Astak Mentor eBook readers with WiFi and Touchscreen (read-only)

[kacir]

Originally Posted by griffonwing

First off, apologies for unleashing a can of worms. I suppose a thread hi-jacking can start with the smallest of comments.

You should add a big scarlet letter H to your avatar!
(See thread about thread hijacking in lounge for explanation)

Originally Posted by griffonwing

I plan on waiting until the faster Epson-controlled E-Ink devices are released, and then I will make my decisions on purchase. I alread know I do not want an LCD reader, due to eye strain, and direct-sun UNreadability. Also, glass-screened large format E-Ink readers are out of the question as well. So once a reasonably priced large-format flexi-screen comes out, I'll start window-shopping.

I am afraid you will have to wait for quite a long time.
In the meantime you could enjoy a nice second-hand e-ink machine. My Sony Reader PRS 500 has survived quite a few trips, drops and other abuse.
By the way, not all LCD displays are that bad. JetBook has a very nice non-backlit LCD display that is readable on direct sunlight. Check threads with some photo comparisons. Battery life of 22-24 hours of reading isn't THAT bad. It means whole week of reading, three hours a day.

[griffonwing]

Originally Posted by kacir

You should add a big scarlet letter H to your avatar!
(See thread about thread hijacking in lounge for explanation)

Oh, the shame! I could not bear it!

PS, I found this smiley. Perhaps Mobileread can put this in their list!

Originally Posted by kacir

I am afraid you will have to wait for quite a long time.
In the meantime you could enjoy a nice second-hand e-ink machine. My Sony Reader PRS 500 has survived quite a few trips, drops and other abuse.
By the way, not all LCD displays are that bad. JetBook has a very nice non-backlit LCD display that is readable on direct sunlight. Check threads with some photo comparisons. Battery life of 22-24 hours of reading isn't THAT bad. It means whole week of reading, three hours a day.

Wow! Only 3 hours a day? I have, waiting on my computer, the complete Terry Pratchett Discworld books, all of the Xanth series by Piers Anthony, and Anne McCaffery's Pern books. I've even taken The Bucaniers of America by gutenberg.org and converted it into PDF, complete with images. I've never actually taken the time to ready any of this due to FireCrotch... the malady that is derived from having a laptop on your lap after a couple of hours. Moderator remark: Guys, let's keep it civil please. We have ladies here on board, who could feel offended and understandably so. Thanks! -Alex

I would probably burn up the Epson controller before putting the eReader down for the night. At any rate, I would gladly settle for a really good 6-inch screen, as long as it had the features that I require.

[Kris777]

Originally Posted by kacir

By the way, not all LCD displays are that bad. JetBook has a very nice non-backlit LCD display that is readable on direct sunlight. Check threads with some photo comparisons. Battery life of 22-24 hours of reading isn't THAT bad. It means whole week of reading, three hours a day.

Agree. More details about jetBook screen:
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45593

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by smithno

Yes. I keep books on an SD card. I put the SD card in my laptop and add/delete books from it. The alternative it to connect the EZ Reader to a computer via a USB cable. It's not that big a deal, but I have gotten into the habit of deleting books as soon as I finish them. Plus when I'm experimenting with formats, I might have 4 or 5 versions of the same book loaded. By the time I get the SD back into the computer, I've usually forgotten which ones to delete. If I could delete directly from the EZ Reader, this would be much less error prone.

Dear All:

It is good to be back. I finally went on the first vacation in ten years to Savannah, Georgia.

You are all completely right on the delete a book discussion. With the EZ Reader you do have to delete ON THE COMPUTER. This is a very easy thing to do, and if you are adding books and music on occasion you likely want to tidy up your files anyway. For example, putting new MP3 songs into "Harry's Music" or "Songs for the Road" or putting a new Science Fiction book into the appropriate folder.

I will make the suggestion to add a method of deleting books right on the device. I think it is a worthwhile idea and should be pretty easy to do. If we can do it via a firmware upgrade we can post that on our new website.

Robert B

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by griffonwing

Oh, the shame! I could not bear it!

PS, I found this smiley. Perhaps Mobileread can put this in their list!




Wow! Only 3 hours a day? I have, waiting on my computer, the complete Terry Pratchett Discworld books, all of the Xanth series by Piers Anthony, and Anne McCaffery's Pern books. I've even taken The Bucaniers of America by gutenberg.org and converted it into PDF, complete with images. I've never actually taken the time to ready any of this due to FireCrotch... the malady that is derived from having a laptop on your lap after a couple of hours.

I would probably burn up the Epson controller before putting the eReader down for the night. At any rate, I would gladly settle for a really good 6-inch screen, as long as it had the features that I require.

Dear Griffonwing:

Yes, the Firecrotch disease is a major worry. You might want to try pouring two cans of Budweiser Beer onto your crotch before you place the laptop there. Be advised, however, that ElectroCrotch is even worse. Moderator remark: Guys, let's keep it civil please. We have ladies here on board, who could feel offended abd understandably so. Thanks! -Alex

To all:

Yes, you can take a Jetbook without backlight and MAYBE get 20 hours. But... why settle for that? You are still going to have more eye strain than with E-ink and you have gained nothing tangible except to save a few dollars initially. BOTH the EZ Reader and Mentor Lite have beautifully clear screens and give you about 3-4 times as long on a single charge. They are smaller and lighter and read well in low light. They have more features. Plus the EZ Reader has almost no returns and is built like a tank.

[wallcraft]

Originally Posted by Robertb

Yes, you can take a Jetbook without backlight and MAYBE get 20 hours. But... why settle for that? You are still going to have more eye strain than with E-ink and you have gained nothing tangible except to save a few dollars initially. BOTH the EZ Reader and Mentor Lite have beautifully clear screens and give you about 3-4 times as long on a single charge. They are smaller and lighter and read well in low light. They have more features. Plus the EZ Reader has almost no returns and is built like a tank.

The EZ Reader and jetBook are close competitors in terms of supported formats, I don't know if anyone has done a side by side comparison of how well they support each ebook format though. The jetBook has a 5" screen and is smaller and lighter than the EZ Reader. A version of the EZ Reader with a 5" screen (i.e. a Hanlin V5, or BeBook Mini) would presumably be very strong competition for the jetBook in size and weight and price, while keeping all the current EZ Reader's goodness in other areas.

[6charlong]

Originally Posted by wallcraft

The EZ Reader and jetBook are close competitors in terms of supported formats, I don't know if anyone has done a side by side comparison of how well they support each ebook format though. The jetBook has a 5" screen and is smaller and lighter than the EZ Reader. A version of the EZ Reader with a 5" screen (i.e. a Hanlin V5, or BeBook Mini) would presumably be very strong competition for the jetBook in size and weight and price, while keeping all the current EZ Reader's goodness in other areas.

A wonderful idea Wallcraft! With support for secure eReader and secure ePub , especially if they can do it at the price of the BeBook Mini.

[MaggieScratch]

I would love to see such a device, too. Hint, hint, Robert!

[elpidioman]

Robertb:

Hi. I live in Argentina and since to buy 1 dollar we need 3.7 Argentine pesos (and our purchasing power is not four times yours, believe me), price is the most important feature I look for.

So, could you tell me the expected price of the Astak's cheapest model?

The most economic one I found so far is the ebookWise ($ 150 approx.).

[Kris777]

Originally Posted by elpidioman

Robertb:

Hi. I live in Argentina and since to buy 1 dollar we need 3.7 Argentine pesos (and our purchasing power is not four times yours, believe me), price is the most important feature I look for.

So, could you tell me the expected price of the Astak's cheapest model?

The most economic one I found so far is the ebookWise ($ 150 approx.).

The cheapest ebook reader (made from 1999 until 2002) available on the market is eBookman 900 - price between $79-$99
You can find more information about this reader below
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_eBookMan
http://www.franklin.com/ebookman/ebo...os_apps_en.asp

[elpidioman]

Thanks, Kris777. I'll take a look.

[slayda]

Originally Posted by smithno

Can we PLEASE get back on topic?

My one desire for all the EZ Reader/Mentor models is the ability to to delete books on the reader! Three of my four readers do this and I sorely miss it on my EZ Reader!

If you load the OpenInkPot firmware on the EZ Reader, you can delete ebooks from the reader.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by slayda

If you load the OpenInkPot firmware on the EZ Reader, you can delete ebooks from the reader.

Dear Slayda:

Thank you. I trust you and know you know what you are doing.

I have forwarded this to our Operations Manager at Astak and to the factory. We try to be very sure before we tell end users to do anything. You would be amazed how many of our technical support questions center on someone doing a non-recommended firmware upgrade and the device shows a problem.

I would like our tech to be very sure it will cause zero problems and would like the factory to put it into their next firmware upgrade.

I appreciate this tip very much!! PLEASE, if anyone has tried this and had zero problems, please report!! Likewise, if you put the Open Ink Pot onto the EZ Reader and had any struggle... please jump in also.

I know Slayda to know what he is talking about.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by 6charlong

A wonderful idea Wallcraft! With support for secure eReader and secure ePub , especially if they can do it at the price of the BeBook Mini.

Dear Wallcraft and all:

We are working on 5 inch devices with our Taiwan factory but have not looked yet at the V5. I know BeBook has it and we are looking at how that goes over in Europe.

I agree that there is initial interest amongst the public for a small and light device. I agree that the low price would be attractive and necessary. I hear you.

[wallcraft]

Originally Posted by Robertb

PLEASE, if anyone has tried this and had zero problems, please report!! Likewise, if you put the Open Ink Pot onto the EZ Reader and had any struggle... please jump in also.

The OpenInkPot firmware is a complete replacement for the original firmware. It is not an alternative with a few features changed - which are the firmwares that cause your tech. support fits. I would not expect Astak to support OpenInkPot, because it is completely different, but it is a good alternative for folks who are happy with a DRM-free Reader. Switching firmwares seems very robust on the EZ Reader. However, I keep the original Jinke firmware on my EZ Reader and run OpenInkPot via its "live SD" version. This means I boot up in Jinke but then run an application that reboots in OpenInkPot. Some people have found this to be less stable than the stand-alone OpenInkPot but I like being able to switch back to the standard firmware without reflashing. It is also a good way to try OpenInkPot.