Sony Reader questions answered by Sony Reader Team - Page 7

Churchcat · 12-19-2006, 06:09 PM

I made the mistake of buying a Sony Reader in Borderes while over in the US on holiday.
I could put up with the PC only - I could even manage the only one PC at a time stricture but no credit cards outside the USA? What's all that about? And Sony's customer services are a laughing stock. No wonder Macs and iPods have wiped the floor with them. Next time I return to the US the Reader is going back to Borders. Shame because the hardware is great - the marketing is useless and the customer support is terrible. I suppse we'll have to wait until Mac comes up with something that wipes the floor with it.

Churchcat · 12-19-2006, 06:10 PM

I made the mistake of buying a Sony Reader in Borders while over in the US on holiday.
I could put up with the PC only - I could even manage the only one PC at a time stricture but no credit cards outside the USA? What's all that about? And Sony's customer services are a laughing stock. No wonder Macs and iPods have wiped the floor with them. Next time I return to the US the Reader is going back to Borders.
I only have one book on it now 1984 - 349 dollars for a badly scanned classic?
Shame because the hardware is great - the marketing is useless and the customer support is terrible. I suppse we'll have to wait until Mac comes up with something that wipes the floor with it.

igorsk · 12-19-2006, 06:19 PM

At least make use of the $50 credit before returning (no credit card needed). Also, some people here can buy gift codes for you if you need to buy more. And you can read non-DRMed books in TXT and RTF (e.g. from Baen).

HarryT · 12-20-2006, 06:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Churchcat

I could put up with the PC only - I could even manage the only one PC at a time stricture

There is no such stricture. Simply log on your multiple machine with the same Connect account.

Quote:

but no credit cards outside the USA? What's all that about?

Almost certainly legal issues with book distribution rights. CDs generally have a single world-wide publisher. Books aren't like that - distribution rights are country specific and, for example, many books have different publishers in the US and UK. I'm sure that Sony will roll out the Connect Store internationally over time, just like Apple did the iTunes store which, I'm sure you recall, was also initially US-only.

Quote:

And Sony's customer services are a laughing stock.

I must respectfully disagree. I am now on my 3rd Sony laptop computer. The reason I keep buying them is precisely because their customer support are so excellent. I'm sorry to hear that you've had a poor experience, but I certainly don't believe it's generic.

Quote:

I only have one book on it now 1984 - 349 dollars for a badly scanned classic?

That's your choice. There are 10s of thousands of books available in the public domain. Go, for example, to http://www.manybooks.net and you can download some 15,000 books in Sony Reader format.

vitualis · 12-20-2006, 06:16 AM

In addition, I have an Australia credit card, but I did not have any particular difficulty creating an account and purchasing books through Connect. Given that the "address" is entirely redundant with electronic distribution, I just created a dummy address.

The $US 50 offer was great as I got to purchase books that I would otherwise not have done so as well as experimenting with the Sony "bookstore".

There is still a lot of improvement that Sony can make to the store and I hope that they become more flexible with their model. In particular I hope that in addition to a "bookstore" they consider setting up a subscription model where you can "borrow" books like a library.

Regards,
Michael Tam

unkilbeeg · 12-25-2006, 03:13 AM

Considering that the possibility that I will ever have a computer capable of installing Sony's Connect software is roughly equal to the chance that Sony will drop the hardware price to $1.50 per unit, is there a way for me to give away the $50 "free" ebook credit?

I hate to encourage them in their belief that DRMed books are a viable market, but I'd also hate to see them get off scott-free on an obligation. That's probably what's going to happen, but...

HarryT · 12-25-2006, 03:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by unkilbeeg

is there a way for me to give away the $50 "free" ebook credit?

I don't believe so, in that no matter what machine you download it on, it'll only be readable on your Reader. The credit is "associated" with a Reader, rather than with a PC.

NatCh · 12-25-2006, 10:00 AM

Only if you could find someone else with a Reader, and register your unit to their account. They'd get the credit and keep it even after you de-registered it. I'd recommend that you do de-register it, just to keep your options open.

unkilbeeg · 12-25-2006, 07:47 PM

Several people have seen mine and are interested in one of their own, but none that expect to act before the deadline.

So it looks like Sony gets to keep its $50 "bonus."

scotty1024 · 12-27-2006, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

I must respectfully disagree. I am now on my 3rd Sony laptop computer. The reason I keep buying them is precisely because their customer support are so excellent. I'm sorry to hear that you've had a poor experience, but I certainly don't believe it's generic.

I don't know if it has changed much in the last month or so but my wife and I found Sony support for the Reader to absolutely be a laughing stock!

The online phonebot didn't know what a Sony Reader or a PRS-500U or PRS-500 were. Once you got a human, they didn't know what it was either! We found ourselves being run in a ring around 3 different departments.

We eventually wound up returning our defective Reader for credit because it was impossible for us to get Sony to replace it.

Fortunately for Sony I was able to go to Border's... I've purchased 4 units from Border's and with all the deals they have going on I'm glad I went to them for the $$$ savings as well as the superior customer service.

Quite frankly I don't think I'll ever risk buying from the Sony Online Store ever again.

RWood · 12-27-2006, 10:52 PM

I have had good success with Sony support. Not sure what number you were calling but the number they provided was 1-866-919-SONY (7669) and pick 2 from the first menu. They said to call from 9AM to 8PM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, and from 10AM to 3PM Eastern Time Saturday and Sunday. Hope this helps.

nerys · 12-28-2006, 02:25 AM

for a good deal borders is nice! I had a $20 off anything over $100 plus my 10% shopping day and I still had like $8 in credit left (you earn credit as you buy stuff) so I got a little over $60 off the price of my reader! 10% IS 35$ !! and the $20 coupon specified it was combinable with shopping day and earned credit !! nice ! so I grabbed the Green cover (stiffer nicer and more colorful than the boring black it comes with. (really wish they had orange :-)

I think the personal shopping day is only good till dec30 though so get out there! (I am not sure how you get it IE sign up for the borders card and Ask about it. Not sure if all members get them at the appropriate times or if you "earn" them. thats $35 off! like getting a cover for free! (and its off your ENTIRE purchase so buy some bargain bin books while your shopping :-) hehe

Chris Taylor
http://www.nerys.com/

impything · 03-21-2007, 01:36 AM

Hi Alexander...

I'm in Thailand and was wondering what the best way is to get a Sony reader here? Sony doesn't seem to sell them here...

thanks
love
I

HarryT · 03-21-2007, 04:33 AM

The Reader is currently only sold in the USA. One way is to buy one from eBay - that's the way that I got mine.

Dave Berk · 03-21-2007, 04:47 AM

Or read this thread: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9393

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12-25-2006, 03:13 AM	#96
unkilbeeg Enthusiast Posts: 49 Karma: 80904 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Bakersfield, CA Device: Sony PRS-500/Astak EZReader 5"/PocketBook 360/Kindle	Considering that the possibility that I will ever have a computer capable of installing Sony's Connect software is roughly equal to the chance that Sony will drop the hardware price to $1.50 per unit, is there a way for me to give away the $50 "free" ebook credit? I hate to encourage them in their belief that DRMed books are a viable market, but I'd also hate to see them get off scott-free on an obligation. That's probably what's going to happen, but... Last edited by unkilbeeg; 12-25-2006 at 03:14 AM. Reason: spelling

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12-19-2006, 06:09 PM	#91
Churchcat Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Yorkshire UK Device: SONY Reader	I made the mistake of buying a Sony Reader in Borderes while over in the US on holiday. I could put up with the PC only - I could even manage the only one PC at a time stricture but no credit cards outside the USA? What's all that about? And Sony's customer services are a laughing stock. No wonder Macs and iPods have wiped the floor with them. Next time I return to the US the Reader is going back to Borders. Shame because the hardware is great - the marketing is useless and the customer support is terrible. I suppse we'll have to wait until Mac comes up with something that wipes the floor with it.

12-19-2006, 06:10 PM	#92
Churchcat Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Yorkshire UK Device: SONY Reader	I made the mistake of buying a Sony Reader in Borders while over in the US on holiday. I could put up with the PC only - I could even manage the only one PC at a time stricture but no credit cards outside the USA? What's all that about? And Sony's customer services are a laughing stock. No wonder Macs and iPods have wiped the floor with them. Next time I return to the US the Reader is going back to Borders. I only have one book on it now 1984 - 349 dollars for a badly scanned classic? Shame because the hardware is great - the marketing is useless and the customer support is terrible. I suppse we'll have to wait until Mac comes up with something that wipes the floor with it.

12-19-2006, 06:19 PM	#93
igorsk Wizard Posts: 3,442 Karma: 300001 Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Belgium Device: PRS-500/505/700, Kindle, Cybook Gen3, Words Gear	At least make use of the $50 credit before returning (no credit card needed). Also, some people here can buy gift codes for you if you need to buy more. And you can read non-DRMed books in TXT and RTF (e.g. from Baen).

12-20-2006, 06:16 AM	#95
vitualis Member Posts: 16 Karma: 42 Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Sydney, Australia Device: ETEN M600, HP rx3715, Sony Reader	In addition, I have an Australia credit card, but I did not have any particular difficulty creating an account and purchasing books through Connect. Given that the "address" is entirely redundant with electronic distribution, I just created a dummy address. The $US 50 offer was great as I got to purchase books that I would otherwise not have done so as well as experimenting with the Sony "bookstore". There is still a lot of improvement that Sony can make to the store and I hope that they become more flexible with their model. In particular I hope that in addition to a "bookstore" they consider setting up a subscription model where you can "borrow" books like a library. Regards, Michael Tam

12-25-2006, 10:00 AM	#98
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	Only if you could find someone else with a Reader, and register your unit to their account. They'd get the credit and keep it even after you de-registered it. I'd recommend that you do de-register it, just to keep your options open.

12-25-2006, 07:47 PM	#99
unkilbeeg Enthusiast Posts: 49 Karma: 80904 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Bakersfield, CA Device: Sony PRS-500/Astak EZReader 5"/PocketBook 360/Kindle	Several people have seen mine and are interested in one of their own, but none that expect to act before the deadline. So it looks like Sony gets to keep its $50 "bonus."

12-27-2006, 10:52 PM	#101
RWood Technogeezer Posts: 7,233 Karma: 1601464 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: Sony PRS-500	I have had good success with Sony support. Not sure what number you were calling but the number they provided was 1-866-919-SONY (7669) and pick 2 from the first menu. They said to call from 9AM to 8PM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, and from 10AM to 3PM Eastern Time Saturday and Sunday. Hope this helps.

12-28-2006, 02:25 AM	#102
nerys Addict Posts: 243 Karma: 48 Join Date: Dec 2006 Device: PRS 500 - REB 1200	for a good deal borders is nice! I had a $20 off anything over $100 plus my 10% shopping day and I still had like $8 in credit left (you earn credit as you buy stuff) so I got a little over $60 off the price of my reader! 10% IS 35$ !! and the $20 coupon specified it was combinable with shopping day and earned credit !! nice ! so I grabbed the Green cover (stiffer nicer and more colorful than the boring black it comes with. (really wish they had orange :-) I think the personal shopping day is only good till dec30 though so get out there! (I am not sure how you get it IE sign up for the borders card and Ask about it. Not sure if all members get them at the appropriate times or if you "earn" them. thats $35 off! like getting a cover for free! (and its off your ENTIRE purchase so buy some bargain bin books while your shopping :-) hehe Chris Taylor http://www.nerys.com/

03-21-2007, 01:36 AM	#103
impything Junior Member Posts: 2 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2007 Device: sony prs	Hi Alexander... I'm in Thailand and was wondering what the best way is to get a Sony reader here? Sony doesn't seem to sell them here... thanks love I

03-21-2007, 04:33 AM	#104
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	The Reader is currently only sold in the USA. One way is to buy one from eBay - that's the way that I got mine.

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03-21-2007, 04:47 AM	#105
Dave Berk Fanatic Posts: 574 Karma: 138556 Join Date: May 2006 Device: PRS505	Or read this thread: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9393