New Sonys vs Kindle 3 vs other readers

[Waba]

Got my 950 yesterday and have been playing... Thought a thread comparing and contrasting to other readers we've used and liked would be interesting.

Kindle 3's pearl finally made me soften my death grip on the 505 and upgrade... Was very pleased with the K3's screen and speed... The firmware, I find somewhat goofy. Didn't like the PDF support, but eventually found a barely acceptable method for reading my technical PDFs using PDF2LRF and Mangle. The main downside being no Go To navigation using the picture viewer... Keyboard I never used and found it rather large and awkward. WIFI used once, to check email from bed, being super lazy. Never even registered it with Amazon.

My initial thoughts on the 950... Looking at it right next to the K3 it appears to have less contrast. At least part of this I attribute to the figure-ground effect of the Kindle's blackness vs Sony's much lighter silver. But also the Sony's customizable contrast cannot match Kindle's contrast on some documents. I think this is mostly due to Sonys fonts appearing less substantial and more pixelated than Kindles... I think the gap between Sony's small and medium is too large a jump.

IMO Kindle's fonts are quite a bit better. Hopefully workarounds can fix this. At first I thought Kindle's default font was cutesy, but now I miss it. It really is a very readable and comfortable font. I'll have to put it into some of epubs and pdfs to see how it looks on the 950...

Page turns on the Kindle are significantly faster than the 950. A little disappointing, hopefully firmware can fix this (ie, like one of the earlier Kindle 3 updates did). 950 seems to pause, then page turn. Hopefully this pause can be fixed because otherwise the page turn seems equal to the Kindle.

The aspect of the 950 does very well on cropped, regular sized PDFs. This factor alone will make me migrate from the Kindle... FINALLY, I can read PDFs, have access to search and dictionary without having them converted, rasterized and/or broken (or glare screen). Touch screen is a plus mostly because I dislike Kindle's mega keyboard and it will be nice to be able to take QUICK (not like Kindle) notes again.

All in all, while I'm a little disappointed in the 950 for not being the undisputed superchamp I was hoping for, I still think it is the best reader on the market.

Another factor... I don't ever see Amazon going out of its way for fringe user like me. On the other hand, a big future factor for Sony is PRS+ the alternate firmware. Greatly extended the function on the 505. The author was just donated a 650 and 950, so here's to hoping for great things!

[rhadin]

Originally Posted by Waba

I think the gap between Sony's small and medium is too large a jump.

I love my 950 but with this criticism I would agree.

[daffy4u]

Originally Posted by Waba

Another factor... I don't ever see Amazon going out of its way for fringe user like me. On the other hand, a big future factor for Sony is PRS+ the alternate firmware. Greatly extended the function on the 505. The author was just donated a 650 and 950, so here's to hoping for great things!

It was PRS+ that made the PRS-505 more usable for me. I'm happy to learn that the 650 will get some attention as well and am looking forward to it (just traded in my 505 for a 650).

On the Kindle side, have you been following the hacks available (see the link in my sig). There may be something that works for your "fringe" style (whatever that is).

[eriksnoopy]

I totaly agree with you on all the points you made and have made the same conclusion, would only add that the build quality of the sony over the kindle also played a factor for me.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by daffy4u

It was PRS+ that made the PRS-505 more usable for me. I'm happy to learn that the 650 will get some attention as well and am looking forward to it (just traded in my 505 for a 650).

On the Kindle side, have you been following the hacks available (see the link in my sig). There may be something that works for your "fringe" style (whatever that is).

So what do you think of the 650 having had a 505 and having a K3?

[daffy4u]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

So what do you think of the 650 having had a 505 and having a K3?

I'll probably do another thread on my experience with questions but it's too soon right now as I'm swamped with work until the end of next week. I've been going through the 650 user guide and trying out things. I still haven't gotten the hang of highlighting more than one word with my finger. Haven't tried the stylus at all. Haven't read a book on it yet.

I'll have about 2 to 3 weeks off over the holidays and I'll be able to really put it through it's paces. I can say that I like it leaps and bounds over the 505. I'm fascinated by the new touch screen technology. So far it has worked really well.

I do wish I had been able to buy it in silver instead of black and had been patient enough to buy the cover in another color (the store only had black).

[kartu]

950 seems to pause, then page turn.

Even if you use buttons?
In case of touchscreen reader has to pause because of double taps.

[Waba]

Yes even with the change page buttons the turn seems to pause briefly before changing... Not a big deal, still faster than the 505. But the K3 really does excel at page turning.

[Waba]

My Amazon review of PRS950 vs Kindle 3 for technical PDFs:

PRS950 vs Kindle 3 PDF smackdown!

This review is from: Sony PRS-950 Daily Edition Reader Silver (Electronics)
I currently am the happy owner of a PRS-950, but I'll try to incorporate the new Sony line as well as the Kindle 3. I've been ereading since the launch of the PRS505, which IMO was the ereader to have for over 3 years. With the Pearl screens I switched to a Kindle 3. While I still preferred most aspects of the PRS505, the Kindle 3's excellent hardware won me over... Until recently when I switched to the PRS950.

Right off the bat, the only real advantage of the 950 over other ereaders is the 7" screen and its more PDF appropriate aspect ratio... If you read only text (ie: novels) you could likely skip to the RECOMMENDATIONS portion of this review. But for some users (like me), this is the #1 issue, and I am happier with the PRS950 than I have ever been with another ereader. If complex PDFs publications are your bread and butter, then you want the 950.

DISCLAIMER: PDFs are not optimal in their native form, you must clip the excess white area margin! I use an excellent program called Briss, the process is outlined in the footnotes. The PRS950 has a "Margin Cut" Page Mode, but it doesn't seem to do anything at all. This is a fairly easy pre-processing step that will yield excellent results... Text PDFs can reflow and zoom (page breaks will be off, best to convert to epub/mobi), but complex PDFs cannot be reflowed and maintain their structure. Period. No PDF software in the world could effectively do this on the fly, so please don't blame the ereader!

I have opened several hundred PDFs on the 950 without issue. Equations, links, tables, footers/headers, images, embedded fonts, special characters. Everything is there, as it should be! The fonts, format, page breaks-everything views just as if on my computer PDF viewer. Some are better than others depending on the originals aspect and how much white space was cut. Still, I find the results most acceptable, far better than any ereader I've encountered... And, importantly, no links are broken, all words are searchable and can be looked up in the dictionary. The 950 even keeps a log of words you've looked up by book, which really helps with retention. FINANLY, PDFs on a portable ereader without a huge number of caveats and limitations. Rejoice!

This is a first, I am excited! The Kindle 3 is a capable reader, and it can display converted PDFs very well. But that PDF will become severely crippled. You will lose dictionary, word search, table of contents and even jump to page navigation... This process that yields very readable Kinlde PDF results (if featureless) is outlined in the footnotes.

Sony readers also have a history of more open formats, and user development... Kindle? Not so much... Some truly amazing functionality was added to previous Sony readers by the user development community. A PRS+ firmware Alpha version is scheduled for end January or Febuary 2011.
For me PRS950 has roundly defeated the Kindle 3. But perhaps not for you?

PRS950 Pros:
+Touchscreen +Hold to scroll pages +Fairly compact and Light for size +Aluminum construction +PRS line has good user development (PRS+ firmware)
PRS950 cons:
-Default fonts less crisp than K3s -Fewer zooms than K3 -Margin cut PDF page mode doesn't do anything -2 column PDF page mode is crippled by breaking into quadrants -Slower than K3's page turn (not huge deal, still quite fast) -Price -No case (used to help justify the higher Sony price) -Huge stylus tip -Taking notes when zoomed resets zoom

Addressing PRS950 concerns from other reviewers:
*Glare: There is none. Equal to Kindle 3.
*PDF support: opened over 100 PDFs from academic papers, to technical reference books, to books loaded with equations, pictures and tables. Never had a single failure... Perhaps special characters from non-English languages are the issue?
*Flickering: none noticed. I have noticed some slight ghosting... Which is remedied with a shutdown/restart. Not frequent, but hopefully a firmware update will fix this.
*Cost: it's freaking expensive, this one is accurate.
*Notes: Notes are a little awkward, likely due to fat stylus, and can't be exported yet... However, I see notes being able to be exported soon. The Mobile Read community figured this out on the PRS600.
*web browsing/mp3 problems: such a minor issue to me, I can't be made to care enough to test... these will always have issues on ereaders.

Kindle 3 Pros:
+Crisp fonts +Easy font change (not in PDF) +Fastest page turn +Fantastic battery life +Price
Kindle 3 Cons:
-Top and bottom status bars... Even if the top one hides, its space cannot be utilized by the book
-Huge side margins (can be corrected by editing a text file on K3)
-Not much user development community
-Cannot effectively navigate pictures via jump to page (this is crippling for PDF converts and comics)
-Large keyboard
-Amazon not likely to help development for rendering outside material

RECOMMENDATIONS
Get a Sony if you:
*want access to library books
*like to doodle and write notes in your books
*value pocket space and want a more compact ereader
*value higher quality form factor and construction
*want to have a choice in ebook stores
*like to customize your firmware (hopefully there will be a functionality expanding version of PRS+ firmware soon)
*don't mind paying a little to significantly more
*have a local collection of reading material in a variety of formats (Calibre helps the Kindle close this gap, but not there yet)

WHICH SONY IS RIGHT FOR YOU
PRS950: If you read PDFs, periodicals, journals, articles, (possibly comics?), reference books then THIS is the only reader you want.
PRS650: You prefer a larger reader, or perhaps if your eyes are not great. Otherwise, I think you're better off with the PRS350. Which is smaller (and cheaper), but has the same resolution.
PRS350: Value portability. Lowest cost, for same resolution.

Get a Kindle if you:
*mostly buy your ebooks, and buy them from Amazon
*are on a very tight budget (PRS350 is only $15 more than Kindle 3 WIFI)
*would use the text to speech function (might be nice for driving. although I prefer real audiobooks)
*want low quality 3g internet browsing (requires $189 3g)... I can't stand internet browsing on an ereader, but if you have no other option it might be useful.
*browse and buy books from your ereader (PRS950 has this functionality also)... I must admit I do not enjoy shopping on an ereader, it will never compete with a true browser.

Suggestions for all ereaders
*Use Calibre for ebook management and general conversions (Mobile Read is an excellent resource for converting)
*Get a cover that folds back and locks in some way. Holding the front and back cover can be tiresome. The Sony cover PRS950B, which is significantly lower quality than Sony's old generation covers... Most corner strap style Nook covers should fit the PRS950. I am using a CaseCrown Nook cover, which is heavy but I am pleased.

FOOTNOTES AND REFERENCES
***PDF prep for PRS950 = Use Briss (check Mobile Read forums) to crop excess white margin. Fin... I usually append the original PDF in the Calibre library with "_source" so Calibre will send the clipped PDF to the ereader.
***PDF prep for K3 = 1.) PRS2LRF; be sure to save as '.zip' instead of '.lrf' 2.) Extract .zip to folder and run through Mangle program... These will be images, but this is the way to create the most readable PDF for Kindle. As mentioned above you will lose almost all functionality (dict, search, notes, txt to speech, ToContents, page navigation).

I have no experience with the KindleDX, which might be a competent ereader... However, I find it awkwardly large. Too large for me to be interested as I carry my PRS950 in my jacket pocket daily... If you have good vision you will have no trouble reading most PDFs on the 950, thus making the DX overkill.

Tablets (ipad, NookColor [excellent value], so on) were not mentioned in this review because they are IMHO inferior ereaders. I also didn't put much emphasis on features like internet browsing and music playing because those are activities I don't think ereaders are well designed for. I've tried them, but found them so awkward compared to other devices (like PCs. tablets, mp3 players and smart phones) that I never returned... Like buttering bread with a cleaver, it is possible but far from ideal... Although there are exceptions, like RSS feeds and ereader device formatted webpages (Kinstant)... If you spend more time browsing, playing videos/music/games and are only a casual reader a tablet might be a better fit.... As a fairly heavy reader tablets can really irritate my eyes, even in the few hours before it needs a recharge.

[kartu]

From my personal experience, I'd add to 950 advantages: you can actually read complex A4 (or Letter) PDFs with this reader.

[trekchick]

Full-size PDFs are much easier to see on my Kindle DX than on my PRS-950. However, PDFs are far more functional on Sony.

More things Sony does that Kindle DX can't:

• Highlight and make notes in a PDF (Kindle 3 can)

• Perform dictionary look up from a PDF (Kindle 3 can)

• Use the table of contents in a PDF

• Follow navigation hyperlinks in a PDF (e.g. footnotes, cross-references)

• Zoom to custom magnification in a PDF (Kindle DX offers only: fit-to-screen, 150%, 200%, 300% and actual size)

• Adjust PDF contrast and brightness (DX is non-adjustable, Kindle 3 offers 5 contrast levels)

• Reflow a PDF

• View in two-page (PRS-950 landscape only) or column split page modes

• Open a DRM-protected PDF (Kindle 3 can open DRM-free password-protected PDF, DX cannot)

• Display and sort notes from all books on the device

• Export notes to PC (Kindle has a text file chronological log of all annotations, but no per-book export)

• Create and sync collections with your computer

Some things Kindle does that Sony can't:

• Run purchased games and apps

• Post links to notes and highlights on Twitter and Facebook

• Download ebooks and text files via the web browser via 3G or wifi (Sony allows Google Books downloads over wifi)

• Browse web and use Wikipedia over 3G (Sony limits use to wifi)

• Automatic document conversion and wireless delivery to device via email (not free if delivery is done over 3G)

• View popular highlights (as made by other Kindle readers) in purchased books

• Integrate audible.com library and download audiobooks directly to device (wifi models only)

• Convert text to speech in personal mobi formatted documents and many Kindle Store books (some publishers disable this feature)

• Lend purchased e-books (a limited feature)

Both Kindle and Sony offer on-device collection management. It's easier to add/subtract multiple books to/from a collection on Sony, but it's easier to add or change the collection(s) for a single book on Kindle.

Kindle is recommended for people who don't have a computer or don't want to ever connect their device to a computer.

[jj2me]

A wonderful Kindle advantage for those who regularly read Calibre newspapers and magazines is the free wi-fi delivery of that Calibre content. It's the reason I'm mostly using my Kindle 3 nowadays.

After initial setup, you simply Open Calibre (and let it just do its thing and fetch the news you've scheduled for that day), and turn on wireless on the Kindle and be within wi-fi range.

Voila, the newspapers and magazines appear on your Kindle 3 automagically.

You can also get that wireless delivery of any Calibre content (it's in Calibre's right-click menu).

(Another news-reading advantage that was true as of about two months ago: the Kindle 3 has a "Skip article" function for Calibe news, whereas that function wasn't activated on Sonys. So to skip and article, you're paging forward to the next article on the Sony, vs. a single right click of the 5-way on a Kindle.)

[kartu]

Originally Posted by trekchick

Full-size PDFs are much easier to see on my Kindle DX than on my PRS-950.

However I can't find DX in the threads title.

Browse web and use Wikipedia over 3G (Sony limits use to wifi)

Amazon only allows wikipedia, not the web.

Originally Posted by jj2me

A wonderful Kindle advantage for those who regularly read Calibre newspapers and magazines is the free wi-fi delivery of that Calibre content. It's the reason I'm mostly using my Kindle 3 nowadays.

After initial setup, you simply Open Calibre (and let it just do its thing and fetch the news you've scheduled for that day), and turn on wireless on the Kindle and be within wi-fi range.

Voila, the newspapers and magazines appear on your Kindle 3 automagically.

So basically it spares you connecting the device via USB to the PC, which you need in both cases, eh? If I switch PC on, start calibre, then it's not a big deal to connect reader to it, but it might be just me...

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by kartu

Amazon only allows wikipedia, not the web.

No, that's incorrect. In many countries (eg USA, UK, Canada, Australia) Amazon permit unrestricted web browsing with the 3G Kindle. In some countries (France, Germany, Holland for example) the only sites that can be accessed are Wikipedia and the Kindle Store. It basically depends where they've done a deal with a local telecoms operator, and coverage is expanding. Eg, we had restricted access in the UK until the middle of last year, but it's now unrestricted.

[Latinandgreek]

Thanks for your summary, Trekchick. I would like to get both a Kindle DX and a PRS-950 (my husband and I would be sharing both of them) , but I will be getting the PRS-950 first. The Kindle will have to wait.