PRS-650 Comparison 650(red) to 600(black)

etienne66 · 09-22-2010, 04:07 PM

I've only had my PRS-650 for a few hours, but I already like it a whole lot more than the PRS-600.

No More Glare
The background is whiter and the text is darker.
It starts up from shutoff a lot faster even with 480 books.
I like having a screen saver for sleep mode. Now I can tell the difference from being shut down.
I can finally edit Collections on the reader.
I like that it supports full justification.
Now I can sort my book list by when I last read it. One of the features of the Kindle that I liked.
I like that it finally supports cropping of the PDF margins. It could do a better job of it, but it isn't bad.
Photos look better.
The reader is lighter.

It still does not support soft-hyphens. It will break on the soft-hyphen, but it does not draw the "-" when it does break.

It also no longer has page numbers in the right hand margin. I did not care for them, but that should have been left as an option for the user. I'm sure there are students that would need that for class.

Sorry the quality of the photos is not better. It isn't a great camera and I didn't feel like bringing in more lights.

Etienne66

Latinandgreek · 09-22-2010, 04:44 PM

Thanks for your review and pictures. The red 650 looks great. I really love the cover, and the screen looks fantastic.

Quote:

Originally Posted by etienne66

It also no longer has page numbers in the right hand margin. I did not care for them, but that should have been left as an option for the user. I'm sure there are students that would need that for class

I didn't mind the page numbers in the margin, and I imagine that some students writing essays might need the numbers when taking quotes if the quote was between two "pages". Not a huge deal, but it would be nice to have the option to keep the numbers.

fafaforza · 09-22-2010, 05:42 PM

The 650 is so much lighter than my 505, as if it were empty inside.

But side by side, I didn't really see that much of an advantage in the screens over the 505. The 650 definitely has a sharper screen, but overall they were very close in readability. At least under the lamps at the Sony store. Couldn't move the 650 to less ideal lighting. But I lost the urge to upgrade at the store...

As far as page turns, the 650 responded much quicker to the actions, but the actual page turns were about equal too. So if I pressed next page on the 650 a few moments after the 505, they changed at about the same speed.

etienne66 · 09-22-2010, 06:41 PM

For me the biggest reason to upgrade is because I could no longer stand the glare on the 600. I was pacing at work trying to read and the glare on the screen made that all but impossible. I kept having to adjust the angle of the screen so I could read it.

I also like the touchscreen that the 505 lacks. I know some people don't really care for that feature. So it isn't important for them. If you don't care about the touchscreen, the only reason I can really think to upgrade is the enhanced epub support and the ability to start a lot faster if you have a large collection of books.

Of course if your prefer LRF books and only keep a few on the reader at the time, there probably is no reason to upgrade from a 505.

Etienne66

fafaforza · 09-22-2010, 08:42 PM

Sorry, I didn't mean to say that it isn't a nice reader. I'd love to have a dictionary that works by clicking on a word. Love to be able to make notes. The touchscreen access seems to be quicker too. And as I said, the thing was feather light and fast. I'll probably upgrade if my 505 breaks, but right now, there are too many bills to take care of :P and I'm the type that doesn't go through stuff quickly. Still using a laptop from 2004 and own a motorcycle for 5 years where most people change them every 2.

Speaking of formats, I like to have right justified books, so I often convert non-DRM stuff to LRF to get that. Having the 650 support that by default is sweet also.

etienne66 · 09-22-2010, 09:02 PM

Fafaforza, no offense taken. I was just trying to point out reasons not to upgrade. I have friends that would never even consider buying an ebook reader. Tastes and priorities differ. If the glare of the 600 wasn't bothering me so much, I probably wouldn't have upgraded, or at least waited for one of the new Pocketbooks that are coming out.

The only thing about the full or right justified text is that the epub has to have that setting turned on. It isn't forced on. Not a problem for epubs you've edited yourself in Sigil or Calibre, but a bit more difficult for purchased books.

I'm currently reading "Heat Wave" by the ghostwriter for "Richard Castle" and it isn't justified. I haven't felt like striping the DRM yet. The editing is actually decent on this book.

Etienne66

ssaxt0 · 10-08-2010, 11:29 PM

Thanks for the pictures I saw in this posting. I really wanted to see some comparisons between the 600 and 650. I have the 505 but I am having issues with battery and I have already replaced battery once so I do not see myself replacing another battery. It does not hold a charge for very long such as 2 or three days of light reading before bedtime and it is already at 1 or 2 bars of power. It has lasted a good 2 years now so I think it needs replacing. I have had issues with pricing as compared to Kindle prices but I still have a problem with proprietary format of kindle and I just read that I would have to send my pdf books that I have via email so that they could be converted to Kindle format. That seems a bit ridiculous since with Sony, I just have to place in my library and drag to the eReader while connected to PC.

There are some conveniences to having a Kindle but I feel that conveniences for Sony is better but again, I come back to the pricing because Sony really needs to adjust this when Kindle offers their product for $139 versus a comparable Sony at $229. As someone stated earlier, I do have bills to pay as well so I may have to delay the purchase a bit so that I can get the newer model with the price I will have to accept at $229.

Thanks for all your comments.

etienne66 · 10-09-2010, 08:58 AM

Now that I've had this for a couple of weeks.
The battery life seems to be a lot better than my PRS-600. I let my PRS-650 stay in Sleep Mode most of the time. I've been reading relatively a lot for me in the last couple of weeks and the charge lasted just about 2 weeks. I find myself wanting to read more now that I don't have to deal with the glare of the 600. I've also noticed that adding a note to a book takes a lot less time. I didn't put a stopwatch to it, but it was noticeably quicker.

I have had my unit hang a few times. It will give a very ghosted appearance and be very sluggish, but if I power it off and back on again it seems fine. I won't hold my breath, but maybe Sony will decide to put out an updated firmware for this unit. I'll see if I can get a photo of the screen the next time it happens. That should make it clearer.

I think they've gotten the hardware right this time, if they will just tweak the firmware. Like this lockup problem and proper display of soft-hyphens.

Etienne66

09-22-2010, 04:07 PM	#1
etienne66 Groupie Posts: 185 Karma: 9832 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Texas, US Device: Kindle 2, PRS-600 Black, PRS-650 Red, Adam w/ Pixel Qi(pre-ordered)	Comparison 650(red) to 600(black) I've only had my PRS-650 for a few hours, but I already like it a whole lot more than the PRS-600. No More Glare The background is whiter and the text is darker. It starts up from shutoff a lot faster even with 480 books. I like having a screen saver for sleep mode. Now I can tell the difference from being shut down. I can finally edit Collections on the reader. I like that it supports full justification. Now I can sort my book list by when I last read it. One of the features of the Kindle that I liked. I like that it finally supports cropping of the PDF margins. It could do a better job of it, but it isn't bad. Photos look better. The reader is lighter. It still does not support soft-hyphens. It will break on the soft-hyphen, but it does not draw the "-" when it does break. It also no longer has page numbers in the right hand margin. I did not care for them, but that should have been left as an option for the user. I'm sure there are students that would need that for class. Sorry the quality of the photos is not better. It isn't a great camera and I didn't feel like bringing in more lights. Etienne66 Attached Thumbnails Last edited by etienne66; 09-22-2010 at 04:10 PM.

10-08-2010, 11:29 PM	#7
ssaxt0 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Antioch, CA in East Bay Area. Device: Sony 505	PRS 650 Comparison Thanks for the pictures I saw in this posting. I really wanted to see some comparisons between the 600 and 650. I have the 505 but I am having issues with battery and I have already replaced battery once so I do not see myself replacing another battery. It does not hold a charge for very long such as 2 or three days of light reading before bedtime and it is already at 1 or 2 bars of power. It has lasted a good 2 years now so I think it needs replacing. I have had issues with pricing as compared to Kindle prices but I still have a problem with proprietary format of kindle and I just read that I would have to send my pdf books that I have via email so that they could be converted to Kindle format. That seems a bit ridiculous since with Sony, I just have to place in my library and drag to the eReader while connected to PC. There are some conveniences to having a Kindle but I feel that conveniences for Sony is better but again, I come back to the pricing because Sony really needs to adjust this when Kindle offers their product for $139 versus a comparable Sony at $229. As someone stated earlier, I do have bills to pay as well so I may have to delay the purchase a bit so that I can get the newer model with the price I will have to accept at $229. Thanks for all your comments.

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09-22-2010, 05:42 PM	#3
fafaforza Zealot Posts: 140 Karma: 26780 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Brooklyn, NY Device: Aura ONE	The 650 is so much lighter than my 505, as if it were empty inside. But side by side, I didn't really see that much of an advantage in the screens over the 505. The 650 definitely has a sharper screen, but overall they were very close in readability. At least under the lamps at the Sony store. Couldn't move the 650 to less ideal lighting. But I lost the urge to upgrade at the store... As far as page turns, the 650 responded much quicker to the actions, but the actual page turns were about equal too. So if I pressed next page on the 650 a few moments after the 505, they changed at about the same speed.

09-22-2010, 06:41 PM	#4
etienne66 Groupie Posts: 185 Karma: 9832 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Texas, US Device: Kindle 2, PRS-600 Black, PRS-650 Red, Adam w/ Pixel Qi(pre-ordered)	For me the biggest reason to upgrade is because I could no longer stand the glare on the 600. I was pacing at work trying to read and the glare on the screen made that all but impossible. I kept having to adjust the angle of the screen so I could read it. I also like the touchscreen that the 505 lacks. I know some people don't really care for that feature. So it isn't important for them. If you don't care about the touchscreen, the only reason I can really think to upgrade is the enhanced epub support and the ability to start a lot faster if you have a large collection of books. Of course if your prefer LRF books and only keep a few on the reader at the time, there probably is no reason to upgrade from a 505. Etienne66

09-22-2010, 08:42 PM	#5
fafaforza Zealot Posts: 140 Karma: 26780 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Brooklyn, NY Device: Aura ONE	Sorry, I didn't mean to say that it isn't a nice reader. I'd love to have a dictionary that works by clicking on a word. Love to be able to make notes. The touchscreen access seems to be quicker too. And as I said, the thing was feather light and fast. I'll probably upgrade if my 505 breaks, but right now, there are too many bills to take care of :P and I'm the type that doesn't go through stuff quickly. Still using a laptop from 2004 and own a motorcycle for 5 years where most people change them every 2. Speaking of formats, I like to have right justified books, so I often convert non-DRM stuff to LRF to get that. Having the 650 support that by default is sweet also.

09-22-2010, 09:02 PM	#6
etienne66 Groupie Posts: 185 Karma: 9832 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Texas, US Device: Kindle 2, PRS-600 Black, PRS-650 Red, Adam w/ Pixel Qi(pre-ordered)	Fafaforza, no offense taken. I was just trying to point out reasons not to upgrade. I have friends that would never even consider buying an ebook reader. Tastes and priorities differ. If the glare of the 600 wasn't bothering me so much, I probably wouldn't have upgraded, or at least waited for one of the new Pocketbooks that are coming out. The only thing about the full or right justified text is that the epub has to have that setting turned on. It isn't forced on. Not a problem for epubs you've edited yourself in Sigil or Calibre, but a bit more difficult for purchased books. I'm currently reading "Heat Wave" by the ghostwriter for "Richard Castle" and it isn't justified. I haven't felt like striping the DRM yet. The editing is actually decent on this book. Etienne66

10-09-2010, 08:58 AM	#8
etienne66 Groupie Posts: 185 Karma: 9832 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Texas, US Device: Kindle 2, PRS-600 Black, PRS-650 Red, Adam w/ Pixel Qi(pre-ordered)	Now that I've had this for a couple of weeks. The battery life seems to be a lot better than my PRS-600. I let my PRS-650 stay in Sleep Mode most of the time. I've been reading relatively a lot for me in the last couple of weeks and the charge lasted just about 2 weeks. I find myself wanting to read more now that I don't have to deal with the glare of the 600. I've also noticed that adding a note to a book takes a lot less time. I didn't put a stopwatch to it, but it was noticeably quicker. I have had my unit hang a few times. It will give a very ghosted appearance and be very sluggish, but if I power it off and back on again it seems fine. I won't hold my breath, but maybe Sony will decide to put out an updated firmware for this unit. I'll see if I can get a photo of the screen the next time it happens. That should make it clearer. I think they've gotten the hardware right this time, if they will just tweak the firmware. Like this lockup problem and proper display of soft-hyphens. Etienne66

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