What DOES Kindle Store Have That Sony Reader formats don't?

[Andybaby]

Originally Posted by Zero9

Thanks for specifying that you don't think this thread falls into that category! I was worried for a second there.

Choosing a Sony Reader over Kindle wasn't easy for me (it came down to finding a really good Sony Credit card deal and deciding I don't need a keyboard making my device bigger). As a Sony owner, I clearly wouldn't want to start a fight over who has the bigger catalog, but it didn't seem logical that there could be such a vast amount of Kindle exclusives from actual publishers. Assuming Amazon someday makes a Kindle with less space around its 6" screen (and they either get cheaper or I get richer) I wouldn't be surprised if I own one in the future.

Ditto, Smaller Kindle 3= insta-purchase for me

[Alisa]

Amazon does have some more titles and generally lower prices but most stuff that is available in a legal ebook is out there in multiple formats. What the Amazon store has that I find compelling is the sample chapters. Many stores have excerpts. They're usually only a few paragraphs. Having a full chapter, sometimes more, that you can download to your device and read at your leisure totally changes my book buying experience. When I shop for books or hear about something I might like, I simply send myself the chapter. When I'm done reading it, I click on the link at the end of the book and there it is. Because I have Whispernet pretty much anywhere I go, I don't have to worry about being near a computer when I finish the sample. I buy fewer books since I can usually tell from the samples when I won't like them, but I buy them all from Amazon.

Sony could actually do something similar in firmware and it would likely get people buying from their store rather than other places. They wouldn't have the wireless but they could record your purchase request on the device and automatically get it for you with the Connect software when you connected via USB.

[wallcraft]

For ebooks from mainstream publishers: there are a few in Kindle and MOBI-only (i.e. not available in LRX, or LIT or ...) and I have come across a few in AZW-only. However, the vast majority of Kindle-only ebooks from mainstream publishers are TOPAZ ebooks. These are created by Amazon, using a propriety scanning and OCRing process. TOPAZ ebooks are often of lower quality, but on the other hand they are at least available. If you see a Kindle ebook without a filesize listed on its web page, the odds are very high that it is TOPAZ. Based on this criteria,The Resurrection of Jesus: John Dominic Crossan is TOPAZ.

[Zero9]

Originally Posted by wallcraft

For ebooks from mainstream publishers: there are a few in Kindle and MOBI-only (i.e. not available in LRX, or LIT or ...) and I have come across a few in AZW-only. However, the vast majority of Kindle-only ebooks from mainstream publishers are TOPAZ ebooks. These are created by Amazon, using a propriety scanning and OCRing process. TOPAZ ebooks are often of lower quality, but on the other hand they are at least available. If you see a Kindle ebook without a filesize listed on its web page, the odds are very high that it is TOPAZ. Based on this criteria,The Resurrection of Jesus: John Dominic Crossan is TOPAZ.

Interesting! Thanks, wallcraft.

[rwillmer]

Originally Posted by Zero9

Well, I just learned that ebookprice.info isn't of much use to me. I had used it to see who sold eBook editions of Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin. It only shows the Kindle store. But when I searched for it at the Sony eBook Store, they sell it too!

Hi Zero9

I'm sorry ebookprice.info didn't help in this instance - the Sony Store is the next one I'm going to implement!

If you (or anyone else) finds other examples of stores that should be added, please let me know - I'm working my way down the list :-)

Cheers
Rachel

[Zero9]

Originally Posted by rwillmer

Hi Zero9

I'm sorry ebookprice.info didn't help in this instance - the Sony Store is the next one I'm going to implement!

If you (or anyone else) finds other examples of stores that should be added, please let me know - I'm working my way down the list :-)

Cheers
Rachel

I actually still use ebookprice.info and think it's great! I was just being hasty and didn't pay attention to what stores you have implemented (it's on the front page, duh). Thanks for a great tool!

[Renaldo]

Originally Posted by Gideon

If you read a certain type of book, almost any store will take care of you. I, for one, can pretty much only be served by the Kindle store as no one else has hardly anything I'd buy.

Originally Posted by Elsi

Also, if you'll view the Kindle books sorted by price -- low to high -- you'll find many, many pornographic books priced at $0.25 each. Actually, I think a lot of these are short stories rather than novel-length "books".

Sorry, I couldn't help it.