Kindle 1st or Sony Pocket?

[jocampo]

Originally Posted by seigezunt

I'm trying to decide between two used ereaders.

Both in good shape, little used.

Being asked $90 for a first generation kindle

and $80 for a Sony PRS300SC



I mostly read project gutenberg and other free/low price stuff. Don't really want or need wifi capable, just something I can load books into. I'm attracted by the SD-card ability of the old Kindle, but the Sony looks nicer and is cheaper, if smaller. I'm reading ebook on an Axim 50 now, so either would be an increase in size.

Any suggestions? I'm new to this.

For 139 you can get last generation Kindle 3.

-Pearl screen
-PDF built-in support
-Landscape mode
-Ability to enlarge embedded images
-Read me features
-Wifi
-8oz only

Plus Amazon's A+ customer service and great online store! I would take a look on that one, instead...

[seigezunt]

Thanks for the comments, folks. I went with the Sony. I wasn't happy about jumping aboard the whole Kindle thing, and I'm getting an ereader to save space and money on books, not buy more books from Amazon that cost almost the same as their print version. I also am not loving the whole "we can take that book back if we like" thing.

I figured, this is my first ereader, and I'm mostly going to be reading free books. I needed to find something under $100, so I couldn't spare the "for just $40 more" stuff. I'm figuring that by the time this one dies, the prices will be down on better models, should I need one, if I have the cash. So far I'm enjoying it very much. Thank you, Calibre!

[ProfCrash]

hehehe Calibre is great. I have been having fun with it and I have yet to convert anything.

I think you are going to find that book prices are the same across the retailers.

[jocampo]

Originally Posted by seigezunt

Thanks for the comments, folks. I went with the Sony. I wasn't happy about jumping aboard the whole Kindle thing, and I'm getting an ereader to save space and money on books, not buy more books from Amazon that cost almost the same as their print version. I also am not loving the whole "we can take that book back if we like" thing.

I figured, this is my first ereader, and I'm mostly going to be reading free books. I needed to find something under $100, so I couldn't spare the "for just $40 more" stuff. I'm figuring that by the time this one dies, the prices will be down on better models, should I need one, if I have the cash. So far I'm enjoying it very much. Thank you, Calibre!

Sonys are great ereaders and it would probably be a good choice anyway, but I would liike to clarify some of your statements because I know other people read this thread as well.

Most Amazon ebooks are way much cheaper than their pbook version, like 15% or even 30% on some cases. It is also true that when you compare vs B&N or even other major stores, the ebook prices are exactly the same, in some cases, 1 dollar difference only. So I would say Amazon prices are really competitive.

It is also a myth that Amazon does not have free books. There are tons of them. I just downloaded three cooking books two weeks ago. You can also find lot of classics at 1 dollar or so, most of the time better formatted and layout than the free ones. Hey, a buck is not free, but cannot afford a one dollar book, something is wrong with his monthly budget

2nd, no one going to delete your book from your Kindle, that's a myth. It happened one time ago because the book itself was not properly copyrighted and in order to avoid legal issues it was removed. The money was sent back to the user. A clear Amazon's mistake, no doubt, but understandable when you sell millions of books online.

Last but not least, I would not rely on your ereader book copies only. I do have my ebooks in about 3 places, not matter if those online are being backed up by B&N or Amazon.