Sony Pocket PRS350 vs Kobo Wifi

menme · 03-16-2011, 12:39 AM

Hi, I had been lurking around and reading reviews here and there on the two. And Im still uncertain on which one I should get..and have the following questions which I would really appreciate if someone would help give some insight. Im planning to use this during commute to work and generally does quite a bit of reading in bed as well.

a) Is the slower speed in Kobo very distinctive compared to Sony? I admittedly have low patience and I get irritated when things do not load fast..

b) Are the touch screen on Sony responsive enough or does that lag?

c) For your own personal experiences, are the black flicker between page turns distracting?

Any additional insight will be very great.

doreenjoy · 03-16-2011, 02:25 AM

I've never had a Kobo, but I've played with friends'.

I don't find the 350 slow at all. I've had it since October 2010 and I've only noticed 2 slowdowns; I rebooted and it was fine.

Go with whichever reader makes you happy -- Kobo's cheaper but IMO the Sony's prettier and feels more sturdy.

lila55 · 03-16-2011, 04:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by menme

a) Is the slower speed in Kobo very distinctive compared to Sony? I admittedly have low patience and I get irritated when things do not load fast..

b) Are the touch screen on Sony responsive enough or does that lag?

c) For your own personal experiences, are the black flicker between page turns distracting?

a) Never used a Kobo, so I can't say anything here.
b) It does not lag at all, response is very immediate.
c) I don't find it distracting, I think I got used to it over the time. It seems to be even less noticeable when pages are changed with a finger swipe instead of the button.

menme · 03-17-2011, 02:59 AM

thanks both for your response

Im probably going to go ahead with the Sony for the faster response. Now off to ebays to find one since they dont sell it in my country.

Again, thanks!

corona · 03-18-2011, 01:54 AM

I tried my Kobo in the Sony store, against the PRS350. The Kobo wasn't any slower to load pages, and strangely the screens seemed pretty much exactly the same contrast (which is weird 'cause I thought the Sony had the improved display). The Sony of course seems more nicely made but they are probably the same inside, i.e. a circuit board with tactile switches on it. And it has more nifty features. The size difference was impressive, though. I definitely decided I did not want to dump my Kobo.

Noah98 · 03-19-2011, 07:27 AM

The Sony has better build quality and I think the display is better. The touchscreen on the Sony is amazing. The only advantages of the Kobo are screen size, wifi, and price. I do think the Sony is overpriced, but it is an overall better device.

glazwegian · 03-19-2011, 01:59 PM

I have seen, but never played with the Kobo. That being said, the build quality and touch screen on the Sony is excellent.

For me, the touch screen really shines when using the dictionary. Just double tap on a word and its definition pops up on screen. And, since I like to put my college "French" to use by reading the occasional French language eBook, I find the French to English translation dictionary invaluable. It makes reading in French(mine is rusty at best) almost seamless - much better than having to take the time to look up a word in a paper dictionary.

Btw, two English language dictionaries are included on the PRS350, one for "proper" British English and one for American English. In addition, several translation dictionaries are included. I don't have my PRS350 with me at the moment, but I believe there are 10 in all.

Good luck with whatever choice you make!

timothyh · 03-20-2011, 10:11 AM

I own a Sony 350, and love it. Touchscreen is excellent. It is my first e reader so maybe something better (?) Small and great to take anywhere. Can fit into a large shirt pocket. Only drawback is the lack of wifi and loading books directly from web. Not a problem for me--I load from a windows 7 computer using Sony software or Calibre. I much prefer Calibre to Sony software. I think that $179 is a bit expensive--like most Sony stuff. I purchased it during a sale for $129 from Best Buy. Same price was on the Sony site. I consider the build quality excellent--compared to several competitors. No experience with Kobo.
T. Henderson

Farhad · 03-20-2011, 03:08 PM

Never had a Kobo, but I have seen them in stores. They don't look slow to me at all. As for the idea of a touchscreen on an ebook reader, I am not at all sure that it is a good one.
Have you considered the PocketBook 360? It's supposed to be the fastest ebook reader out there, and I am very happy with the quality of its built and the display (non touchscreen) is excellent. Check it out.

starrlamia · 03-20-2011, 06:30 PM

Ive heard good things about Kobo from those who have them, they are pretty basic. When Ive played with them they felt cheap and not quite what I wanted. That being said the 5" screen is to small for my taste. I love my Sony 650 though <3

Charbucks · 03-21-2011, 01:00 PM

Oddly enough, these are the only two devices I've really had experience with. I had a PRS-350 for a couple of weeks, then returned it and got a Kobo. I detailed my reasoning in this thread.

In summary, I like the Kobo more as a reading device. As an electronic device, the Sony is heftier and feels more solidly built, but the Kobo feels nicer to read with, particularly while lying in bed (which makes up the majority of my reading time). One thing that I love about it (even better than paper books) is how the big bezel at the bottom can be buried in a pile of blankets without obscuring the text.

I've found the screen on the Kobo to be better. Perhaps the Sony has better contrast objectively, but the Kobo seems to have a paler background that is easier to read in my view.

I thought I'd like the dictionary on the Sony, but it turned out that most of the words I wanted to look up weren't in there and I had to use an external dictionary anyways. YMMV...

menme · 03-25-2011, 01:54 AM

Thank you all for the informative feedback.

Farhad, no, i didnt have much exposure to the Pocketbook 360. Given that they do not sell most brands of ereader here (e-books is not as popular as physical book in this part of Asia plus the geographic restriction on the ebooks are a hassle to deal with), most of my research is from the Internet and reading up on forum observations. Im taking a look at it now as I type too. thanks for the heads up on that.

Charbucks, yeah, that was one factor that i was considering before purchasing :when will i be using this most. I need to commute almost 2 hours daily and I tend to do most reading on the train so figured something lightweight and compact would be better. The Kobo I was initially gearing towards was the big bezel that you were mentioning earlier as well as for the wifi which is a nice convenience to have.

Again, many thanks to all! Im waiting for my Sony to arrive in the mail. Have high hopes for it

ShooterMcGee · 03-25-2011, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by menme

b) Are the touch screen on Sony responsive enough or does that lag?

c) For your own personal experiences, are the black flicker between page turns distracting?

I've only had my 350 a few weeks, but I <3 <3 <3 it!

I find the touch screen fairly responsive...but I have found myself using the button more to turn the pages as of late. Guess it's just more comfortable the way I hold the unit when I'm reading.

I don't find the black flicker distracting at all. I didn't really notice it until I read your post.

I haven't used any other ereaders (other than my Android phone briefly, but it was too small for my taste), so my experience is limited...and therefore biased. I give the 350

bcgirl · 03-26-2011, 11:50 AM

Looked at both too but I don't like the(cheaper) plastic look of the Kobo. By the way, everytime I tried it seems that the text kind of disappears. Anyhow, the Sony PRS 350 feels good, looks way better, more quality for the money and am getting one next week!!

03-16-2011, 12:39 AM	#1
menme Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 5004 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: none	Sony Pocket PRS350 vs Kobo Wifi Hi, I had been lurking around and reading reviews here and there on the two. And Im still uncertain on which one I should get..and have the following questions which I would really appreciate if someone would help give some insight. Im planning to use this during commute to work and generally does quite a bit of reading in bed as well. a) Is the slower speed in Kobo very distinctive compared to Sony? I admittedly have low patience and I get irritated when things do not load fast.. b) Are the touch screen on Sony responsive enough or does that lag? c) For your own personal experiences, are the black flicker between page turns distracting? Any additional insight will be very great.

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03-16-2011, 02:25 AM	#2
doreenjoy 01000100 01001010 Posts: 1,889 Karma: 2400000 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Polyamorous	I've never had a Kobo, but I've played with friends'. I don't find the 350 slow at all. I've had it since October 2010 and I've only noticed 2 slowdowns; I rebooted and it was fine. Go with whichever reader makes you happy -- Kobo's cheaper but IMO the Sony's prettier and feels more sturdy.

03-17-2011, 02:59 AM	#4
menme Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 5004 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: none	thanks both for your response Im probably going to go ahead with the Sony for the faster response. Now off to ebays to find one since they dont sell it in my country. Again, thanks!

03-18-2011, 01:54 AM	#5
corona Addict Posts: 324 Karma: 25168 Join Date: May 2010 Device: kobo	I tried my Kobo in the Sony store, against the PRS350. The Kobo wasn't any slower to load pages, and strangely the screens seemed pretty much exactly the same contrast (which is weird 'cause I thought the Sony had the improved display). The Sony of course seems more nicely made but they are probably the same inside, i.e. a circuit board with tactile switches on it. And it has more nifty features. The size difference was impressive, though. I definitely decided I did not want to dump my Kobo.

03-19-2011, 07:27 AM	#6
Noah98 Eccentric Posts: 510 Karma: 342150 Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Florida Device: The nook, ipad 3, Kindle Fire HD (8.9), Kindle Paperwhite	The Sony has better build quality and I think the display is better. The touchscreen on the Sony is amazing. The only advantages of the Kobo are screen size, wifi, and price. I do think the Sony is overpriced, but it is an overall better device.

03-19-2011, 01:59 PM	#7
glazwegian Member Posts: 15 Karma: 52 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: Nook Color, Sony PRS-350(silver)	I have seen, but never played with the Kobo. That being said, the build quality and touch screen on the Sony is excellent. For me, the touch screen really shines when using the dictionary. Just double tap on a word and its definition pops up on screen. And, since I like to put my college "French" to use by reading the occasional French language eBook, I find the French to English translation dictionary invaluable. It makes reading in French(mine is rusty at best) almost seamless - much better than having to take the time to look up a word in a paper dictionary. Btw, two English language dictionaries are included on the PRS350, one for "proper" British English and one for American English. In addition, several translation dictionaries are included. I don't have my PRS350 with me at the moment, but I believe there are 10 in all. Good luck with whatever choice you make!

03-20-2011, 10:11 AM	#8
timothyh Member Posts: 21 Karma: 60 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: South Carolina Device: nook color, nook touch, sony 350	I own a Sony 350, and love it. Touchscreen is excellent. It is my first e reader so maybe something better (?) Small and great to take anywhere. Can fit into a large shirt pocket. Only drawback is the lack of wifi and loading books directly from web. Not a problem for me--I load from a windows 7 computer using Sony software or Calibre. I much prefer Calibre to Sony software. I think that $179 is a bit expensive--like most Sony stuff. I purchased it during a sale for $129 from Best Buy. Same price was on the Sony site. I consider the build quality excellent--compared to several competitors. No experience with Kobo. T. Henderson

03-20-2011, 03:08 PM	#9
Farhad Zealot Posts: 139 Karma: 1248 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Florida Device: N800/Nokia 5230/PB IQ701/PB 360	Never had a Kobo, but I have seen them in stores. They don't look slow to me at all. As for the idea of a touchscreen on an ebook reader, I am not at all sure that it is a good one. Have you considered the PocketBook 360? It's supposed to be the fastest ebook reader out there, and I am very happy with the quality of its built and the display (non touchscreen) is excellent. Check it out.

03-20-2011, 06:30 PM	#10
starrlamia Zealot Posts: 125 Karma: 1000000 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Ontario Canada Device: Sony PRS-650, PB 16g	Ive heard good things about Kobo from those who have them, they are pretty basic. When Ive played with them they felt cheap and not quite what I wanted. That being said the 5" screen is to small for my taste. I love my Sony 650 though <3

03-21-2011, 01:00 PM	#11
Charbucks Member Posts: 18 Karma: 84 Join Date: Feb 2011 Device: Kobo	Oddly enough, these are the only two devices I've really had experience with. I had a PRS-350 for a couple of weeks, then returned it and got a Kobo. I detailed my reasoning in this thread. In summary, I like the Kobo more as a reading device. As an electronic device, the Sony is heftier and feels more solidly built, but the Kobo feels nicer to read with, particularly while lying in bed (which makes up the majority of my reading time). One thing that I love about it (even better than paper books) is how the big bezel at the bottom can be buried in a pile of blankets without obscuring the text. I've found the screen on the Kobo to be better. Perhaps the Sony has better contrast objectively, but the Kobo seems to have a paler background that is easier to read in my view. I thought I'd like the dictionary on the Sony, but it turned out that most of the words I wanted to look up weren't in there and I had to use an external dictionary anyways. YMMV...

03-25-2011, 01:54 AM	#12
menme Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 5004 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: none	Thank you all for the informative feedback. Farhad, no, i didnt have much exposure to the Pocketbook 360. Given that they do not sell most brands of ereader here (e-books is not as popular as physical book in this part of Asia plus the geographic restriction on the ebooks are a hassle to deal with), most of my research is from the Internet and reading up on forum observations. Im taking a look at it now as I type too. thanks for the heads up on that. Charbucks, yeah, that was one factor that i was considering before purchasing :when will i be using this most. I need to commute almost 2 hours daily and I tend to do most reading on the train so figured something lightweight and compact would be better. The Kobo I was initially gearing towards was the big bezel that you were mentioning earlier as well as for the wifi which is a nice convenience to have. Again, many thanks to all! Im waiting for my Sony to arrive in the mail. Have high hopes for it

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03-26-2011, 11:50 AM	#14
bcgirl Groupie Posts: 197 Karma: 996872 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Vancouver, BC,Canada Device: iPad2-64gb, Sony PRS-T1, KOBO mini	Looked at both too but I don't like the(cheaper) plastic look of the Kobo. By the way, everytime I tried it seems that the text kind of disappears. Anyhow, the Sony PRS 350 feels good, looks way better, more quality for the money and am getting one next week!!