Your recommendations please

[jerryleejr]

Originally Posted by Falbe Publishing

Hi,

I realize many of you promoted the Kindle to me and I know people like it but here's why I didn't buy it:

1. It's in its first generation.
2. I did not want to be wirelessly connected to the Amazon store.
3. It cost more than the Sony product.
4. The Sony reader had been out and updated after a few years.
5. Sony has been in the consumer electronics biz for a while.

So, that was my reasoning. I'm sure Kindle is great, but it seems like the Sony is too.

I think you will be very happy with your choice, That was almost my exact same top 5 reasons for not going with the Kindle, Although if the money was the same for both devices, I would have needed some serious therapy after that decision.

JJ

[=X=]

Originally Posted by Taylor514ce

I like everything about the Sony except Sony.

Welcome to the forum!

Well put

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by Falbe Publishing

Hi,

I realize many of you promoted the Kindle to me and I know people like it but here's why I didn't buy it:

1. It's in its first generation.
2. I did not want to be wirelessly connected to the Amazon store.
3. It cost more than the Sony product.
4. The Sony reader had been out and updated after a few years.
5. Sony has been in the consumer electronics biz for a while.

So, that was my reasoning. I'm sure Kindle is great, but it seems like the Sony is too.

#5 is not necessarily a good thing. Talk to folks who own a Clie.

The Clie line was Sony's entry in the PDA market, when PDAs were "must have devices" and Palm and Handsrping couldn't make thm fast enough. They ran Palm OS (with some annoying proprietary Sony tweaks), and a number of models were produced.

Sony killed the line and exited the market. The Clies were profitable, but not profitable enough. Sony management decided they could get a better return on their investment putting the funding elsewhere.

One of the concerns expressed here a while back was whether Sony would be in the ebook market long term, or whether the sales, revenues, and profits would be insufficient and they'd pull the plug. The problem is that Sony is a big outfit, and needs big numbers to make something worth doing. Management has a fiduciary responsibility to the shareholders to invest where it will get the best return. We don't know how well reader and ebook sales are doing, so we can't guess whether Sony will stick with it.

(The same comments apply to Amazon and the Kindle, but they are in a different position. They are a consumer oriented company, selling a variety of goods as a retailer. It was fairly easy for them to add ebooks to their line, since they already sold pbooks and had the established relationships with publishers. And they can leverage their content to provide Kindle sales. Prices on ebooks are generally cheaper at Amazon...if you have a Kindle. If either vendor decides the idea isn't working and to fold the operation, I'd call Sony more likely to do so.)
______
Dennis
Who owns neither device, and wants neither. I need color, and a device that does other things besides display ebooks.

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by Falbe Publishing

Hi,

I realize many of you promoted the Kindle to me and I know people like it but here's why I didn't buy it:

1. It's in its first generation.
2. I did not want to be wirelessly connected to the Amazon store.
3. It cost more than the Sony product.
4. The Sony reader had been out and updated after a few years.
5. Sony has been in the consumer electronics biz for a while.

So, that was my reasoning. I'm sure Kindle is great, but it seems like the Sony is too.

As long as you are happy. Although, some of your reasoning doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

For example ... number 2. If I don't want to be wirelessly connected to the Amazon store, I just don't connect to them wirelessly. It isn't like the service is always on and you are forced to use it.

And numbers 4 and 5. Sony has a horrible habit of dropping technology and not offering service and repair for it. I know from personal experience, and I think twice before buying Sony these days. Sony customer service has been on my "thumbs down" list for quite a while.

Now, reason number 3, I will grant you. And, you know, if you like the Sony and it's at a better price for you, then you got a good buy, and that's probably the bottom line. I just know, that for me, and because of my years of purchasing Sony products only to have them become obsolete and non-servicable after a very short time (in one case after only three years), I simply do not have the faith in Sony I once had.

[jerryleejr]

I concur, No matter how much I like the form and Function of the 505 I have a nagging feeling in the back of my mind that it will be a $300 Dollar paperweight in a short time.

JJ

[bwaldron]

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

#5 is not necessarily a good thing. Talk to folks who own a Clie.

Absolutely...and the major reason I didn't seriously consider the PRS505.

[HarryT]

Why? Suppose Sony stop selling the 505 tomorrow - so what? It doesn't affect people who already own one; they'll still be able to easily obtain e-Books and use their devices.

[delphidb96]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Why? Suppose Sony stop selling the 505 tomorrow - so what? It doesn't affect people who already own one; they'll still be able to easily obtain e-Books and use their devices.

Unless they start pulling crap similar to what Microsoft did to MS Reader owners. Or even worse, just stopped supporting the online list of already-purchased PRS ebooks.

Derek

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Why? Suppose Sony stop selling the 505 tomorrow - so what? It doesn't affect people who already own one; they'll still be able to easily obtain e-Books and use their devices.

And their devices will be orphans, with no official support or repair options. If they lose or break their reader, they are SOL. And the Sony Connect store would go away, most likely meaning no further commercial titles in Sony format.

I submit this would be a deal breaker for the majority of users.

The same issues affect my device: Tapwave went belly up in July 2005. But I have three, so I have a backup, and I'm a tech and can do my own repairs. And I can read just about any ebook format on it, including HTML, Mobi, Word, RTF, PDF and plain text, so I don't lack for content. But while I love my device with a passion, it's not one I casually recommend to others.

Bookeen is a "pure play" ebook viewer vendor, without the pressure they would have as part of a major conglomerate to make suitable numbers and provide the desired ROI. They can survive and even prosper on sales that would kill the Sony Reader, so your Cybook is likely to be a supported device for some time.

The whole question is "Is the Sony Reader doing well enough for Sony to stay in the ebook market, or does it face the same fate as other Sony products that didn't make enough money to justify the investment?" For the sake of the many happy Sony Reader users, and for the ebook market in general, I hope Sony stays behind it, but it's not a bet I'd put a lot of money on.
______
Dennis

[dordale]

I actually own a Sony Clie T615. I've had it since July 2002 and the darn thing won't die. I've used it and abused it and it still keeps working. I was upset when I learned that Sony quit manufacturing the Clie's--they are a quality product, just like my Reader.

To my way of thinking, as long as my reader (or for the most part any other electronic gadget I own) is under warranty, I'll get it fixed. If it breaks down after the warranty has expired it's time to go shopping for something new and better.

Just wish my Clie would finally die, so I'd have a reason to replace it!!

dordale

[seajewel]

I strongly leaned towards the Kindle before settling on Sony. I'm absolutely happy with that decision, and would make the same one again. My main reason, though, may not apply to you.. I needed a device that could handle reading Korean without too much hassle. There is a unicode patch available for the Sony that has allowed me to read Korean natively on the Reader, and to replace the fonts with fonts more pleasing to my eyes.

I still yearn for the whispernet, though. But in the end, I think I'm glad I went with the sony. Kindle is too closed for comfort in terms of files you can read directly on the device. Sony may be similarly limited, but kovid goyal's Calibre is the most wonderful program and handles conversions beautifully, all in one. My reader is very aesthetically appealing, as well, which is a minor point in favor of it.

But I think you'll be happy.

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by dordale

I actually own a Sony Clie T615. I've had it since July 2002 and the darn thing won't die. I've used it and abused it and it still keeps working. I was upset when I learned that Sony quit manufacturing the Clie's--they are a quality product, just like my Reader.

They are indeed nice devices, and people I know who own them treasure them.

If anything, I think Sony got too creative. There were how many different Clie models produced? They wound up competing with themselves. I think they might have done better with fewer models and higher sales for the models they did produce. Might not have kept management from pulling the plug, however.

To my way of thinking, as long as my reader (or for the most part any other electronic gadget I own) is under warranty, I'll get it fixed. If it breaks down after the warranty has expired it's time to go shopping for something new and better.

The only fly in that ointment is the content you view on the device. Will it play on whatever you go to next? This is one reason I'm less than thrilled by Sony's LRF format. Nothing else currently supports it. Of course, if you are a MobileRead participant, you learn about Calibre and you have options, but the vast majority of reader users aren't and haven't.

Just wish my Clie would finally die, so I'd have a reason to replace it!!

Sell it. Lots of Clie fans out there looking for a spare, or a model they don't have.

But what would you replace it with?
______
Dennis

[bwaldron]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Why? Suppose Sony stop selling the 505 tomorrow - so what? It doesn't affect people who already own one; they'll still be able to easily obtain e-Books and use their devices.

I would assume that if Sony made the decision to get out of the ebook business -- as they did with Palm PDAs -- that it would make Sony-format books difficult if not impossible to purchase -- the store would be shut down.

There would of course be plenty of PD content available, and those who wanted to strip DRM and convert to LRF would be able to purchase new books.

Likely? Who am I to say. But between the rootkit debacle, the sudden dropping of the Clies, and a few miserable support experiences with Sony USA, I had plenty of reasons to look elsewhere for my e-Ink machine -- even though I quite liked the 505 when I had a chance to play with one.

[dordale]

The only fly in that ointment is the content you view on the device. Will it play on whatever you go to next? This is one reason I'm less than thrilled by Sony's LRF format. Nothing else currently supports it. Of course, if you are a MobileRead participant, you learn about Calibre and you have options, but the vast majority of reader users aren't and haven't.

You do have a good point, but I don't usually read most of my books again, so I guess I'm not too worried about that. Also, I've been reading a lot of drm free books from this site and others, so no worries with those.

Sell it. Lots of Clie fans out there looking for a spare, or a model they don't have.

But what would you replace it with?

This is a good point as well. And probably why I haven't really considered selling my Clie. I don't see anything out on the market right now that would make a good replacement. Maybe I need to rethink my last statement...I really don't want my Clie to die! Although I do enjoy shopping for all things electronic!

dordale

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by dordale

You do have a good point, but I don't usually read most of my books again, so I guess I'm not too worried about that. Also, I've been reading a lot of drm free books from this site and others, so no worries with those.

True. My concern is with the folks who accumulate a library of paid for content locked to a device. If they lose or break the device, and the manufacturer is out of the business, they're SOL.

That happened to users of my device. Tapwave was trying to create a device that was a handheld gaming platform and a PDA. To woo game developers, they implemented DRM that would allow developers to release products which were digitally signed, and once installed were looked to the device they were installed on. If they lost or broke the device, they had to get a new signature from Tapwave for the new device, not the developer of the software. Tapwave went belly up. Various folks had software they couldn't run, even though they got a replacement working device, because the signing server no longer existed

This is a good point as well. And probably why I haven't really considered selling my Clie. I don't see anything out on the market right now that would make a good replacement. Maybe I need to rethink my last statement...I really don't want my Clie to die! Although I do enjoy shopping for all things electronic!

That's pretty much where I am. I'd like a larger screen, and would accept a larger device as part of it, but I'd need to do the same things I do now, in substantially the same ways.
______
Dennis