Sony v Kindle

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Topaz is actually pretty good. It lets you have formatting as complex as PDF, but with the benefits of reflow.

There are some poor Topaz files out there, but well done ones can be exceptionally good.

Don't knock it!

Topaz looks like a copy of an eBook done on a mimeograph. No thanks.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Topaz looks like a copy of an eBook done on a mimeograph. No thanks.

Poorly done Topaz books CAN look like that, you're right. But well-done ones can look very good indeed. Topaz is an excellent choice of format for very complex layouts.

[OtterBooks]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

RE networking: Other than making sure it would work as advertised (shortly after purchase), I can't think of the last time I've used any of the networking features of my Kindle. I don't think side-loading (or not) has a damn thing to do with reading.

I love the Amazon book store, but I'm just not sure my next reader will be a Kindle. Mostly because of aesthetic reasons. I'm a K2 user--and I love it--but the K3 just feels cheaper and less solid to me; and I hate the skinny page-turn buttons and the d-pad. I just haven't found a comfortable way to hold a K3 yet. And BTW, there's a K3 in my household, so I've had ample time to warm up to it and haven't. So unless the next generation of Kindles actually _adds_ some real substance to its "style," count me out. But I certainly won't complain if my K2 lasts forever, either.

"Oh yeah, this thing has WiFi." *opens bookstore* "meh." *opens browser* "lol." *turns off wifi* was my eperience. I actually enjoy the process of sideloading, converting, making sure the format is right etc. I find it relaxing.

Have you tried reading the K3 in a good bookstyle cover? I mean, obviously you have; you aren't exactly new to this stuff. But just in case you haven't. The K3 would be too diminutive for me to read naked, or for that matter without a cover.

[JSWolf]

Most readers I have see or held are easier to hold when they have a good cover.

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Topaz is actually pretty good. It lets you have formatting as complex as PDF, but with the benefits of reflow.

There are some poor Topaz files out there, but well done ones can be exceptionally good.

Don't knock it!

Absolutely true. Topaz gets a raw deal because of the shoddy job currently done by many of the "slap-dash-let's-get-an-ebook-out-there" implementations, but when utilized properly, the results can be fantastic. I have a couple of Topaz ebooks that are just beautiful.

My only beef with the format is that it tends to be just as problematic as PDF (if not more so) when trying to convert to any other format.

[thebestjeter]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Topaz is actually pretty good. It lets you have formatting as complex as PDF, but with the benefits of reflow.

There are some poor Topaz files out there, but well done ones can be exceptionally good.

Don't knock it!

+1. I just downloaded a ebook from Kindle Store in .topaz y the formatting is amazing. Page turns fast and everything works like in a .mobi ebook, but it looks (probably) better.

[Harmon]

Originally Posted by HarryT

The superb Amazon bookstore is certainly the single biggest benefit of the Kindle. Although most of the books are available elsewhere, having a "one stop shop" for all one's books is a significant advantage.

That, plus the free wireless delivery. Being able to buy the book & have it show up immediately on your EBR, or to sample a book, then buy it right from the EBR, is enormously convenient. And when you combine that with the ability to use Instapaper and Readability to wirelessly transfer internet material to the Kindle, it is even better.

Whether the Kindle hardware or the Sony hardware is better is really just a matter of personal preference, and frankly, my own preference leans toward the Sonys. But the "ecology" of the Kindle is superior to that of the Sonys.

[becket]

The thing that makes me not want a Kindle is that you can lose the books, I can have Epub readers that can be registered to one account and share books across them. Once they are on my computer they can not be removed by the book store. I do remove the DRM partly because I have nearly lost books when I have got a new reader using mobi pocket. Also windows Vista won't recognize my Cybook. Removing DRM means I can read them in any format, and it takes second to put them on the SD card.
I don't need Amazon for books Waterstones and WHsmiths have a large collection and I can use Liverpool library, and the price of the books I read are not cheaper on Amazon.
Becky

[DiapDealer]

Once they are on my computer they can not be removed by the book store

Once my Kindle books are on my computer there's no way they can be removed by the book store, either.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by becket

The thing that makes me not want a Kindle is that you can lose the books, I can have Epub readers that can be registered to one account and share books across them. Once they are on my computer they can not be removed by the book store.

Exactly the same is true with the Kindle, so what's your point?

[carpetmojo]

[ I fully accept that this is childish, and in bad taste, but I'm afraid this just got me in that frame of mind, and I simply can't resist.... ]

[QUOTE=OtterBooks;......The K3 would be too diminutive for me to read naked, or for that matter without a cover.[/QUOTE]

Is the first part boasting, and is the second part prudishness ?

I know,I know, and I'm sorry, but I couldn't help meself................

[Crowl]

Originally Posted by cfrizz

I haven't had any problems with my Sony 600 Touch reader. it is solidly built, and the software does what I need it to do.

The problem with the 600 is unlike the 650 there is a screen quality cost for having the touchscreen, it being worse for actually reading was part of the reason I ended up buying a kindle rather than upgrading my 505.

[becket]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Exactly the same is true with the Kindle, so what's your point?

Does that mean they have fixed the problem that books an be taken off your Kindle if they decide not to stock the book any more ? or the fact that it seems books are rented not bought as some blogs have been saying?
Becky

[Crowl]

Originally Posted by Salgueiros

.... all this just to say that i am glad Sony designs and sells good products and does not focus obsessively in the lowest price attainable.

Your implication is that because the Kindle is cheaper it is inherently worse and that simply isn't the case in my experience.

Both the k3 and the latest generation sonys have equal quality screens and then the kindle has the benefit of more convenient purchasing and synching between versions which enable me to read more books whereas the touchscreen on the sony has zero impact on my reading experience.

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by becket

Does that mean they have fixed the problem that books an be taken off your Kindle if they decide not to stock the book any more ? or the fact that it seems books are rented not bought as some blogs have been saying?
Becky

I'm not familiar with that particular "stocking problem."

I'm aware of the singular "1984 fiasco" where they made the mistake of removing a book that they didn't have the rights to sell from Kindles. After which they apologized, issued credit to those affected, and promised not to handle it in that manner in the future, and have thus far lived up to that promise. Is that the problem you mean?

Plus, just like you said; "Once they are on my computer they can not be removed by the book store." Once I move a copy to my PC, there's no way for Amazon to remove it. If you want to keep it... back it up. Same as any other important files.