PRS-600 or Kindle 2

nathanb · 08-15-2009, 09:31 PM

Hello, I need your help.

My very awesome friends are giving me an ebook reader as a wedding gift. I am trying to decide between the PRS-600 and the Kindle 2. I am leaning to the PRS-600 because it is newer, is more open on formats, and is touchscreen. Which one would you get if you were me and why?

I am mostly considering these two because I really want to be able to take notes with my books, it is something that is a pretty high priority for me.

Thanks for any help,

Nathan

Amalthia · 08-15-2009, 10:30 PM

I'd go for the 600 because you can add an SD card to it as well. I feel like you get more for your money. And the PRS-600 should allow you to tag your ebooks/create collections to help organize. Kindle2 doesn't have folders or any way to tag your ebooks.

HistoryWes · 08-15-2009, 10:45 PM

I was originally going to buy a Kindle but bought a Sony instead (505). I am very happy with my Sony. The open format is really a big deal when you are looking for books on the budget. Enjoy.

rlparker · 08-15-2009, 10:59 PM

Wow, you do have awesome friends!

I love my Kindle (k1), but if I were buying today I'd seriously consider the 600. Of course, it's not available yet, but if timing isn't an issue, you could actually see/try one at a number of retailers when it comes out. That's a big advantage over the Kindle....

But, really, I don't think you can go wrong with either one!

nathanb · 08-16-2009, 01:32 PM

Thanks to everyone for their helpful answers.

One other question that some other more knowledgeable people might know: do either of these ebook readers support Chinese or Korean text?

Thanks,

Nathan

Dr. Drib · 08-22-2009, 05:15 PM

I own both a Sony 505 and a recently added Kindle 2 to my arsenal of reading.

Both are great.

Get one (or the other) as a Wedding Gift, and then ALSO buy the one not given. Then give one to your wife and take them both on your Honeymoon.

Don

rlparker · 08-22-2009, 10:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I own both a Sony 505 and a recently added Kindle 2 to my arsenal of reading.

Both are great.

Get one (or the other) as a Wedding Gift, and then ALSO buy the one not given. Then give one to your wife and take them both on your Honeymoon.

Don

Yes, definitely take both readers with you. Maybe you should take the wife too?

Faenad · 08-22-2009, 11:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlparker

Maybe you should take the wife too?

Only take the wife if she has an ebook reader too. Else, she will distract you from reading

doreenjoy · 08-22-2009, 11:24 PM

The PRS 600 has expansion card slots, can read EPUB, LRX, RTF, and PDF, and has annotations. I'd go with it.

spirit_wolf · 08-22-2009, 11:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rlparker

Yes, definitely take both readers with you. Maybe you should take the wife too?

That might be a good idea, unless Nathan's real plan is to end up with both readers all to himself.

The info I found indicates Chinese and Korean are not supported natively, but here's a blog that discusses three different modifications that can give you Chinese support: Sony Reader eBook - Chinese and a thread here on mobileread: "Can Sony Reader support Chinese?" that discusses PDF with embedded fonts.

I have a 505 myself and love it. I also plan on getting a 600 for some of the same reasons you mentioned. I think Kindle would have an edge for those wanting to wirelessly pull in the latest book or daily newspaper and other periodocals without needing access to a computer. Since that is not a need of mine, Sony's support for ePub and PDF as well as text, RTF and LRF was a deciding factor.

emellaich · 08-23-2009, 10:42 AM

I love my reader, but I have to say that is a 'unique' wedding gift. Something for the groom and not for the couple? If you are like me, it will also be dangerous to the health of your marriage

. On the honeymoon you'll be reading instead of paying attention to her? And if she doesn't have a reader to she'll just be sitting their fretting -- ouch. I hope she's not one of those nervous brides.

pilotbob · 08-23-2009, 12:41 PM

I would say that you can't go wrong with either one. If this were 6 months or a year ago I would say go with the Kindle because content is king and there are more books available at better prices for the kindle.

But this is today... and that is not so much true any more. With the Adobe Digital Editions DRM support you can buy books at many locations and some of them are matching the 9.99 new release/best seller price point the Kindle store has.

That said, the Kindle is great. I personally thing taking notes on the books with the keyboard will be much faster and you will be much for able to transfer the notes to a PC or whatever you want to do with them. No knows at this time how the hand written annotations will work... you would have to OCR them. I think you can do notes on the 600 with a virtual keyboard... but not sure, and that would certainly be slower.

Congrats on your pending nuptials!

BOb

Journier · 08-23-2009, 01:19 PM

I would say the 600, especially if you want to download text onto it. I am not a K2 owner, but I did considerable research determining whether to go with Sony or Kindle sometime back. My main concern was downloading text docs onto it as I am an online college student and that is a major part of my "classroom" work. It is my understanding text documents have to be sent to Amazon and they would convert it and then email it to me in downloadable form (If I am wrong, correction is welcome). Either way, this is done for a fee. This all seemed very impracticle as Sony allows one to drag docs from hard drive to the device. Also, the Sony supports more formats, although the Amazon site does have a greater selection of books. That's all I got to say about that. Thanks for listening.

Dr. Drib · 08-23-2009, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doreenjoy

The PRS 600 has expansion card slots, can read EPUB, LRX, RTF, and PDF, and has annotations. I'd go with it.

And don't forget LRF (no DRM), as well.

Don

nathanb · 08-24-2009, 12:23 PM

Thanks everyone for the helpful posts.

I think I am going to have to wait for the 600 to come out and read some reviews on it, I have heard that the screen contrast is not that good so I will probably want to see it in person before I get it or the Kindle. But all your answers were very helpful. Thanks!

We are actually already married but we got married out of the country so my friends did not have a chance to come to the wedding. The guys wanting to buy me an ebook reader would all have been my groomsmen and in my circle of friends it is normal for us to get the groom a sweet gift just for him. So, since we live overseas and I love reading my friends thought this would be a good gift for me.

08-15-2009, 09:31 PM	#1
nathanb Connoisseur Posts: 56 Karma: 400 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: The Far East Device: PRS 600	PRS-600 or Kindle 2 Hello, I need your help. My very awesome friends are giving me an ebook reader as a wedding gift. I am trying to decide between the PRS-600 and the Kindle 2. I am leaning to the PRS-600 because it is newer, is more open on formats, and is touchscreen. Which one would you get if you were me and why? I am mostly considering these two because I really want to be able to take notes with my books, it is something that is a pretty high priority for me. Thanks for any help, Nathan

08-16-2009, 01:32 PM	#5
nathanb Connoisseur Posts: 56 Karma: 400 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: The Far East Device: PRS 600	Thanks Thanks to everyone for their helpful answers. One other question that some other more knowledgeable people might know: do either of these ebook readers support Chinese or Korean text? Thanks, Nathan

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08-15-2009, 10:30 PM	#2
Amalthia Wizard Posts: 1,184 Karma: 32196 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Anchorage, AK Device: Sony Reader PRS-505, PRS-650, PRS-T3, Pocketbook HD2	I'd go for the 600 because you can add an SD card to it as well. I feel like you get more for your money. And the PRS-600 should allow you to tag your ebooks/create collections to help organize. Kindle2 doesn't have folders or any way to tag your ebooks.

08-15-2009, 10:45 PM	#3
HistoryWes Teacher/Novelist Posts: 632 Karma: 2274466 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Nevada Device: Nook STR, iPad	I was originally going to buy a Kindle but bought a Sony instead (505). I am very happy with my Sony. The open format is really a big deal when you are looking for books on the budget. Enjoy.

08-15-2009, 10:59 PM	#4
rlparker Ars longa Posts: 1,179 Karma: 17404 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: north carolina, usa Device: Kindle K1, K3 wifi	Wow, you do have awesome friends! I love my Kindle (k1), but if I were buying today I'd seriously consider the 600. Of course, it's not available yet, but if timing isn't an issue, you could actually see/try one at a number of retailers when it comes out. That's a big advantage over the Kindle.... But, really, I don't think you can go wrong with either one!

08-22-2009, 05:15 PM	#6
Dr. Drib Grand Sorcerer Posts: 45,385 Karma: 59504381 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Peru Device: KINDLE: Oasis 3, Scribe (1st), Matcha; KOBO: Libra 2, Libra Colour	I own both a Sony 505 and a recently added Kindle 2 to my arsenal of reading. Both are great. Get one (or the other) as a Wedding Gift, and then ALSO buy the one not given. Then give one to your wife and take them both on your Honeymoon. Don

08-22-2009, 11:24 PM	#9
doreenjoy 01000100 01001010 Posts: 1,889 Karma: 2400000 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Polyamorous	The PRS 600 has expansion card slots, can read EPUB, LRX, RTF, and PDF, and has annotations. I'd go with it.

08-23-2009, 10:42 AM	#11
emellaich Wizard Posts: 1,101 Karma: 4388403 Join Date: Oct 2007 Device: Palm>Ebookman>IPaq>Axim>Cybook>Kndl2>IPAD>Kndl3SO>Voyager>Oasis	I love my reader, but I have to say that is a 'unique' wedding gift. Something for the groom and not for the couple? If you are like me, it will also be dangerous to the health of your marriage . On the honeymoon you'll be reading instead of paying attention to her? And if she doesn't have a reader to she'll just be sitting their fretting -- ouch. I hope she's not one of those nervous brides.

08-23-2009, 12:41 PM	#12
pilotbob Grand Sorcerer Posts: 19,832 Karma: 11844413 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Tampa, FL USA Device: Kindle Touch	I would say that you can't go wrong with either one. If this were 6 months or a year ago I would say go with the Kindle because content is king and there are more books available at better prices for the kindle. But this is today... and that is not so much true any more. With the Adobe Digital Editions DRM support you can buy books at many locations and some of them are matching the 9.99 new release/best seller price point the Kindle store has. That said, the Kindle is great. I personally thing taking notes on the books with the keyboard will be much faster and you will be much for able to transfer the notes to a PC or whatever you want to do with them. No knows at this time how the hand written annotations will work... you would have to OCR them. I think you can do notes on the 600 with a virtual keyboard... but not sure, and that would certainly be slower. Congrats on your pending nuptials! BOb

08-23-2009, 01:19 PM	#13
Journier Groupie Posts: 194 Karma: 415 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Northern CA Device: Kindle Oasis	I would say the 600, especially if you want to download text onto it. I am not a K2 owner, but I did considerable research determining whether to go with Sony or Kindle sometime back. My main concern was downloading text docs onto it as I am an online college student and that is a major part of my "classroom" work. It is my understanding text documents have to be sent to Amazon and they would convert it and then email it to me in downloadable form (If I am wrong, correction is welcome). Either way, this is done for a fee. This all seemed very impracticle as Sony allows one to drag docs from hard drive to the device. Also, the Sony supports more formats, although the Amazon site does have a greater selection of books. That's all I got to say about that. Thanks for listening.

08-24-2009, 12:23 PM	#15
nathanb Connoisseur Posts: 56 Karma: 400 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: The Far East Device: PRS 600	Thanks everyone for the helpful posts. I think I am going to have to wait for the 600 to come out and read some reviews on it, I have heard that the screen contrast is not that good so I will probably want to see it in person before I get it or the Kindle. But all your answers were very helpful. Thanks! We are actually already married but we got married out of the country so my friends did not have a chance to come to the wedding. The guys wanting to buy me an ebook reader would all have been my groomsmen and in my circle of friends it is normal for us to get the groom a sweet gift just for him. So, since we live overseas and I love reading my friends thought this would be a good gift for me.

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