Unboxing iRex 800 and first impressions

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by astra

Then I would be very concerned about shedding $500 for a gadget made by company that cannot write the proper manual.

By coincidence, I've closed a contract concerning the process of user guides in 2006. User guides are drafted in parallel to development. Usually there are 2 to 5 revisions and most of the times the user guide gets finished the very last second. Should a company suspend market release because of documentation? From a legal perspective, they have to document. But do they have to describe every single detail? When closing contracts like that, we analyse the existing documentation. Usually, we find hundreds of inconsistencies, for example when comparing product A to product B. And that's usually for products way more expensive.
If you insist on a correct user guide, free of any errors, this doesn't leave many products for you, I fear.
Just consider the workflow: Product is ready. Last details are added to the documentation. Product is intended to ship. But you have to translate your documentation first. That's usually up to 2 weeks. Now the company either can postpone their shipment by those 2 weeks. Or they can translate an early version and ship in time. What would you do with your product? There's a reason, why documentation on average has 5 to 7 revisions in year 1.

[pilotbob]

Ok, so this device certainly has my attention. When will the $400 US version start selling in Best Buy. I'd really like to try some 8.5x11 PDFs on it.

That said, for another $100 I can get an iPad... not the same but it can allow my to surf in my lap while on the couch... which is something I like to do but think a laptop is to awakard for.

The 800GS doesn't have WiFi right?

BOb

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Ok, so this device certainly has my attention. When will the $400 US version start selling in Best Buy. I'd really like to try some 8.5x11 PDFs on it.

That said, for another $100 I can get an iPad... not the same but it can allow my to surf in my lap while on the couch... which is something I like to do but think a laptop is to awakard for.

The 800GS doesn't have WiFi right?

BOb

Would you really want to surf the web on an eInk device? I agree. WiFi would be nice to surf the bookshops. But for not much more. I'll check out the BeBook Neo. And I'm looking forward to Nook's B&N store, which can be accessed via WiFi.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Would you really want to surf the web on an eInk device?

Probably not... still a valid question.. since it will have 3G... if I bought an iPad I think I would be to cheap to get the 3G version and pay for the service.. Unless t-mobile comes out with a miniSIM and a pay-as-you-go type plan (oppss... guess this is a bit off topic).

BOb

[astra]

Originally Posted by Gertjan

There appears to be an issue with the green LED indication. It will turn green once the battery is fully charged, but immediately set to yellow/orange as soon as you do anything. This will be fixed in the next release.

Meanwhile the icon in the statusbar is a good indicator. When you click the icon, a dialog shows the percentage of charge available.

It sounds to me like the history repeats itself. iRex is using users as guinea pigs to weed out bugs.

[Jumpn Jack Flash]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Would you really want to surf the web on an eInk device? I agree. WiFi would be nice to surf the bookshops. But for not much more. I'll check out the BeBook Neo. And I'm looking forward to Nook's B&N store, which can be accessed via WiFi.

I require wifi (could get away with 3G but why pay for something I already have) to read on safari, books24/7 etc. I get these for free with my acm membership but I do not use them as after 8+ hours at work staring at a screen I do not want stare at a laptop screen at home, hence an eInk( or like screen )

[Iñigo]

Originally Posted by professzore

By on your opinion, which is the best way to force iRex for some improvements? I mean, out-of-the-box
-- folder control,
-- annotation,
-- zoom/pan/resize of PDF documents?

Based on my experiences within another era, manufacturers sometimes "hear" the voice of thier customers and do what they want. Any idea?

After reading this thread with much attention, here is my wish list:

- high:
. annotation
. zoom/pan/resize: lots of tech PDF books look awful when reflowing

- medium
. lower price in Europe

- low
. better cover
. screen rotation
. wifi or 3G


I consider the items in "high" section a must to convince myself that I need it, else it would be a regression from my Iliad.
Wish Irex is considering them for next software releases.

And an special item should be:
- make Adam, hansel, ericshliao, antartica, jharker and the other Iliad power users get one DR800 to start writing and porting apps

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by badbob001

If you're saying that standby is good enough to keep the device going for weeks and there is no OFF function, then I can only assume that 'hibernation' is no longer a planned feature for the DR devices?

I think what they mean is that the standby mode IS "hibernation".

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by Gertjan

While this is basically correct, let me clarify the various power management states as terminology gets a bit confusing here.

Like DR1000, the DR800 saves power by going into a low power mode when it is idle for a few seconds. This is completely non intrusive, as wake up is virtually instant.

The user manual only mentions an "off" state with a quick power "on", though this is technically implemented as standby (suspend to RAM). A brief slide of the power button - no need to hold it for 2-3 seconds - switches to "off" (standby). As mentioned earlier, power consumption is minimal in this mode. Another brief slide switches it back on (resume) in a few seconds, retaining the reading state.

Then there is the auto-power-off feature. It puts the device into "off" (standby) after 30 minutes of inactivity.

When the battery is almost exhausted, the device will go into a real OFF mode. A brief slide of the power button switches the device on. Now it will do a complete boot which takes about a minute.

Holding the power switch for more than 3 seconds resets the device. The complete boot which takes about a minute.

Thank you. That was very helpful.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by Gertjan

DR1000 does not have this standby mode. It only has the low power sleep mode (sometimes referred to as "suspend"), which DR800 uses too. Sleep mode is entered when the device is idle for a few seconds, the display content is retained. During standby, the display is cleared.

Can you tell us if this new standby mode is also being planned for the DR1000 in an upcoming firmware release? I'm hopeful it will be since a lot of the code is shared between them, or is there something about the hardware in the DR1000 that this mode wouldn't be compatible.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by astra

It sounds to me like the history repeats itself. iRex is using users as guinea pigs to weed out bugs.

Your tone seems a bit harsh and aggressive. You don't even name any iRex unit in your possessions. So, what's your personal experience? When and how did iRex make you a "guinea pig"?
I still, after 13 units, can say: iRex iLiad's OS was and is benchmark. I've mentioned some of the features often enough.

And concerning "guinea pigs": Every single one of my units does have frequent firmware updates. So do my other gadgets. Sometimes it's add-ons (ePUB for Sony 505), sometimes it's bugfixes. I'm glad about all of them.
Okay, iRex 1000S still doesn't support ePUB. So what? It never has been advertised when I bought it. If they implement it, it's just kind of "goodwill".
And concerning bugfixes, I consider all 3 iRex units absolutely stable.
So, where's the "guinea pig"? And which other unit did function better/more reliable/closer to the advertising?
If a green light is the only "trouble" in any of my gadgets, I'm more than okay with that.

[Mr. Goodbar]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Your tone seems a bit harsh and aggressive. You don't even name any iRex unit in your possessions. So, what's your personal experience? When and how did iRex make you a "guinea pig"?
I still, after 13 units, can say: iRex iLiad's OS was and is benchmark. I've mentioned some of the features often enough.

And concerning "guinea pigs": Every single one of my units does have frequent firmware updates. So do my other gadgets. Sometimes it's add-ons (ePUB for Sony 505), sometimes it's bugfixes. I'm glad about all of them.
Okay, iRex 1000S still doesn't support ePUB. So what? It never has been advertised when I bought it. If they implement it, it's just kind of "goodwill".
And concerning bugfixes, I consider all 3 iRex units absolutely stable.
So, where's the "guinea pig"? And which other unit did function better/more reliable/closer to the advertising?
If a green light is the only "trouble" in any of my gadgets, I'm more than okay with that.

I think Irex has certainly had some issues in the past and they've struggled getting this thing out, but I'm very encouraged by what I'm hearing from the people here on this board. The battery life and speed sound great and there is a fix for those folks who require folders. I can't wait to pick one up.

[etienne66]

Originally Posted by astra

It sounds to me like the history repeats itself. iRex is using users as guinea pigs to weed out bugs.

No more than Microsoft or Apple who do the same thing. At least from what I've heard about Irex they are fairly stable even if the DR800S(G) are missing some important features like PDF zoom and annotation. Even Sony has some major bugs in their firmware for the Sony Readers. I doubt there has been a program released in the last 20 years that has been bug free. Programs or firmware are simply too complex nowadays for them to be 100% bug free. Probably the last time there was code that was 100% bug free was back in the 70's when there wasn't any personal computers.

Almost every company release software with a few major bugs in it. At least nowadays they make it much easier to update the firmware. It used to be if you wanted your firmware updated you had to send the unit in. Then someone would have to open the electronic device in question. Remove the eprom. Perhaps they might then erase the eprom and reprogram it or they might just replace it with an eprom that has already been updated.

So needless to say I would much rather be able to download a program and run it to update my firmware to the latest with all of the updates and bug fixes than the way it used to be.

So the power light doesn't work the way it is expected. It doesn't prevent you from using it and I for one have greater confidence they will fix this small issue than add in the PDF zoom feature.

And as Shaggy is always mentioning, buyer beware. If the unit does not have features you desire or doesn't operate they way you want it. Don't buy it, or if you have, return it immediately and get your money back. Don't wait for an update that is supposed to give you the feature you desire.

I guess I should have just said that if you use any device that can be updated you are a guinea pig. If it can't be updated then you are SOL.

Etienne66

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by etienne66

I doubt there has been a program released in the last 20 years that has been bug free. Programs or firmware are simply too complex nowadays for them to be 100% bug free. Probably the last time there was code that was 100% bug free was back in the 70's when there wasn't any personal computers.

Agreed. There's no such thing as bug free software.

So the power light doesn't work the way it is expected. It doesn't prevent you from using it and I for one have greater confidence they will fix this small issue than add in the PDF zoom feature.

First they made it sound like it was a catastrophe that the manual wasn't completely clear, then they complained that a LED didn't light up the right way and that means we're all guinea pigs. Both sound like pretty minor things to me. If those are the biggest problems you have to worry about...

I'm sure that if iRex built the perfect eReader and gave it away for free, certain people would still be complaining about it.

[Kolenka]

Originally Posted by Shaggy

Agreed. There's no such thing as bug free software.

If only regular people know how many known issues most software tends to ship with (when there is a sizable QA/test org). They'd probably either drop their jaw or complain even more loudly. One of the factors used when deciding to fix a bug is: how likely is it that someone will hit it? Bugs with a higher likelihood of being hit will get fixed first. Or bugs that do bad things like crash the device, delete data, etc...

I've got a list of bugs that we decided not to fix because we didn't have time and thought they were hard enough to find that we'd rather not have a heart-attack trying to fix them through a death march. Sure enough, a good couple years after the software was released, one of a good hundred+ actually turned into a customer issue, which we worked with them to fix.

With the size of iRex, I'd not be terribly surprised that something like an odd indicator light behavior got missed. I've seen worse go unnoticed inside the company I work for, for months before we find it and wonder how the hell we missed it.