The Worst ebook Reader You Ever Owned! - Page 5

JSWolf · 07-31-2022, 05:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirtel

I loved mine while it was my first and only ereader. Nothing awful about it back then. Of course that was 10 years ago and it is unfair to compare it to modern readers. I wouldn't want to go back to it now either, but it was perfectly fine for me 10 years ago.

If I had to go back to the Sony Reader PRS-500, I'd be reading pBooks instead.

andyh2000 · 08-01-2022, 06:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

If I had to go back to the Sony Reader PRS-500, I'd be reading pBooks instead.

I joined the club with the Sony PRS-505 and loved it. An ereader made of metal, imagine that.

Andrew

curtw · 08-02-2022, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andyh2000

I joined the club with the Sony PRS-505 and loved it. An ereader made of metal, imagine that.

Andrew

Yeah, I accidentally *kicked* mine about 20 feet through the air once. Not even a scratch.

Nicolay77 · 08-02-2022, 11:40 AM

Pockebook Inkpad Color.

It is both my most hated, and also the one I like the most.

Sometimes I think it is awesome, it is perfect for manga, the software is great, and sometimes I think the contrast is not that good, or the light is too blue at night, or I miss the Pocket integration of the Kobos.

andyh2000 · 08-03-2022, 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by curtw

Yeah, I accidentally *kicked* mine about 20 feet through the air once. Not even a scratch.

A bit heavy and not very contrasty, but bullet proof.

Fat Abe · 08-15-2022, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

For me it's the nook STR. The bezel is atrocious. The firmware is awful. The partitioned memory is pitiful what's left over for side loading. It's just a POS at best.

Thank you for reminding me. This and the Kindle DXG were poorly built to add insult to injury.

Most e-readers are built to consumer electronics standards. Most electronic gear dies a terrible death, due to capacitors, or batteries. Of my two dozen plus readers, I could probably only count on my Sony's, Apple's or Kobo's booting up after a decade. Forget about Kindles, Samsungs, Nooks, etc.

haertig · 08-15-2022, 11:02 PM

I guess I'm not in the club. I haven't owned enough eReaders to be able to determine "The Worst ebook Reader You Ever Owned".

My first was a B&N Nook Simple Touch. And my second, and current one, is a Paperwhite 3. Both are fine. The Nook doesn't have a light. The Paperwhite doesn't have buttons. The screen resolution differences sound major on paper, but in real life it doesn't make any difference to me.

My Nook still works fine, but I use the Paperwhite because it has a light, and that is handier (to me) than having the buttons on the Nook. I like the Paperwhite more, "because it has a light".

How many eReaders do others buy? Every one that I've seen does basically the same thing. Not enough differentiation between them for me to care much. The only time I'd really look at that is if my current eReader croaked and I had to buy a new one. Then, I'd do some research and thinking about what the differences might mean to me. Absent a dead eReader, I don't plan to go looking for a new one though.

The only reason I jumped from my original Nook to the Paperwhite was not because of the eReader, it was because of B&N. I wanted nothing more to do with them after they made it difficult to download your purchased books locally, and to be able to download them at all you had to download them directly to your original Nook. I saw all kinds of read flags for that moving into the future, so I jumped ship and got a Kindle on sale around Black Friday one year. If I see red flags from Amazon regarding downloading locally or making it impossible to strip DRM, then I might investigate a Kobo or whatever is in vogue at that time. The only part my Kindle plays (played) in downloading locally or stripping DRM was to donate it's serial number.

At this point, I already have enough eBooks for the rest of my life fifty times over, so the only feature I truly need is the ability to sideload my existing content. If DRM becomes unbreakable, I just won't buy any more eBooks. eReaders all have lights these days. Buttons would be nice, but not essential. Higher screen resolutions or larger screens are of no interest to me. I don't need waterproof either. I consider eReaders to be fully matured at this point, and they are basically commodity items in my view.

Deb-Ellen · 08-16-2022, 12:01 AM

For me it was an iPad I had been gifted. Loathed that I had to learn to "break" it so I could read my previously purchased ebooks.

Upgraded to a Samsung Tab A (2015 model) still going strong - love everything about it especially the size. The Tab A has pretty much cruised around the world with me and never missed a beat. Replaced the battery when the original died and that is all I have done to it.

Deb-Ellen · 08-16-2022, 12:11 AM

Funny - reading back over the conversation - I have only ever had one actual ereader, the Sony PRS500.

The other two devices - iPad and Samsung tablet - aren't actual ereaders per se but that is pretty much all I used/use them for. My husband ended up taking the iPad so he could watch movies while travelling after I bought the Samsung. Occassionally I will use the Samsung to access the internet but that is quite rare, 99% of it's usage is as an ereader.

meeera · 08-16-2022, 01:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deb-Ellen

For me it was an iPad I had been gifted. Loathed that I had to learn to "break" it so I could read my previously purchased ebooks.

Do you mean jailbreak? Why did you need to do that?

BenG · 08-18-2022, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

Each to his or her own thoughts, eh? -- A big old 'YUP' and 'Shrug' on this ugly-screened embarrassment that I'll mention in the next paragraph.

Mine would have to be the Sony PRS-700, with the worst touch screen in the history of ebook readers. The light - godawful and uneven - was not backlit. (I think the technology did not exist at that time - please, correct me if I'm wrong.:

I agree with you about the PRS-700.

DNSB · 08-18-2022, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

Mine would have to be the Sony PRS-700, with the worst touch screen in the history of ebook readers. The light - godawful and uneven - was not backlit. (I think the technology did not exist at that time - please, correct me if I'm wrong.)

Strictly speaking no eInk screen can have a backlight since the display is opaque. AFAIR, the problem with the PRS-700 was that while it used LEDs built into the sides the screen for illumination, it did not have the lightguide to spread light evenly (more or less) across the screen so you could see the cones from the individual LEDs, all 8 of them with 4 on each of the long sides of the screen.

Dr. Drib · 08-18-2022, 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DNSB

Strictly speaking no eInk screen can have a backlight since the display is opaque. AFAIR, the problem with the PRS-700 was that while it used LEDs built into the sides the screen for illumination, it did not have the lightguide to spread light evenly (more or less) across the screen so you could see the cones from the individual LEDs, all 8 of them with 4 on each of the long sides of the screen.

I meant Frontlit, natch. (A slip of 4 or 5 digits, 1 thumb, and 1/2 of a numb brain.)

Thanks!

JSWolf · 08-19-2022, 04:05 AM

The worst frontlight goes to the Sony Reader PRS-700. The worst firmware goes to the Kindle 1/2/DX/DXG.

Wiggo · 08-20-2022, 12:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meeera

Do you mean jailbreak? Why did you need to do that?

I doubt very much that she had to do that...

08-15-2022, 11:02 PM	#67
haertig Wizard Posts: 1,738 Karma: 26006874 Join Date: Sep 2017 Device: PW3, Fire HD8 Gen7, Moto G7, Sansa Clip v2, Ruizu X26	I guess I'm not in the club. I haven't owned enough eReaders to be able to determine "The Worst ebook Reader You Ever Owned". My first was a B&N Nook Simple Touch. And my second, and current one, is a Paperwhite 3. Both are fine. The Nook doesn't have a light. The Paperwhite doesn't have buttons. The screen resolution differences sound major on paper, but in real life it doesn't make any difference to me. My Nook still works fine, but I use the Paperwhite because it has a light, and that is handier (to me) than having the buttons on the Nook. I like the Paperwhite more, "because it has a light". How many eReaders do others buy? Every one that I've seen does basically the same thing. Not enough differentiation between them for me to care much. The only time I'd really look at that is if my current eReader croaked and I had to buy a new one. Then, I'd do some research and thinking about what the differences might mean to me. Absent a dead eReader, I don't plan to go looking for a new one though. The only reason I jumped from my original Nook to the Paperwhite was not because of the eReader, it was because of B&N. I wanted nothing more to do with them after they made it difficult to download your purchased books locally, and to be able to download them at all you had to download them directly to your original Nook. I saw all kinds of read flags for that moving into the future, so I jumped ship and got a Kindle on sale around Black Friday one year. If I see red flags from Amazon regarding downloading locally or making it impossible to strip DRM, then I might investigate a Kobo or whatever is in vogue at that time. The only part my Kindle plays (played) in downloading locally or stripping DRM was to donate it's serial number. At this point, I already have enough eBooks for the rest of my life fifty times over, so the only feature I truly need is the ability to sideload my existing content. If DRM becomes unbreakable, I just won't buy any more eBooks. eReaders all have lights these days. Buttons would be nice, but not essential. Higher screen resolutions or larger screens are of no interest to me. I don't need waterproof either. I consider eReaders to be fully matured at this point, and they are basically commodity items in my view. Last edited by haertig; 08-15-2022 at 11:35 PM.

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08-02-2022, 11:40 AM	#64
Nicolay77 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 2139374 Join Date: Mar 2014 Device: Kobo Glo HD, PockeBook Inkpad Color	Pockebook Inkpad Color. It is both my most hated, and also the one I like the most. Sometimes I think it is awesome, it is perfect for manga, the software is great, and sometimes I think the contrast is not that good, or the light is too blue at night, or I miss the Pocket integration of the Kobos.

08-16-2022, 12:01 AM	#68
Deb-Ellen Member Posts: 15 Karma: 2139596 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Perth Australia Device: Samsung Tab A	For me it was an iPad I had been gifted. Loathed that I had to learn to "break" it so I could read my previously purchased ebooks. Upgraded to a Samsung Tab A (2015 model) still going strong - love everything about it especially the size. The Tab A has pretty much cruised around the world with me and never missed a beat. Replaced the battery when the original died and that is all I have done to it.

08-16-2022, 12:11 AM	#69
Deb-Ellen Member Posts: 15 Karma: 2139596 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Perth Australia Device: Samsung Tab A	Funny - reading back over the conversation - I have only ever had one actual ereader, the Sony PRS500. The other two devices - iPad and Samsung tablet - aren't actual ereaders per se but that is pretty much all I used/use them for. My husband ended up taking the iPad so he could watch movies while travelling after I bought the Samsung. Occassionally I will use the Samsung to access the internet but that is quite rare, 99% of it's usage is as an ereader.

08-19-2022, 04:05 AM	#74
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 74,033 Karma: 129333114 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	The worst frontlight goes to the Sony Reader PRS-700. The worst firmware goes to the Kindle 1/2/DX/DXG.

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