8+ Readers in comparison

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by kacir

A friend of mine has purchased PB302 very recently and he generously let me to play with it for a few days.
The screen wasn't shiny/glossy. I think, somebody(*) has installed a matte protective foil on display. It looks great.
The contrast is a little bit worse than on my PB360, but you can only see that if you view the devices side-by-side.
There are many features that I did not manage to test, but the touch interface feels SO natural.

(*) factory, European distributor, or the company that made the final sale

They've announced a successor. Was it 602? Same device, different (non-reflective) screen.
As far as you know: Will it be a different display/touchscreen (WACOM?) or will it just be the same protective foil?

[kacir]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

As far as you know: Will it be a different display/touchscreen (WACOM?) or will it just be the same protective foil?

The new version won't be with a protective foil, but a true matte surface according to PocketBook representatives.

PocketBook 302 works with stylus and also with finger. It is important for an e-ink device that has touch screen as a primary control input to be responsive to a finger touch. You can't be expected to pull out a stylus every time you want to set something with a menu, or increase font size or something.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by kacir

It is important for an e-ink device that has touch screen as a primary control input to be responsive to a finger touch. You can't be expected to pull out a stylus every time you want to set something with a menu, or increase font size or something.

Or to have an interface which can also be operated well with buttons, rather than the stylus; that's the approach the the Neo/Onyx use. Most things can be done either with the stylus or the navigation buttons.

[emai7s2]

Hi Mgmueller,

At the end of January you posted an update of your ranking. I was wondering if you could revise this ranking once you've had a chance to use the enhanced PDF functionality in the latest update for the Kindle DX. Thanks!

mgmueller wrote (on about 2010/01/29):

Minor changes in my ranking:
#13: BeBook (a bit ugly, looks a bit cheap)
#12: Sony 300 (don't like turning pages with the 5-way-button)
#11: Sony 700 (great unit, but given Sony 600 it has lost its place)
#10: Cybook Gen3 (nice unit, especially after the firmware update. But no real arguments against Kindle 2 and others)
#9: iRex 1000S (great unit, but too bulky for me)
#8: Sony 600 (very pleasant surprise, but given Sony 900 it has lost its place)
#7: Kindle DX (flawless, but the big screen doesn't have any real advantage to me and makes it bulky. Maybe with more advanced PDF support?)
#6: Sony 505 (still one of my favorites, but no real advantage over Sony 900)
#5: iRex iLiad (still one of my alltime favorites, but replaced by iRex 800)
#4: Cybook Opus (only a niche product for me, 5" often difficult to read. But within its niche it's phantastic)
#3: Kindle 2 (there's a reason why Amazon is considered market leader)
#2: iRex 800 (has grown on me and we've learned a lot in our dialogue with iRex)
#1: Sony 900 (a real beauty. Display quality a bit below iRex 800, but more than acceptable"

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by emai7s2

Hi Mgmueller,

At the end of January you posted an update of your ranking. I was wondering if you could revise this ranking once you've had a chance to use the enhanced PDF functionality in the latest update for the Kindle DX. Thanks!

mgmueller wrote (on about 2010/01/29):

Both my Kindles are the US versions, not the international ones.
I hope, they make the update downloadable. Didn't get the last one (2.3.4) already.
Alex and PocketBook 360 definitely change the picture. Both rank in the top 30%.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Criterias: My very personal "gut feeeling" = How likely is it, to take the respective unit on a trip when I have to care about luggage? (*)

#15: BeBook One (a bit ugly, looks a bit cheap)
#14: Sony 300 (don't like turning pages with the 5-way-button)
#13: Sony 700 (great unit, but given Sony 600 it has lost its place)
#12: Cybook Gen3 (nice unit, especially after the firmware update. But no real arguments against Kindle 2 and others)
#11: iRex 1000S (great unit, but too bulky for me)
#10: Sony 600 (very pleasant surprise, but given Sony 900 it has lost its place)
#9: Kindle DX (flawless, but the big screen doesn't have any real advantage to me and makes it bulky. Maybe with more advanced PDF support?)
#8: Sony 505 (still one of my favorites, but no real advantage over Sony 900)
#7: iRex iLiad (still one of my alltime favorites, but replaced by iRex 800)
#6: Cybook Opus (only a niche product for me, 5" often difficult to read. But within its niche it's phantastic)
#5: Kindle 2 (there's a reason why Amazon is considered market leader)
#4: iRex 800 (has grown on me and we've learned a lot in our dialogue with iRex)
#3: BeBook Neo (great featureset, way ahead of iRex 800. In Europe, way cheaper than iRex 800 [and even in the US $ 100 cheaper than iRex 800]. Has potential "to kill them all". Lacks some design "polishing" though)
#2: Nook (very elegant, very positive surprise. No problems at all with the touchscreen. And I love the B&N shop and to download eBoks via WiFi)
#1: Sony 900 (a real beauty. Display quality a bit below iRex 800, but more than acceptable)

(*) Of course, the "new" factor matters. It's more likely to take my new BeBook Neo with me to do some further experiments, than taking my "veteran unit" iRex iLiad.

Again, the picture has changed.
I've added Spring Design Alex and PocketBook 360.
Both are innovative units.
PocketBook 360 compares to Cybook Opus, of course. It's more feature rich, design is of similar functionality and has about the same "cool factor". One exception: The "butterfly buttons" on PocketBook 360 are close to disaster: Ugly, not very ergonomic and of low quality. Still, PocketBook 360 already has grown on me. Because of a great "hack", you don't need the buttons, you can turn pages via its motion sensor - simply briefly twist your wrist. And the last firmware update on Cybook Opus (filenames instead of metadata) did lower Opus' ranking for me.
Spring Design Alex of course compares to nook. Syncing both screens (6" ePaper Display on top, 3.5" LCD screen below for surfing the web or touchscreen functionality). Alex already is growing on me. It's no quantum leap to nook, but has some nice additions to it.

So, my actual ranking, after 3 days with Spring Design Alex and PocketBook 360:

#17: BeBook One (a bit ugly, looks a bit cheap)
#16: Sony 300 (don't like turning pages with the 5-way-button)
#15: Sony 700 (great unit, but given Sony 600 it has lost its place)
#14: Cybook Gen3 (nice unit, especially after the firmware update. But no real arguments against Kindle 2 and others)
#13: iRex 1000S (great unit, but too bulky for me)
#12: Sony 600 (very pleasant surprise, but given Sony 900 it has lost its place)
#11: Kindle DX (flawless, but the big screen doesn't have any real advantage to me and makes it bulky. Maybe with more advanced PDF support?)
#10: Sony 505 (still one of my favorites, but no real advantage over Sony 900)
#9: iRex iLiad (still one of my alltime favorites, but replaced by iRex 800)
#8: Cybook Opus (only a niche product for me, 5" often difficult to read. But within its niche it's phantastic, although the last firmware update with switching to filenames instead of metadata did reduce functionality for me)
#7: Kindle 2 (there's a reason why Amazon is considered market leader)
#6: BeBook Neo (great featureset, way ahead of iRex 800 for now. In Europe, way cheaper than iRex 800 [and even in the US $ 100 cheaper than iRex 800]. Has potential "to kill them all". Lacks some serious design "polishing" though)
#5: PocketBook 360 (very hard to rank. It's aiming for mobility, of course having limited functions, compared to touchscreen units. But it does great for its main purposes)
#4: iRex 800 (very much has grown on me and we've learned a lot in our dialogue with iRex. I'm looking forward to the firmware update and clearly prefer the design over BeBook Neo)
#3: Nook (very elegant, very positive surprise. No problems at all with the touchscreen. And I love the B&N shop and to download eBoks via WiFi. And I've been able to exchange the AT&T SIM with my own German one, so I've got WiFi and 3G)
#2: Spring Design Alex (doesn't have any real advantages over nook for me. And given the way lower price, nook does absolutely great. But for sideloaded content -even with softrooting nook- Alex is preferable for me)
#1: Sony 900 (a real beauty. Display quality a bit below iRex 800, but more than acceptable)

Ranking within the top 5 (or actually, it's maybe the top 7) is extremely difficult. All are great units. Even my last ranking unit, on its own, still is a top notch product.
Certainly the "new" factor plays its role. It's more likely for me, to take Alex or PocketBook 360 with me, than others. Simply, to further check out all the functions and "hacks".
And the picture can change quickly again. I carefully check for another firmware update for Cybook Opus. As soon as they switch back to metadata (instead of showing filenames), Opus will have a better ranking again.
And: It's nearly impossible for me, to compare 5" to 6" units. In direct comparison, iRex 800 for example beats PocketBook 360 hands down for me. Given the touchscreen functionality, iRex 800 simply has a way more convenient user experience. On the other hand, I can take PocketBook 360 with me in my suit pocket. Mobility sometimes comes quite handy over feature-richness.

And: Someone a few months ago has asked me, to rank my units without taking design into consideration, just focussing on the features. Personally, I don't approach my readers that way. They still are gadgets for me. I use them for fun. And usually, I've got a very distinct gut feeling for my gadgets from the very first moment.
My first reaction, when unboxing Kindle 2 has been: "What the .... is this? Design of the 70s based on cooking devices?". It has very much grown on me, it's a great unit. But still: It won't make my top 5.
Sony 900 on the other hand I've loved from first sight.
So, for example, the ugly "butterfly buttons" on PocketBook 360 lower its rank, even though there are alternatives for turning pages.

And: Let's not forget about the price. One more easily pushes a "cheap" unit aside and forgets about it ("another bad invest, another gadget I won't use"), whereas one tends to get back to an "expensive" toy and checks again, to find some hidden "perl".

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by emai7s2

Hi Mgmueller,

At the end of January you posted an update of your ranking. I was wondering if you could revise this ranking once you've had a chance to use the enhanced PDF functionality in the latest update for the Kindle DX. Thanks!

mgmueller wrote (on about 2010/01/29):

There was an update after that, covering nook (beginning of February) and BeBook Neo (some weeks after nook).
BTW: I don't think, improved PDF functionality will change the ranking for Kindle DX. The rank was not at all based on PDF support (which is a very limited one right now, that's true). I rank it in the "middle field", mainly because it's too bulky for me and I can't make any real use of its screen size. That's not quite fair, I agree. That's like buying a Porsche and then nagging about gas consumption or speeding. But I have to find some methodology for ranking, so I do it on my personal "gut feeling" and on the likeliness of taking the respective units with me (on vacation or a business trip).
So my ranking mainly is based on the time I spend with each of those readers. The more I use it (for whatever reasons), the higher it ranks.

[carmelra]

Originally Posted by kacir

- The third party version of fbreader has many other interesting features, not just "wrist pageturn".

- It can display many, MANY different languages in wide variety of encodings, not just Latin1 (Kindle and Sony I am looking at you!) outside pdf. You can even display chinese, korean, hebrew, arabic, ...

Originally Posted by mgmueller

Thanks, I'll check out the themes (although I'm absolutely fine with the original layout).
Like I've stated in my response to HarryT: It all depends on your personal demands.
Personally, I prefer to do the things you describe on a touchscreen unit (eagerly awaiting the firmware update for iRex 800). The 5" readers (Cybook Opus and PocketBook 360) I'll use for "casual reads". And for that I won't use most of the features you describe. But still, I'll choose it over Cybook Opus (at least for now, given the existing firmware on Cybook Opus).

I don't think you'll be able to read Hebrew ePub books on any of your devices beside this one...

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by carmelra

I don't think you'll be able to read Hebrew ePub books on any of your devices beside this one...

And it's my only one, being able to play "Battleship". I guess I seriously have to reconsider my ranking.

[carmelra]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

And it's my only one, being able to play "Battleship". I guess I seriously have to reconsider my ranking.

Wow! Battleship!!! So, that's the ultimate eReader. for sure

[mgmueller]

Just got a friendly and prompt reply from Spring Design:
- Copy the .png files to the folder SD:/ebooks/covers.
-And here's the trick: Clear the data in the application (settings) "library".

Generating the .png files is easy of course. I just imported the files from Alex into ADE. ADE generates the cover files and then copy them back to Alex.

[rammbam]

Mgmueller,plz tell me more about Bebook Neo.For me it doesnt matter how it looks,but how does it function,especially with PDF files.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by rammbam

Mgmueller,plz tell me more about Bebook Neo.For me it doesnt matter how it looks,but how does it function,especially with PDF files.

HarryT wrote an extensive review about BeBook Neo.
In brief:
- For PDFs, it has various zoom options. You can zoom via stylus: Just mark the area of interest and explode to full screen. Or you can zoom to fit page, width, ...
- Its 5-way-button is very well thought out. Actually, it's 2 rings, one within the other. With the inner ring, you can change font size, up obviously increases and down decreases the font size. The outer ring is for managing the menus. Meaning: You don't have to use the stylus, everything can be done via 5-way-button as well.
- You probably already know, but just to make sure: BeBook Neo's hardware is identical with Onyx Boox, they've only (slightly) modified the firmware.
- You can purchase books via WiFi directly on the reader and activate (ADE) them on the reader as well.
- Given its WACOM screen, the contrast is identical with non-touchscreen units. No glare, no increased reflection.
- The back is metal. High quality, but I don't like the cold "touch" of it.
- HarryT loves the annotation features.
- Right now, the firmware is way ahead of iRex 800. Personally, I still prefer iRex 800's "touch and feel" and eagerly wait for the upcoming firmware update (already in beta stage for some weeks now).
- Given it's low price of € 299, you can't go wrong with BeBook Neo.

I gave some more details about BeBook Neo starting with #354 in this thread.

[rammbam]

Originally Posted by mgmueller

HarryT wrote an extensive review about BeBook Neo.
In brief:
- For PDFs, it has various zoom options. You can zoom via stylus: Just mark the area of interest and explode to full screen. Or you can zoom to fit page, width, ...
- Its 5-way-button is very well thought out. Actually, it's 2 rings, one within the other. With the inner ring, you can change font size, up obviously increases and down decreases the font size. The outer ring is for managing the menus. Meaning: You don't have to use the stylus, everything can be done via 5-way-button as well.
- You probably already know, but just to make sure: BeBook Neo's hardware is identical with Onyx Boox, they've only (slightly) modified the firmware.
- You can purchase books via WiFi directly on the reader and activate (ADE) them on the reader as well.
- Given its WACOM screen, the contrast is identical with non-touchscreen units. No glare, no increased reflection.
- The back is metal. High quality, but I don't like the cold "touch" of it.
- HarryT loves the annotation features.
- Right now, the firmware is way ahead of iRex 800. Personally, I still prefer iRex 800's "touch and feel" and eagerly wait for the upcoming firmware update (already in beta stage for some weeks now).
- Given it's low price of € 299, you can't go wrong with BeBook Neo.

I gave some more details about BeBook Neo starting with #354 in this thread.

Thats Ok,but what is that u dont like in BeBook Neo,except how it looks?
And i wrote in one topic,I have huge electronic library in my PC(mostly pdf files),and like to
transfer it on Ebook reader,and read from it.Is this possible in BeBook Neo?Cse
I dont plan to buy books online.

Thanx in advance!

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by rammbam

Thats Ok,but what is that u dont like in BeBook Neo,except how it looks?
And i wrote in one topic,I have huge electronic library in my PC(mostly pdf files),and like to
transfer it on Ebook reader,and read from it.Is this possible in BeBook Neo?Cse
I dont plan to buy books online.

Thanx in advance!

All my readers can handle PDFs. You can transfer them via calibre, Windows Explorer or similar tools.
There are some differences though:
- Most readers do reflow for PDFs. Meaning, they handle the file as text and insert line breaks, based on your font size. That's great for gathering the information. But it "destroys" the original layout and usually has problems with graphics, formulas and other more advanced operations.
---> Not recommendable for "professional" documents.
- Some readers are able to do zoom instead of reflow or in addition to reflow. The original layout remains intact, but sometimes it's more complicated to "handle" the document that way.

It's not, that I don't like BeBook Neo. On its own, it's a great reader. It just isn't one of my absolute favorites.
It's minor details:
- iRex 800 has a way smaller bezel, as Neo need lots of space at the bottom for the 5-way-button. That's about 2" of "wasted space" on BeBook Neo.
- iRex 800 can handle the B&N .pdb files. I buy lots of those because of nook.
So, of the touchscreen units I prefer Sony 900, because I simply love to hold it in my hands, it just seems perfectly designed. And I prefer iRex 800's structure. BeBook Neo has more features, but iRex 800 will close the gap with the upcoming firmware update and Sony 900 already is about equal.
And of the non-touchscreen units, I prefer nook or Alex. They (especially nook) have way less features to offer. But for casual reads, they offer more than enough. And I simply enjoy a bit more, holding them in my hand.

I have various readers for different demands. For example, iRex 1000 for "professional" documents or nook for "casual reads". As a multi-functional device, BeBook Neo certainly is one of the best. But as a specialised unit, it's not my top favorite in any area.

Whether it's books, movies or gadgets: I prefer, "loving" them from the very first second/page or unboxing. With Sony 900, this has happened. BeBook Neo had to grow on me. And I simply add too many gadgets too quickly, to take my time for each of them.
So, BeBook Neo is within the top 40%, but not at the very top.
But that's really just my ranking. Right now, I'll spend the next few days for Alex. It has tons of options to check out. BeBook Neo on the other hand is extremely functional/professional. But on the other hand, it's less "adventurous", to fiddle around with it.

Meaning: If you want to have a touchscreen unit with relatively low price and very professional featureset, you can't go wrong with BeBook Neo. But I'd recommend, to check iRex 800 and Sony 900 as well. (Although, for PDFs, Sony's zoom capabilities are a bit weak.)