Deal Breakers for a New User - Page 2

JEMelby · 07-02-2007, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

I'm very surprised to hear that this is a "concern" for you - I honestly cannot recall coming across ANYBODY who regards the screen refresh speed of the Sony Reader as a problem. It's certainly no slower than turning the page of a paperback book, for example. You say "considering my experience with the current model Sony" - may I ask what that experience actually is? Have you just looked at one in a store, or read a book on one "for real"? I'm sure you'll find that if you use one "for real" it's not something that you'll even notice.

I've held the current model Sony, and "pretended" to read a book. This amounted to reading some of a page, then flipping to the next. Current devices are perfectly suited for this type activity. The page flip speed only becomes an issue when I am scanning a reference document for a particular piece of information. The liniar nature of books which tell a story translate well to these devices. The random access nature of reference materiel make page flip speed a bigger issue.
I love to read paper-backs. I am sure that devices like the Sony are very good at this. This alone make it a worthwhile purchase. Unfortunately, my reality is such that I want/need a device that is also suited to reference use.

NatCh · 07-02-2007, 11:08 AM

Sadly, the closest you're likely to get at the moment is a Tablet PC, and they have their own set of drawbacks.

In a few years, I expect it'll be a different story, but now ....

JEMelby · 07-02-2007, 11:46 AM

Good dialogue. Thanks to all. I think this thread has served its purpose. Key take-aways:

1) Current and near-future e-readers in this class are not well suited as mobile reference libraries.
2) Get an e-reader for recreational reading
3) Word search, while useful for reference use (see 1 above) is just not a big deal when reading the latest Michael Criton novel (agreed). I hadn't considered the "input" and "proccessing" requirements neccessary for this functionality. Living in a world of PCs replete with "word search" and "spell checkers", it just seemed to be a no-brainer.
4) Page flipping, when reading a liniear document, doesn't need to be fast.

Given infinite resouces, I am sure a book reader that can do it all is possible. But without an adequate pool of consumers to buy them, who would be foolish enough to make them. I will carefully watch the near-future crop of readers and likely select one just for recreational reading.

NatCh · 07-02-2007, 11:56 AM

Well, whatever you do, JEMelby, make sure you hang around!

I think there is an excellent market for the device you're describing (it's come up before around here, on occasion) -- Academia, the legal profession, most office environments, and anyone else who deals with large quantities of ... stuff that they have to sift through and interact with. I'd like to have one myself, I just wouldn't likely use it for reading -- it would pretty much have to have an A4/letter-sized display, and that'd be too cumbersome for leisure reading in my ... er, book.

HarryT · 07-02-2007, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NatCh

I think there is an excellent market for the device you're describing (it's come up before around here, on occasion) -- Academia, the legal profession, most office environments, and anyone else who deals with large quantities of ... stuff that they have to sift through and interact with. I'd like to have one myself, I just wouldn't likely use it for reading -- it would pretty much have to have an A4/letter-sized display, and that'd be too cumbersome for leisure reading in my ... er, book.

I agree with you entirely. An A4 device with good search and "annotation" facilities would be superb for many applications - but it is a completely different device to something like the Sony Reader or (probably) the CyBook, both of which are replacements for the paperback book rather than the reference library.

JSWolf · 07-02-2007, 12:17 PM

What would work well in most cases is a reader with a good A4 screen, at least 16 shades of gray, a keyboard on screen to input text for searching books and stuff and the ability to read a number of different formats and ergonomic controls unlike what we have and look to have soon.

NatCh · 07-02-2007, 12:20 PM

And it'd probably need a faster processor to run it all, too.

HarryT · 07-02-2007, 12:26 PM

... and remember that the battery life will, at least partially, be inversely proportional to the number of pixels on the screen. Double the number of pixels, halve the number of page turns per charge.

An A4 screen (297x210mm) would, at the same pixel density, have 5.8x the number of pixels that the Reader's 120x90mm screen has, so the battery life would be almost 6x shorter.

Still want one?

JSWolf · 07-02-2007, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

... and remember that the battery life will, at least partially, be inversely proportional to the number of pixels on the screen. Double the number of pixels, halve the number of page turns per charge.

An A4 screen (297x210mm) would, at the same pixel density, have 5.8x the number of pixels that the Reader's 120x90mm screen has, so the battery life would be almost 6x shorter.

Still want one?

If it had a replaceable battery then sure. We could carry around spare batteries to keep it alive.

kovidgoyal · 07-02-2007, 12:31 PM

Well a bigger screen would mean more space for a bigger battery.

wallcraft · 07-02-2007, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JEMelby

IThe page flip speed only becomes an issue when I am scanning a reference document for a particular piece of information. The liniar nature of books which tell a story translate well to these devices. The random access nature of reference materiel make page flip speed a bigger issue.

FBReader reads CHM, which is often used for technical manuals. It handles nested TOC levels in CHM files, but they probably are a pain to use on the iLiad. In fact, the time required to switch between page view and TOC view might get frustrating for routine use on the iLiad. Overall, the iLiad is probably closest to what you are looking for. If only it was cheaper, with a longer battery life, and a bigger screen.

The Amazon Kindle (if it is ever released) may come with a keyboard, and if so I would expect it to have a search capability.

yvanleterrible · 07-02-2007, 01:18 PM

Again the Kindle. It's name is always popping up and no one dares say anything more. I bet a shot of Karma that some people around here know more than they're entitled to reveal!

Does anyone have fresh news about it ?

Forgot to add: The Asus EEE albeit not having eink will do much of what you'd like JMElby

JSWolf · 07-02-2007, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

Well a bigger screen would mean more space for a bigger battery.

That is a very good observation. I didn't think of that. But it would make it heavier. But that's ok. It probably still won't be as heavy as the average hardcover book.

JSWolf · 07-02-2007, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yvanleterrible

Again the Kindle. It's name is always popping up and no one dares say anything more. I bet a shot of Karma that some people around here know more than they're entitled to reveal!

Does anyone have fresh news about it ?

Forgot to add: The Asus EEE albeit not having eink will do much of what you'd like JMElby

Except the Asus won't have a good enough battery life to be used like we do our readers now.

NatCh · 07-02-2007, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

That is a very good observation. I didn't think of that. But it would make it heavier. But that's ok. It probably still won't be as heavy as the average hardcover book.

It'd be way lighter than the average tablet or laptop -- that's a big win right there.

07-02-2007, 01:18 PM	#27
yvanleterrible Reborn Paper User Posts: 8,616 Karma: 15446734 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Que Nada Device: iPhone8, iPad Air	Again the Kindle. It's name is always popping up and no one dares say anything more. I bet a shot of Karma that some people around here know more than they're entitled to reveal! Does anyone have fresh news about it ? Forgot to add: The Asus EEE albeit not having eink will do much of what you'd like JMElby Last edited by yvanleterrible; 07-02-2007 at 01:23 PM. Reason: omission

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07-02-2007, 11:08 AM	#17
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	Sadly, the closest you're likely to get at the moment is a Tablet PC, and they have their own set of drawbacks. In a few years, I expect it'll be a different story, but now ....

07-02-2007, 11:46 AM	#18
JEMelby Save the Stone Tablet Posts: 31 Karma: 23 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Planet Earth (Mostly) Device: Coleco ADAM (With high-speed digital tape drive!)	Good dialogue. Thanks to all. I think this thread has served its purpose. Key take-aways: 1) Current and near-future e-readers in this class are not well suited as mobile reference libraries. 2) Get an e-reader for recreational reading 3) Word search, while useful for reference use (see 1 above) is just not a big deal when reading the latest Michael Criton novel (agreed). I hadn't considered the "input" and "proccessing" requirements neccessary for this functionality. Living in a world of PCs replete with "word search" and "spell checkers", it just seemed to be a no-brainer. 4) Page flipping, when reading a liniear document, doesn't need to be fast. Given infinite resouces, I am sure a book reader that can do it all is possible. But without an adequate pool of consumers to buy them, who would be foolish enough to make them. I will carefully watch the near-future crop of readers and likely select one just for recreational reading.

07-02-2007, 11:56 AM	#19
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	Well, whatever you do, JEMelby, make sure you hang around! I think there is an excellent market for the device you're describing (it's come up before around here, on occasion) -- Academia, the legal profession, most office environments, and anyone else who deals with large quantities of ... stuff that they have to sift through and interact with. I'd like to have one myself, I just wouldn't likely use it for reading -- it would pretty much have to have an A4/letter-sized display, and that'd be too cumbersome for leisure reading in my ... er, book.

07-02-2007, 12:17 PM	#21
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,771 Karma: 145864619 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	What would work well in most cases is a reader with a good A4 screen, at least 16 shades of gray, a keyboard on screen to input text for searching books and stuff and the ability to read a number of different formats and ergonomic controls unlike what we have and look to have soon.

07-02-2007, 12:20 PM	#22
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	And it'd probably need a faster processor to run it all, too.

07-02-2007, 12:26 PM	#23
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383099 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	... and remember that the battery life will, at least partially, be inversely proportional to the number of pixels on the screen. Double the number of pixels, halve the number of page turns per charge. An A4 screen (297x210mm) would, at the same pixel density, have 5.8x the number of pixels that the Reader's 120x90mm screen has, so the battery life would be almost 6x shorter. Still want one?

07-02-2007, 12:31 PM	#25
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 45,364 Karma: 27230406 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	Well a bigger screen would mean more space for a bigger battery.

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