Small ebook reader

[UKR]

Hi guys, I've been lurking around here for a few years, waiting for an ebook reader that interests me to come along... None has, as yet.

Is anyone else in the same boat as me? I currently read ebooks using my symbian phone (Samsung i8910HD) and love the fact that it's a pocket size reader that I have with me at all times... Many a time have I been waiting for my ladyfriend outside the ladies changing rooms and reading to pass the time... The problem with this is that it means the battery life of my phone is then next to nothing as I'm using it to read for 2-5 hours a day!

Can anyone recommend a smaller ebook reader that is similar in size to a phone, perhaps a 3, or 4 inch screen at most? I have searched the forum and the internet and don't seem to be able to come up with anything, other than the ridiculous fold out one touted a long while ago for insane prices! If I can get a 5"-6" ebook reader for ~£100, I'd need this to be in a similar price range...

Your help would be much appreciated!

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by UKR

Hi guys, I've been lurking around here for a few years, waiting for an ebook reader that interests me to come along... None has, as yet.

Is anyone else in the same boat as me? I currently read ebooks using my symbian phone (Samsung i8910HD) and love the fact that it's a pocket size reader that I have with me at all times... Many a time have I been waiting for my ladyfriend outside the ladies changing rooms and reading to pass the time... The problem with this is that it means the battery life of my phone is then next to nothing as I'm using it to read for 2-5 hours a day!

Can anyone recommend a smaller ebook reader that is similar in size to a phone, perhaps a 3, or 4 inch screen at most? I have searched the forum and the internet and don't seem to be able to come up with anything, other than the ridiculous fold out one touted a long while ago for insane prices! If I can get a 5"-6" ebook reader for ~£100, I'd need this to be in a similar price range...

Your help would be much appreciated!

Try to find a five inch Sony Reader PRS-300. It may be going cheap enough for you as it'ls no longer a current model.

[UKR]

Thanks Jon, however I've just looked it up and the things huge too Definitely smaller than most, but still nowhere near small enough... My phone is 5" across the diagonal, the Sony PRS-300 is over 7" across the diagonal, quite a difference... Anyone know of anything closer to phone sized?

[mbovenka]

Originally Posted by UKR

Thanks Jon, however I've just looked it up and the things huge too Definitely smaller than most, but still nowhere near small enough... My phone is 5" across the diagonal, the Sony PRS-300 is over 7" across the diagonal, quite a difference... Anyone know of anything closer to phone sized?

Difficult. The 5" readers all are about the same size. Looking at the Wiki, the Simplicit.E.reader looks a bit more compact than the rest, and that's about as small as you're going to get in 5". I'm not aware of dedicated readers with a smaller screen.

[DTM]

Originally Posted by UKR

Can anyone recommend a smaller ebook reader that is similar in size to a phone, perhaps a 3, or 4 inch screen at most?

Not a dedicated device, but you should take a look at the iPod Touch, which has a 3-1/2 inch screen.

[UKR]

The ipod touch may be the way forward... As much as I don't want an apple product

My phone goes into the shop for a week to 10 days for repairs tomorrow... I'm petrified of going on a weeks holiday with no ebooks, so I may have to go that route for expediency

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by UKR

Can anyone recommend a smaller ebook reader that is similar in size to a phone, perhaps a 3, or 4 inch screen at most? I have searched the forum and the internet and don't seem to be able to come up with anything, other than the ridiculous fold out one touted a long while ago for insane prices! If I can get a 5"-6" ebook reader for ~£100, I'd need this to be in a similar price range...

Your help would be much appreciated!

I don't know of any eInk screens smaller than 5", so that leaves LCD to get the 3-4" you're looking for; which means an iPod touch, and that's not in your price range.

[mgmueller]

Originally Posted by UKR

The ipod touch may be the way forward... As much as I don't want an apple product

My phone goes into the shop for a week to 10 days for repairs tomorrow... I'm petrified of going on a weeks holiday with no ebooks, so I may have to go that route for expediency

Maybe "back to the roots" might solve your problems.
The former Pocket PCs/Palm Pilots/.... still are good enough (in my opinion) and you can find extremely low prices for those in eBay. They are slightly bigger than todays mobile phones, but way smaller than any 5" ePaper reader.

[Elfwreck]

I switched to an e-ink reader from a Sony Clié because I got tired of the battery dying mid-book. I think battery life is going to be a concern with any small-screen device; they're all expecting you to want color and other options.

I've considered getting an iPod Touch, which apparently can have longer battery life than the older PDAs, but after a couple of years with my PRS-505, I don't think it'd be long enough. A 5" reader like the Sony 300 or Bebook mini or Jetbook/Jetbook Lite might work for you; it might feel weird & big when you first have it, but I got used to the 6" screen (which still seems too big sometimes; I want an Astak Pocket Pro next); a 5" screen might not feel as big after you get used to it.

Otherwise, check eBay and other used-electronics places for secondhand PDAs, which would work fine, but have the battery life problems. None of them were built for 3-6 hours/day of constant activity.

[Terisa de morgan]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

I've considered getting an iPod Touch, which apparently can have longer battery life than the older PDAs, but after a couple of years with my PRS-505, I don't think it'd be long enough.

I have used for reading an iPhone and a Palm E2. Palm has a longer battery life, and it has worked for reading more than two hours in a day. Palm TX, with a bigger screen, would be a good option.

[DTM]

My previous device was a Palm TX, and it was excellent for reading. Turn off the radios and set it to about half-brightness (you don't want it super-bright for reading anyway), and the battery will last for hours and hours.

[dordale]

The new Sony 350s are quite a bit smaller than the older Sony 300s. I'm pretty sure it's the e-ink device with the smallest form factor there is. That said, it probably still doesn't meet your requirements as it has a 5" screen and of course the size of the reader is a little bigger than that. Might be worth taking a look at though. It really is a great little reader!

dordale

[Terisa de morgan]

Originally Posted by dordale

The new Sony 350s are quite a bit smaller than the older Sony 300s. I'm pretty sure it's the e-ink device with the smallest form factor there is.

I have to see it near to the Opus. 300 was quite bigger than it.

[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by dordale

The new Sony 350s are quite a bit smaller than the older Sony 300s.

Sony 350: 5.71" x 4.11"
Sony 300: 6.2" x 4.2"
Astak PocketPro: 6" x 4.1"
Netronix Pocketbook: 5.5" x 4.6"
Cybook Opus: 5.9" x 4.3"

I wish the pictures didn't keep trying to show them isolated, or sized up to match the 6" readers. Would like to see them next to something that gives a sense of scale. (I suppose they don't want to do that if they're showing them with some of the awful formatting Sony uses for its ebooks; the 5" screen with their 12-point, line-between-paragraphs public domain books would look cramped. Or they show them with an epub from Fictionwise so it looks like they hold a huge page full of words.)

And looking up the numbers reminded me how much I want a smaller reader. And since Astak's dragging their feet on making them available, I'm going to actually look the other options.

[Pegster]

Some posted a kindle type website that had a size comparison of ereaders... wish I could remember which thread it was