PRS-505 spotted in the UK wild

[NatCh]

Cities levy sales taxes too, so tack on another order of magnitude.

[halljames]

Well, hopefully getting my new Sony PRS 505 from bandhphoto in the next couple of hours. Its on the delivery van. Not bad since I only ordered it on Tuesday.

[ec1matt]

Just popped into the Sony shop on London's Tottenham Court Road and asked if they knew when the Reader was coming to the UK. They said they hadn't heard anything about it, but that products appear on the Sony UK website 2 months before they're released so to keep an eye on the site.

I've also signed up for email alerts about the Reader from play.com, who were advertising the Reader recently. Once I have any news, I'll post here.

If this is coming out in the UK, I hope it's by the beginning of July, because it'd make a great birthday present for me

Matt

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by ec1matt

Just popped into the Sony shop on London's Tottenham Court Road and asked if they knew when the Reader was coming to the UK. They said they hadn't heard anything about it, but that products appear on the Sony UK website 2 months before they're released so to keep an eye on the site.

Have you considered buying a CyBook Gen3? Far better reader (IMHO), speaking as a former Sony owner.

[Crhis]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Have you considered buying a CyBook Gen3? Far better reader (IMHO), speaking as a former Sony owner.

Have you a link to a direct comparison you've done between the two?

[Halk]

Originally Posted by Crhis

Have you a link to a direct comparison you've done between the two?

That's information you'll have to glean yourself from these forums. Nobody yet has done a completely comprehensive comparison.

However, you'll find a whole host of people happy to answer your questions about the devices.

[astra]

Originally Posted by Crhis

Have you a link to a direct comparison you've done between the two?

It would not help you, IMHO.
Both are eInk readers that support different ebook formats.
You have to read the forum in order to see the real difference.

[Crhis]

Yeah, I keep seeing certain references to the two in the midst of other discussions but never anything concrete.

In the week or so I've been reading the forum I've just been looking at how best to get the sony reader to the UK and not really entertaining the idea that another might be better as it's the same one my friend bought. Time to head to the Gen3 subforum I suppose.

[Halk]

Originally Posted by Crhis

Yeah, I keep seeing certain references to the two in the midst of other discussions but never anything concrete.

In the week or so I've been reading the forum I've just been looking at how best to get the sony reader to the UK and not really entertaining the idea that another might be better as it's the same one my friend bought. Time to head to the Gen3 subforum I suppose.

Are you aware that there's strong rumours of the Sony reader going on sale very soon? The price is rumoured to be 200 quid, which is far more competitive than the Cybook. The Cybook came out at 280 quid for me, including the case.

Although I would point out that the Cybook has some clear advantages over the Sony and despite me ordering just before the rumours arrived of the Sony UK launch I don't have any regrets.

[ec1matt]

I've considered the Cybook, but I'm rather put off that they're completely out of stock according to their website and are rather vague about how long the waiting list is, that they plan to charge your card as soon as you place an order and that the device is so pricey - GBP245 for the basic version. I think my absolute max would be GBP200.

[Crhis]

Originally Posted by Halk

Are you aware that there's strong rumours of the Sony reader going on sale very soon? The price is rumoured to be 200 quid, which is far more competitive than the Cybook. The Cybook came out at 280 quid for me, including the case.

Although I would point out that the Cybook has some clear advantages over the Sony and despite me ordering just before the rumours arrived of the Sony UK launch I don't have any regrets.

Yeah I've seen the rumours and the Play.com date but both have now been pushed back it seems and there's no way it'll be here before late April when I have a bunch of traveling planned.

Does the CyBook have any clear advantages that don't relate to say, an easier to buy format? As most of what I've seen relates to that which isn't a concern of mine as the books I want to get through are all available for free.

[Halk]

Originally Posted by ec1matt

I've considered the Cybook, but I'm rather put off that they're completely out of stock according to their website and are rather vague about how long the waiting list is, that they plan to charge your card as soon as you place an order and that the device is so pricey - GBP245 for the basic version. I think my absolute max would be GBP200.

In that case I guess your best option is to sit on your hands and see if Sony do bring out the 505 in the UK and if it's £200, and then decide if it's right for you, or if you should wait.

I cannot see the price staying at £200 forever, however with screen production apparently at capacity, then that may hold prices up for longer than would be expected for new tech.

My opinion is that the device we could buy in 2 years time for £150 will stomp all over the devices we're now buying for £280. But that's always the case with technology, especially new technology.

[Halk]

Originally Posted by Crhis

Yeah I've seen the rumours and the Play.com date but both have now been pushed back it seems and there's no way it'll be here before late April when I have a bunch of traveling planned.

Does the CyBook have any clear advantages that don't relate to say, an easier to buy format? As most of what I've seen relates to that which isn't a concern of mine as the books I want to get through are all available for free.

The following are what I believe to be present on the Cybook, but either not present or require a lot of extra work on the Sony. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

Multiple dictionary support.
Font support.
Very easy RSS feed support. I just plug mine in now and it automatically sticks BBC news, CNN, Daily Record sports pages, Time straight on there. Free. All I needed to do was give the URLs to the Mobipocket software.
If we're comparing the 200 quid 505 to the 280 quid Gen3 then the case with the Gen3 is superior - although nobody has yet said the 505 case is anything but perfectly sufficient.
HTML support.
Lighter

[Crhis]

Originally Posted by Halk

The following are what I believe to be present on the Cybook, but either not present or require a lot of extra work on the Sony. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

Multiple dictionary support.
Font support.
Very easy RSS feed support. I just plug mine in now and it automatically sticks BBC news, CNN, Daily Record sports pages, Time straight on there. Free. All I needed to do was give the URLs to the Mobipocket software.
If we're comparing the 200 quid 505 to the 280 quid Gen3 then the case with the Gen3 is superior - although nobody has yet said the 505 case is anything but perfectly sufficient.
HTML support.
Lighter

AFAIK:

Dictionary can be run on a standalone SD card. Pretty useless as I plan to use an SD card to store extra books anyway. Though really the lack of a dictionary isn't a dealbreaker for me.

Font support I don't know about. I know the Sony has levels of zoom but beyond that I don't know.

RSS through libprs500 sounds the same as that.

html2lrf converts html, don't know how much effort that would be or even how often I'll want to convert a html page.

Lighter is again a positive for the Gen3.

I don't know if those positives are worth £80 mind, or even worth losing the community support that seems evident with the Sony.

[Halk]

Originally Posted by Crhis

I don't know if those positives are worth £80 mind, or even worth losing the community support that seems evident with the Sony.

I've found no lack of community support with the Gen3 (from these forums, I'm not aware of anywhere else), so I don't know if that's a factor.

The £80 is though. I've not provided you with a definitive list of what's on the Cybook but not the Reader, or vice versa. Perhaps other people will chip in with more information.

But ultimately it's your choice, and I don't think anybody can tell you what's the best option for you.