Color jetBook Color Hand-On Review

[Beryll Snyder]

Originally Posted by LuBiB

Just to add on to this, i tried to take as hi-res pics as i could so check them out for reference.

Great review!
Is there a wordprocessor onboard? A browser?
I am very interested in how the device handles PDFs - zooming, font sizes, how are annotations stored/exported?

[Ken Maltby]

First congratulations to LuBiB for this great post and thread. Also thanks to MR for their
allowing, and hosting, all the hires pic in the OP.

Now that there is a good thread to get into what the current Ectaco firmware has and
again thanks to LiBiB for replying and checking out the issues raised, I would like to let
everyone know about my thread here (Thread) and one just like it on Ectaco's Forum.
The intent of my thread was to provide a sounding board for ideas about the transition
of the device from an Academic eReader to a more general purpose eReading device.
Hopefully, we can get Ectaco to release an SDK for this device, and a modding/hacking
community develops around it.

Again great and surprisingly detailed first impression report, LuBiB!

Luck;
Ken

[Ken Maltby]

LuBiB;
If you get a chance could you checkout http://www.ck12.org/
and let us know if the interactive features work with the jetBook Color. Got the link from
the Ectaco description of the device, so you would think that it would.

That looks like a cool free "home school" (or in my case brush up) resource.

Luck;
Ken

P.S.; The .pdf doesn't seem to have the same functionality on my PC

[LuBiB]

Hey @tuxor and @ProDigit - i'll load those to the color tomorrow and load up pics

@Ken Maltby - thanks for the support and i'll check out your thread for sure - i'll also look into ck12 and load some things up from there as well

@beryll snyder - i haven't tried the browser yet, i think it might be locked. The font sizes range in 6 different one from very small to HUGE. The annotated text you highlight appears as a "Summary" text in a "Summary" section of any book you're in. I think i explain a bit more on that in the 'Highlighting' section of the review. The reflow could be a little better with the PDF's but i modify the sizing on my comp before loading them up and they look fantastic - perfect border to border and theres a "Fullscreen"
options as well

[PF4Mobile]

Originally Posted by LuBiB

Highlighting: You hold the stylus to the start point, drag it to the end point, and then select “Menu” when it pops up. Here you’ll have the options to: Explain with Oxford, Translate in Dictionary, Translate (in their text translator – set to Spanish right now), and Mark for Summary (this is cool bc you can save the text you highlighted for later in a separate section – which you can then click the “Menu” key and access.)

Ca you elaborate a little bit more here ?
Does the highlighted text get stored in the PDF file or separately ?
What format is this file (if it is a distinct file)?
How can you transfer the files to PC?
How about scribbling ?

thanks
PF

[wait for next]

thanks a lot friend, i may order it in a few days time

[ProDigit]

For those wanting to buy the Ectaco reader, if you subscribe today, you will receive a $10 discount on your purchase (http://www.ectaco.com/jetBook_Color).

I know $10 is not very much on a $400 device, but it's something!

[LuBiB]

@ Kris777 - i'll check that out this wknd and let you know about overdrive

@PF4Mobile - i'll write some more about that tonight when i get home

[PF4Mobile]

Originally Posted by LuBiB

@PF4Mobile - i'll write some more about that tonight when i get home

To make your life easier (or more difficult ) please use this for getting a list of points you might want to address

http://baach.de/Members/jhb/-compari...=m92#section-6


Here is a partial list:

-a mode in which you can embolden the pdf
-zoom in (zoom levels and custom zoom)
-landscape view
-are the annotation tools available in landscape mode ?
-hide margins
-selection zoom
-column mode
-free hand drawing on PDFs (scribbling?)
-Does the highlighted text get stored in the PDF file or separately ?
-What format is this file (if it is a distinct file)?
-How can you transfer the files to PC?
-How about scribbling ?

Of course feel free to address any features that are not on the list but are actually present in the ereader. Those might count as a plus for the e-reader.

[ProDigit]

I presume this reading device uses the same feats as on all others concerning PDF's as they are relying on Adobe to provide the mobile variant of a pdf reader.
I could be wrong but many of the feats you mentioned are not working on regular reading devices, so it won't surprise me if they won't work on the color neither.

[PF4Mobile]

Originally Posted by ProDigit

I presume this reading device uses the same feats as on all others concerning PDF's as they are relying on Adobe to provide the mobile variant of a pdf reader.
I could be wrong but many of the feats you mentioned are not working on regular reading devices, so it won't surprise me if they won't work on the color neither.

Well then it doesn't make much sense to buy it.
Onyx M92 has most of the above and it is cheaper.
It is not color e-ink and to pay more and to lose all the above just for color.... doesn't make much sense.

If the device is windows CE then hopefully someone can indicate a PDF software running on Windows CE and does well all the above...

[andyh2000]

I've posted a quick comparison of a technical PDF on a Sony PRS-T1, an Apple iPad 1 and the Ectaco jetBook Color. The thread is here: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=167778 and the full comparison is here: http://jetbook-color-comparison.pen.io/

Andrew

[PF4Mobile]

Originally Posted by LuBiB

If this was anywhere close to 800x600 i wouldn't take the time to praise it.

This truly is a beautiful piece of technology and right on for the 1600x1200 res.

This thread is saying something different ....which one is right?

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=167778
Comparison of jetBook Color with Apple iPad 1 and Sony PRS-T1
I've put together a quick comparison of the same document (a page from a sample chapter of a technical book in PDF format) being displayed on a Sony PRS-T1, an Apple iPad 1 and the new Ectaco jetBook Color. You can find it here: http://jetbook-color-comparison.pen.io/ but the tl;dr version is shown below. For reference, the Sony is a 600x800 6" screen, the iPad 768x1024 9.7" and the jetBook Color a 600x800 colour, 1200x1600 black and white sub-pixels (it's complicated...) 9.7" screen.

If I open a B&W I see it on 120x1600
and
If I open a color doc I see it on 800x600 ?

[Backi]

Originally Posted by andyh2000

I've posted a quick comparison of a technical PDF on a Sony PRS-T1, an Apple iPad 1 and the Ectaco jetBook Color. The thread is here: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=167778 and the full comparison is here: http://jetbook-color-comparison.pen.io/

Andrew

I wonder, why JB doesn't show the whole PDF page on this image. Did you activate page cropping?

[andyh2000]

Originally Posted by Backi

I wonder, why JB doesn't show the whole PDF page on this image. Did you activate page cropping?

Yes, I cropped the PDF in Briss and cropped a bit too much on that one. But the highly zoomed in pics were taken with the same amount of page showing on each device.

Andrew