isles8008, Please check out this solution from our http://esupport.sony.com/US/ website;

http://www.kb.sony.com/selfservice/d...rnalId=C558284

Thanks, Scott Fuentes
SonySupportUSA