$50 sony reader or $139 nokia 770, or...?

contemplate7 · 07-31-2007, 10:49 PM

Hello everyone,

I am looking to buy my first ebook reader and need your advice please.

Is there any better deal than the $50 sony you get when you sign up for the sony card? Any issues or drawbacks with the transaction or the reader device?

I'm also very interested in the Nokia 770 since it is only $139 and several people have said how good it it as a reader.

I do like the idea of being able to surf the web and get email, so the 770 apeals to me in that way.

Are there any other reader deals, in the same price range, out there that will beat these two?

I hate to pass up the sony, since $50 seems like a real bargin.

Thanks, Jim

JSWolf · 07-31-2007, 11:25 PM

The Sony at $60 (roughly) with the credit card off is a real steal. It's a better reader then the Nokia with it's SMALLER screen. The problem is with these do it all phones is the battery life. You need it to make a phone call and boom, dead battery cause you used it for other stuff. The Sony Reader has one heck of a good battery life. To be honest, other then the occasional plugging it into my computer's USB port for using with Connect, I have not given it a full charge in a few weeks. I can't say that about my cell phone even though it has a good battery life (for a cell phone that is).

simond · 08-01-2007, 05:02 AM

Just a note, the Nokia 770 isn't a phone, just an internet tablet (I should be getting mine through the post today, although not for ebook reading, I prefer my Reader for that!)

joblack · 08-01-2007, 08:49 AM

The display of the sony is a lot of better =).

Liviu_5 · 08-01-2007, 09:22 AM

If you can afford it, buy both; at those prices they are a steal. I own a Nokia bought at full price 18 months ago and it was the best device I've ever bought.
I bought 2 more as gifts for relatives and they also like it a lot.

With the Sony at 60$ with the cc, I bought it immediately since at that price you cannot pass it.

For me Nokia is still the main reader for many reasons; the basic one is that I love reading on it, it's a different experience than paper since I use yellow-orange fonts on black background, but nicer for me.

contemplate7 · 08-01-2007, 07:21 PM

I just signed up for the sony card, will order reader at first opportunity.

I might order the nokia 770 too, but have read of problems with the unit such as the WSOD failure, etc. If I order it, perhaps I should also get an extended warranty of some kind.

Thanks, Jim

Zach · 08-01-2007, 08:26 PM

I had been lurking around, waiting for a good deal. When I saw the Reader at $50 I jumped on it. But then I started reading a bit more in the forum. My Reader is ordered. I doubt I will keep it. My plan right now is to sell it and then immediately buy a Nokia 770. I have no doubt that the Reader is better for reading books. That's fine. Many feel that the N770 is perfectly adequate despite not having the E-Ink display. Here's the factors that won me over. I'm a casual reader but I still like to take notes. With the N770 you can scribble something with the stylus and save it as .png file. A major factor for me is getting access to .pdf files. The N770 has a pdf reader so you won't have to convert and that reader might allow you to make notation in the text. I don't know for sure if the pdf reader will allow you to make searches but I believe that it does. The email feature is of little interest to me but it is nice. More important is that the N770 runs on Linux and is very hackable. Quite a bit of work has been done on ways to enhance it's capabilities: swap on RAM from a memory card to increase the device memory, the ability to use phones with data plans as modems, access to external memory devices through USB, and most impressively, it can be used with a cheap GPS unit to provide driving directions. Reportedly the N770 running the open source program will be just as effective in giving directions as the units costing a few hundred dollars.

Take a look here, to see what they can do.

contemplate7 · 08-01-2007, 10:25 PM

Thanks Zach and everyone that's recommended the 770. I'm pretty sure I will get one, it's just a matter of when and from where. I've read several negative posts about buy.com's handling of the 770 deal, wsod, etc. so I'm a little leery of them. I'm considering tigerdirect or amazon instead. I might get a 1 or 2 year warranty with it, if advantageous and inexpensive. The 770 is on sale at many sites for under $150, so I'm going to wait a week or so and consider it again.

Thanks, Jim

wallcraft · 08-02-2007, 08:52 PM

If an extended warranty is very inexpensive it might be worth while, but most electronics breaks immediately or not at all and the Nokia 770 is very solidly made.

I love my 770 for e-book reading, but FBReader is for DRM-free e-books only. There is always the LIT plus ConvertLIT approach, of course, and this is anyway the best way to be sure your DRM infested purchases will work on the next e-book device to come along.

JSWolf · 08-03-2007, 02:34 AM

Sony Reader or some cell phone? Go for the Sony.

Dylrob · 08-03-2007, 03:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Sony Reader or some cell phone? Go for the Sony.

As a poster above pointed out, the Nokia 770 isn't a cellphone.

Liviu_5 · 08-03-2007, 06:38 PM

Actually the more I use the 770 the more I am impressed to its capabilities outside of book reading. It picks up any free wi fi available on the go and it's quite fast browsing. Also there are many applications you can install from Maemo, all wireless if you have a wi fi router at home, no need to use the USB. When I buy a drm free book from Baen or Fictionwise say, I download the prc zipped or not directly on 770, in the appropriate folder on the memory card. And you can do this with Gutenberg and so on.

On the other hand since I got the Sony with the cc offer, I am getting more and more impressed with it too; converted 60 or so books to lrf in addition to 2 I got using part of the credit, since I found it the best format (used lit2lrf from libprs500 for Baen/Fictionwise and anything I have in lit format among others, and the makelrf from txt files for the rest since it's fast and has very nice output) Also the other nice thing is that all 60 novels in lrf format took about 40 MB so I can put 50 MB more of books if I want.
I intend to get a 2GB card to put scientific books on it (the best output I found is to use pdfread to convert from djvu/pdf to lrf and then use the half page feature, though for some djvu's I've tried, jap works nicely too)

So again, get both too if you can afford it.

JSWolf · 08-11-2007, 02:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Liviu_5

So again, get both too if you can afford it.

I like that idea best.

07-31-2007, 10:49 PM	#1
contemplate7 Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2007 Device: none yet	$50 sony reader or $139 nokia 770, or...? Hello everyone, I am looking to buy my first ebook reader and need your advice please. Is there any better deal than the $50 sony you get when you sign up for the sony card? Any issues or drawbacks with the transaction or the reader device? I'm also very interested in the Nokia 770 since it is only $139 and several people have said how good it it as a reader. I do like the idea of being able to surf the web and get email, so the 770 apeals to me in that way. Are there any other reader deals, in the same price range, out there that will beat these two? I hate to pass up the sony, since $50 seems like a real bargin. Thanks, Jim

08-01-2007, 07:21 PM	#6
contemplate7 Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2007 Device: none yet	Thanks everyone I just signed up for the sony card, will order reader at first opportunity. I might order the nokia 770 too, but have read of problems with the unit such as the WSOD failure, etc. If I order it, perhaps I should also get an extended warranty of some kind. Thanks, Jim

08-01-2007, 10:25 PM	#8
contemplate7 Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2007 Device: none yet	770 Thanks Zach and everyone that's recommended the 770. I'm pretty sure I will get one, it's just a matter of when and from where. I've read several negative posts about buy.com's handling of the 770 deal, wsod, etc. so I'm a little leery of them. I'm considering tigerdirect or amazon instead. I might get a 1 or 2 year warranty with it, if advantageous and inexpensive. The 770 is on sale at many sites for under $150, so I'm going to wait a week or so and consider it again. Thanks, Jim

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07-31-2007, 11:25 PM	#2
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,887 Karma: 128597114 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	The Sony at $60 (roughly) with the credit card off is a real steal. It's a better reader then the Nokia with it's SMALLER screen. The problem is with these do it all phones is the battery life. You need it to make a phone call and boom, dead battery cause you used it for other stuff. The Sony Reader has one heck of a good battery life. To be honest, other then the occasional plugging it into my computer's USB port for using with Connect, I have not given it a full charge in a few weeks. I can't say that about my cell phone even though it has a good battery life (for a cell phone that is).

08-01-2007, 05:02 AM	#3
simond Fanatic Posts: 532 Karma: 1062755 Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: London, UK Device: Kobo Aura One, iPad, iPhone	Just a note, the Nokia 770 isn't a phone, just an internet tablet (I should be getting mine through the post today, although not for ebook reading, I prefer my Reader for that!)

08-01-2007, 08:49 AM	#4
joblack Wizard Posts: 1,745 Karma: 4382514 Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Somewhere on earth Device: Onyx Boox Tab X	The display of the sony is a lot of better =).

08-01-2007, 09:22 AM	#5
Liviu_5 Books and more books Posts: 917 Karma: 69499 Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: White Plains, NY, USA Device: Nook Color, Itouch, Nokia770, Sony 650, Sony 700(dead), Ebk(given)	If you can afford it, buy both; at those prices they are a steal. I own a Nokia bought at full price 18 months ago and it was the best device I've ever bought. I bought 2 more as gifts for relatives and they also like it a lot. With the Sony at 60$ with the cc, I bought it immediately since at that price you cannot pass it. For me Nokia is still the main reader for many reasons; the basic one is that I love reading on it, it's a different experience than paper since I use yellow-orange fonts on black background, but nicer for me.

08-01-2007, 08:26 PM	#7
Zach Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 51 Join Date: Jul 2007 Device: Sony	I had been lurking around, waiting for a good deal. When I saw the Reader at $50 I jumped on it. But then I started reading a bit more in the forum. My Reader is ordered. I doubt I will keep it. My plan right now is to sell it and then immediately buy a Nokia 770. I have no doubt that the Reader is better for reading books. That's fine. Many feel that the N770 is perfectly adequate despite not having the E-Ink display. Here's the factors that won me over. I'm a casual reader but I still like to take notes. With the N770 you can scribble something with the stylus and save it as .png file. A major factor for me is getting access to .pdf files. The N770 has a pdf reader so you won't have to convert and that reader might allow you to make notation in the text. I don't know for sure if the pdf reader will allow you to make searches but I believe that it does. The email feature is of little interest to me but it is nice. More important is that the N770 runs on Linux and is very hackable. Quite a bit of work has been done on ways to enhance it's capabilities: swap on RAM from a memory card to increase the device memory, the ability to use phones with data plans as modems, access to external memory devices through USB, and most impressively, it can be used with a cheap GPS unit to provide driving directions. Reportedly the N770 running the open source program will be just as effective in giving directions as the units costing a few hundred dollars. Take a look here, to see what they can do.

08-02-2007, 08:52 PM	#9
wallcraft reader Posts: 6,975 Karma: 5183568 Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Mississippi, USA Device: Kindle 3, Kobo Glo HD	If an extended warranty is very inexpensive it might be worth while, but most electronics breaks immediately or not at all and the Nokia 770 is very solidly made. I love my 770 for e-book reading, but FBReader is for DRM-free e-books only. There is always the LIT plus ConvertLIT approach, of course, and this is anyway the best way to be sure your DRM infested purchases will work on the next e-book device to come along.

08-03-2007, 02:34 AM	#10
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,887 Karma: 128597114 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Sony Reader or some cell phone? Go for the Sony.

08-03-2007, 06:38 PM	#12
Liviu_5 Books and more books Posts: 917 Karma: 69499 Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: White Plains, NY, USA Device: Nook Color, Itouch, Nokia770, Sony 650, Sony 700(dead), Ebk(given)	Actually the more I use the 770 the more I am impressed to its capabilities outside of book reading. It picks up any free wi fi available on the go and it's quite fast browsing. Also there are many applications you can install from Maemo, all wireless if you have a wi fi router at home, no need to use the USB. When I buy a drm free book from Baen or Fictionwise say, I download the prc zipped or not directly on 770, in the appropriate folder on the memory card. And you can do this with Gutenberg and so on. On the other hand since I got the Sony with the cc offer, I am getting more and more impressed with it too; converted 60 or so books to lrf in addition to 2 I got using part of the credit, since I found it the best format (used lit2lrf from libprs500 for Baen/Fictionwise and anything I have in lit format among others, and the makelrf from txt files for the rest since it's fast and has very nice output) Also the other nice thing is that all 60 novels in lrf format took about 40 MB so I can put 50 MB more of books if I want. I intend to get a 2GB card to put scientific books on it (the best output I found is to use pdfread to convert from djvu/pdf to lrf and then use the half page feature, though for some djvu's I've tried, jap works nicely too) So again, get both too if you can afford it.