Choices, decisions and other nuissances

[xerxe]

Originally Posted by jchestnutt

My experience with the 505 (and I expect all other e-ink readers would be similar), is that you'll need a light to read at night and in the evening, but not too much different from a paper book.

That is certainly to be expected. I already have a small desk lamp which could be easily placed to permit reading in bed. Can't wait to use it on an eReader!

Originally Posted by jchestnutt

I found that on an airplane, with the cabin lights off, the reader sitting on the tray, and only using the overhead seat light, I could not read the smallest text size easily. However, bumping up the text size one notch made it easily readable for me (your eyes may vary).

The best way is really just to try one in person and see if it works for you. A lot of it seems to be personal preference.

Increasing the font size seems OK. By the way, on the PRS 505, how can you choose the size of the font? Are there zoom levels? How many steps? For RTFs, does the initial font size matter?

The sooner I try it, the sooner I can order it, and the sooner it arrives.

[xerxe]

OK, I've seen the Sony PRS 505.

My first impressions were:
-excellent display
-a bit heavier than I expected
-annoying flash on page flipping

I went into a darker room to check how the display would look. I can say that it behave like a paper book in those low lighting conditions.

The visual quality is great! I was expecting font shadows or ghosting, but this was not the case. I know this is the quality of eInk we are talking about, so this wouldn't necessarily be a plus for the Sony.

The body of the reader is compact, and it seems sturdy enough.

I tried zooming in an open book, but after 3 minutes I cancelled. My colleague told me that the indexing hadn't been made for that specific file. From what I read on the forums, this indexing is made automatically if I upload the books using Sony's book copy software, on the computer.

Overall I liked it. A lot.

I would have liked to sample a Cybook Gen3 as well.

Anyway, I'm ordering it tomorrow. It will be a long wait, those 5 to 7 business days.

Thanks everyone for your help!

[Ea]

Originally Posted by xerxe

The visual quality is great! I was expecting font shadows or ghosting, but this was not the case. I know this is the quality of eInk we are talking about, so this wouldn't necessarily be a plus for the Sony.

This is why it flashes; the clear the screen to prevent ghosting and shadows. I'm of the impression that almost all users are not bothered by the flashing and get used to it very quickly.

Originally Posted by xerxe

I tried zooming in an open book, but after 3 minutes I cancelled. My colleague told me that the indexing hadn't been made for that specific file. From what I read on the forums, this indexing is made automatically if I upload the books using Sony's book copy software, on the computer.

That is correct. I use calibre, and I have had large books that took up to 10 min. for indexing. Since I convert everything anyway, I've just set the base font size to my preferred size. But it is a hassle when you want to show it off, and people accidently click that button - it makes the Reader look bad

Originally Posted by xerxe

Anyway, I'm ordering it tomorrow. It will be a long wait, those 5 to 7 business days.

Happy waiting!

[xerxe]

Thanks, Ea.

However, it would seem fate is against me.
The seller from eBay "just decided" to add 25$ to the price.

I have to make some calculations, maybe I'll come out cheaper ordering a BeBook from Europe. So, in a way, I'm back to the first step.

[richman]

I think the 505 is holding price point because they are becoming harder to come by, many stores ran out of stock and sony stopped production of them.
Maybe wait until the 300 and 600 come out and see if you can get good price on it or try another type ereader.
EA does the same thing I do, I convert all my ebooks to the font size I like from start so I don't have to wait for zooming conversion, but it is only a one time thing for the sony, once it converts to the 3 font sizes on the reader, it's fast to change for that book in the future. I have experienced the same thing on showing the ereader to someone else and they push the zoom feature on a 1,000 page book that I didn't zoom yet and it takes a long time the first time.

[Ea]

Originally Posted by xerxe

Thanks, Ea.

However, it would seem fate is against me.
The seller from eBay "just decided" to add 25$ to the price.

I have to make some calculations, maybe I'll come out cheaper ordering a BeBook from Europe. So, in a way, I'm back to the first step.

That's too bad
You might like to check out pixelar.co.uk. They have the Hanlin V3 for 200 pounds - vs. 300 euro for the Bebook rebranded device. It's the same hardware and you can always download a different firmware. You'd have to ask about delivery though, they deliver to "most of mainland Europe".

I had a Hanlin V3 for a short time before I caved in and bought the Reader 505, and I must admit that I find the Sony just that bit nicer. What I'm trying to say is, that if I had followed my gut instinct, I would have bought the Sony sooner, instead of trying to settle for what was second best for me. With your requirements though, I'd say the Hanlin would be good, too. It feels like a nice, solid device, and generally well-designed (including the case) - sort of like an IBM/Lenovo Thinkpad. And there's regular firmware updates - or the OpenInkPot firmware since you don't care about DRM.

Originally Posted by richman

... I have experienced the same thing on showing the ereader to someone else and they push the zoom feature on a 1,000 page book that I didn't zoom yet and it takes a long time the first time.

And then you feel like ... and you can't do a thing but wait

[xerxe]

Originally Posted by richman

I think the 505 is holding price point because they are becoming harder to come by, many stores ran out of stock and sony stopped production of them.

So, you think that the price is up, never to come down again? I was hoping that the new 300 and 600 models would lower the price for the 505 and 700.

Yes, my colleague told me that's what he does, too: he sets the font size in the file to 12 or 14, then he doesn't need to use the zoom function.

[xerxe]

Originally Posted by Ea

You might like to check out pixelar.co.uk

Nope, they don't deliver to Romania, at least my country is not in the list when checking out. It would be a good alternative, price-wise. I sent them a question, asking if they would make an exception, but I'm not getting my hopes up.

Originally Posted by Ea

And then you feel like ... and you can't do a thing but wait

Actually, when I did that, my colleague just pressed [menu] and the deviced stopped trying to zoom.
But it was a bit embarrassing.

[Ea]

Originally Posted by xerxe

Nope, they don't deliver to Romania, at least my country is not in the list when checking out. It would be a good alternative, price-wise. I sent them a question, asking if they would make an exception, but I'm not getting my hopes up.

Sorry to hear about Pixelar, but it's good you're checking with them personally, too. Crossing fingers.

Originally Posted by xerxe

Actually, when I did that, my colleague just pressed [menu] and the deviced stopped trying to zoom.
But it was a bit embarrassing.

What?! Didn't - and doesn't (just tried) - do that for me. I have to wait, but I think I might be using the slightly older American firmware, and could be the reason

[xerxe]

Originally Posted by Ea

Sorry to hear about Pixelar, but it's good you're checking with them personally, too. Crossing fingers.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by Ea

What?! Didn't - and doesn't (just tried) - do that for me. I have to wait, but I think I might be using the slightly older American firmware, and could be the reason

Yes, he told me that he had updated the firmware. I don't know to which version, but he also said it enabled changing pages by use of left/right buttons on the bottom right. Maybe he's using OpenInkpot?

[Ea]

Originally Posted by xerxe

Yes, he told me that he had updated the firmware. I don't know to which version, but he also said it enabled changing pages by use of left/right buttons on the bottom right. Maybe he's using OpenInkpot?

Sounds like he used the PRSCustomizer - like I did. It's a mystery

[xerxe]

Wow! Pixelar answered!
They said it's OK, I can order(they'll add Romania to the list)! That's a surprise!

So now it's between
Hanlin V3 for 223 euro
Sony PRS 505 for 226 euro

Close one, I think I'll need to sleep on it, but not before exhausting all the web reviews I can find.

[Ea]

That's great! Pixelar gave me good service when I had a small issue with the courier service (they didn't leave a contact slip), and were very quick to deal with it.

You'd better sleep on it If you're fine with converting, I think both will suit you. As far as I understand, a firmware update for the 505 that 'fixes' the epub issues can be expected from Sony. Go with the one you like best.

[xerxe]

Didn't post in a while...

I decided on buying the Sony. I bought it from eBay, but I managed to find a seller in Europe. This means no VAT and no customs.

I had a little trouble with paying on PayPal. If anyone is curious, here are both the problem and the solution.

Now I can go to sleep (it's 4:30AM here). Now I can sleep.
All I have to do is wait. Waiting is something I can do.

Thanks everyone for your help and advice. You'll be hearing more from me, as soon as I get my reader, as I'm sure there'll be plenty to ask. I just hope that someday I can contribute to this community.

[dreams]

CONGRATULATIONS, xerxe!

Remember to fully charge it when it arrives. (just a little more waiting)