Report on new firmware?

[Abelturd]

Originally Posted by gerraldo

Final statement: I (and the rest of the world) say an eReader is (can be) a hardware device (to read eBooks), you say it's not. We disagree, that's OK with me, but can we leave it at that?!

I agree, what JWolf described is a problem specific for USA, UK maybe. But in my country ereader file format hasn't got to awareness of wider public , and it never will, whilst reader/ereader/eink reader is widely used as a synonym for liseuse (both the translation for the word reader as well as the english word reader).

Originally Posted by gerraldo

BTW: I'd be more then willing to PAY (look closely Bookeen) for features I want/need! E.g. reflowable PDF, nonDRM ePub and definable button support.

I second that.

Originally Posted by gerraldo

Me, I read mostly english books (though I'm Austrian)

And I always pictured you as a fiery Italian.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by gerraldo

We'll have to wait and see, if it really is that much of an improvement.

concerning the refresh speed, there is a noticeable improvement with the new firmware, it's really appreciable. also they have implemented the "key repeat" so instead of "click click click" to navigate the menu, etc. you click once, hold the key down, and the cursor will continue to advance until you release the key. this also makes a really nice improvement for navigating in terms of speed and comfort. it seems very well done to me ; in a menu, you can navigate through all the options by holding down the key, and at the end of the list it circles back to the top. when turning pages, the first page turn is at normal speed, then if you continue to depress the key it accelerates somewhat and advances with no intermediary black flash (like the sony 700 on quick page advance). when you release the button the advance stops and there is the black flash to avoid any remanent images, just like a regular page turn.

Originally Posted by Abelturd

And I always pictured you as a fiery Italian.

[gerraldo]

Originally Posted by Abelturd

And I always pictured you as a fiery Italian.

Deep in my heart I truly am!!!

You can have a look: CLICK

[tselling]

I don't see any mention of suspend support? Would be nice to have the instant on of the Sony or Kindle devices.

[T_Frain_K]

Originally Posted by tselling

I don't see any mention of suspend support? Would be nice to have the instant on of the Sony or Kindle devices.

As I don´t see any use of that, since the e-Ink screen does not consume power in idle state.

[netseeker]

Originally Posted by T_Frain_K

As I don´t see any use of that, since the e-Ink screen does not consume power in idle state.

The E-INK screen don't but other parts of the device consume power even in idle state. The battery of the Sony lasts 3-4 weeks in standby mode and if you switch the device on it's ready to continue reading within 2-4 seconds.

[Godzil]

But I don't think the sony will draw less battery when in "sleep" mode, or they make it differently than the Cybook. ie: it will drain more battery when "asleep" than the Cybook.

I doubt that even with "deep sleep" the Cybook could drain less battery thant in "standby" mode (like after turning a page, and waiting for a new key press) maybe they could do some magic boot to do let it wakeup faster, but I really think that if they didn't make a "sleep" mode like for the 505/700 it's due to hardware limitations. One of the component that have the most impact on sleep is memory. If bookeen haven't had choice on the memory modules they got for the Gen3 they could too much consumption for sleep mode...

[T_Frain_K]

Originally Posted by netseeker

The E-INK screen don't but other parts of the device consume power even in idle state. The battery of the Sony lasts 3-4 weeks in standby mode and if you switch the device on it's ready to continue reading within 2-4 seconds.

I know. The Cybook is empty within 4 days when left on (don´t know when exactly, nor if my battery was full), but if you just put it aside or drop it when falling asleep, you won´t drain the battery (completly).
Besides, does it really need a start time like that? Obviously, one usually spends more time on a book, so them few seconds really should not matter.

It is the second law of free market economy - the cost-benefit equation.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by T_Frain_K

As I don´t see any use of that, since the e-Ink screen does not consume power in idle state.

The CyBook is a computer. Like any other computer, the CPU, RAM, etc, all consume power even if the screen doesn't.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Godzil

But I don't think the sony will draw less battery when in "sleep" mode, or they make it differently than the Cybook. ie: it will drain more battery when "asleep" than the Cybook.

It seems to be considerably different to the CyBook in that regard. The CyBook will drain its battery in around 4 days if left on; the Sony, in "standby" mode, will run for about two and a half to three weeks on a battery charge.

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by gerraldo

Deep in my heart I truly am!!!

You can have a look: CLICK

OM-Frikkin-G! A *TWIN*!!! My brother! Where have you BEEN!!!

Derek

[lmarie]

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

concerning the refresh speed, there is a noticeable improvement with the new firmware, it's really appreciable. also they have implemented the "key repeat" so instead of "click click click" to navigate the menu, etc. you click once, hold the key down, and the cursor will continue to advance until you release the key... if you continue to depress the key it accelerates somewhat and advances with no intermediary black flash (like the sony 700 on quick page advance). when you release the button the advance stops and there is the black flash to avoid any remanent images, just like a regular page turn.

Thanks for posting this -- I was wondering about the "flash" if continuous repeat was used -- it would have driven me nuts. Sometimes I turn off the flashing altogether, just to get a break (I don't know why sometimes it bothers me and other days I don't even notice it.)

Lelah

[FlorenceArt]

Originally Posted by tselling

I don't see any mention of suspend support? Would be nice to have the instant on of the Sony or Kindle devices.

According to the Bookeen people I spoke to at the meet-up, the Cybook already goes into sleep mode between page turns. That's why they don't have a specific sleep mode button.

[FlorenceArt]

Slightly off-topic: suddenly the start-up time on my Cybook seems a lot shorter. I'm not complaining but it's a bit surprising because it got quicker not immediately after the update I got at the meet-up, but a week later when I added some book files.

I hope it means whatever problem there was with my Cybook is now miraculously fixed

[netseeker]

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

According to the Bookeen people I spoke to at the meet-up, the Cybook already goes into sleep mode between page turns. That's why they don't have a specific sleep mode button.

I guess there is a difference between the sleep mode between page turns and a general standby mode. "Sleep mode" usually means that the operating system is still running and at least volatile memory and CPU are draining battery power. That sleep mode between page turns is very similiar across all devices i'm aware of.
I guess that the "standby mode" (as offered by the Sony devices) means that the operation system is in a special hibernation state and almost no hardware is draining battery power.