Mac user having trouble making a decision - help!

bowiegirl1982 · 07-11-2010, 07:13 PM

Hello all!

This is my first post and I am looking for some help. Let me start by saying I have a macbook running OSX 10.4.11 (tiger). This seems to be a big factor in my decision!

I am a wardrobe supervisor who works on cruise ships and loves to read. My trouble has always been that I then have to pack a lot of books for a 6 month contract, or don't pack the ones that I then want etc etc. With an ebook reader I could carry as many books as I want and just pack the one item. I had long been looking at a Kindle, but being in the UK put a dampener on that as I hear it still isn't really fully available or functional here when I'm home.

I started looking at the Sony PRS-600 but then I read that it didn't work on OSX Tiger. I also heard it doesn't work with Snow Leopard either so that put that one out. I looked at an iPod Touch with Stanza, but I think the screen will be too small and the light too much of a strain on my eyes for whole books. The iPad is too new and too expensive.

Any advice on what I should look at? I want a ereader around £200 or so that works will my mac and doesn't tie me down to one store. I want it to be pretty too

I have several ebooks on my laptop that I would like to add to it, I have calibre currently keeping them organised.

What should I be looking at? Where do I start?! I'm more confused now that when I started looking into it properly two days ago!! Do I really need to update my operating system to solve this?

TIA!
Joanne

Dulin's Books · 07-11-2010, 08:20 PM

Under 200, works with mac, doesnt tie you to one store, easy to pack works well with calibre and is pretty?

PocketBook 360

you can read more about it in the PocketBook section of MobileRead here or on my website

if you prefer a UK retailer there definitely several options for you including http://www.greenreader.co.uk/products/pocketbook-360

lila55 · 07-12-2010, 02:04 AM

The Pocketbook 360 would have been my suggestion as well. I also have a Mac, and the combination (with calibre to organize the books) works perfectly. It does all the things you want, and it is pretty as well (I think

), also very practical with the lid that can be just slid on to protect the screen when you are not reading - while you are reading it is clipped onto the back of the reader.

nick101 · 07-12-2010, 06:40 AM

I have a Sony 600 and it works fine with my Snow Leopard Macs. I like it a lot: good size, easy to hold and use.

Some people don't like the slightly reflective touch screen - if that's you, you may prefer the smaller 300.

I can't comment on other e-readers, but one very significant (to me) characteristic of the Sony readers is their excellent build quality. If I were travelling a lot, that would be a big factor for me.

kealiiballao · 07-12-2010, 06:48 AM

I have a Sony-600 reader and it definitely works with a Mac. However, the Sony Reader Library software is something that I hate to use to sync my e-books. From the very first day the software was buggy, and for a period of 2 months I was unable to upload any books to my reader.

I recommend downloading calibre to sync your e-books. The great thing about calibre is that it allows you to convert your ebooks to most major ebook file types. I current convert all my ebooks to epub formats even though calibre does support conversion for the sony native lrf formats.

The one downside of the sony reader is it's reflective screen. If you have direct light on the reader, it is harder to read the screen text. However, I've managed to cope with it, and I really love it now.

bowiegirl1982 · 07-12-2010, 10:19 AM

Thank you so much for the help everyone! I'm now very interested in the Pocketbook 360, I like the screen better than the Sony 600.

I've been having a read on here and am a little confused... can you put bought ebooks on the Pocketbook 360 or not?

Dulin's Books · 07-12-2010, 11:36 AM

Yes its compatible with Adobe drm for ePub and PDF.

bowiegirl1982 · 07-12-2010, 12:05 PM

Perfect! I think I'm going to get one of these - thank you all for the advice!

bowiegirl1982 · 07-22-2010, 10:31 AM

I just wanted to update this thread in case someone is looking for a reader with the same constraints I listed in the original post.

I now have the PB360, it arrived yesterday, but my computer won't recognise it and now found a thread on here saying it might be my OS which is the problem. That was one of the major factors in buying the PB360 - I'd been told it would work.

I am trying to solve the problem with help in this thread here: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65136
just in case anyone is having the same problems with tiger. Not a happy reader right now!!

clintbradford · 07-22-2010, 12:02 PM

>> ... running OSX 10.4.11 (tiger) ...

Why are you running such an old OS?

bowiegirl1982 · 07-22-2010, 12:22 PM

Because that's what my computer came with and I don't want to buy a new one. I bought a mac because they last longer than PCs and this one has. Why should I have to upgrade my system?

cmdahler · 07-22-2010, 12:32 PM

You can upgrade the operating system without having to buy an entirely new computer.

bowiegirl1982 · 07-22-2010, 12:35 PM

But I still have to spend £132 to do that, which is what I meant, Every time I've ever upgraded something like this it has lost stuff and not worked also. So I don't want to.

clintbradford · 07-22-2010, 05:27 PM

>> ... Why should I have to upgrade my system?

OK. Sorry to interrupt. Gotta go and get on my horse and ride into town for my monthly food run. We refuse to get modern and buy a car ...

By the way, Snow Leopard OS X is US$29 - I do not know where you got your "132 pounds" number.

Clint Bradford

clintbradford · 07-22-2010, 05:28 PM

>> ... Every time I've ever upgraded something like this it has lost stuff and not worked also ...

You have NEVER upgraded Mac OS software - so your logic is flawed. That is Microsoft Windows mentality. But I digress - I need to get complaining that my eReader doesn't support my Commodore 64.

07-11-2010, 07:13 PM	#1
bowiegirl1982 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 60 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK Device: none	Mac user having trouble making a decision - help! Hello all! This is my first post and I am looking for some help. Let me start by saying I have a macbook running OSX 10.4.11 (tiger). This seems to be a big factor in my decision! I am a wardrobe supervisor who works on cruise ships and loves to read. My trouble has always been that I then have to pack a lot of books for a 6 month contract, or don't pack the ones that I then want etc etc. With an ebook reader I could carry as many books as I want and just pack the one item. I had long been looking at a Kindle, but being in the UK put a dampener on that as I hear it still isn't really fully available or functional here when I'm home. I started looking at the Sony PRS-600 but then I read that it didn't work on OSX Tiger. I also heard it doesn't work with Snow Leopard either so that put that one out. I looked at an iPod Touch with Stanza, but I think the screen will be too small and the light too much of a strain on my eyes for whole books. The iPad is too new and too expensive. Any advice on what I should look at? I want a ereader around £200 or so that works will my mac and doesn't tie me down to one store. I want it to be pretty too I have several ebooks on my laptop that I would like to add to it, I have calibre currently keeping them organised. What should I be looking at? Where do I start?! I'm more confused now that when I started looking into it properly two days ago!! Do I really need to update my operating system to solve this? TIA! Joanne

07-11-2010, 08:20 PM	#2
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	Under 200, works with mac, doesnt tie you to one store, easy to pack works well with calibre and is pretty? PocketBook 360 you can read more about it in the PocketBook section of MobileRead here or on my website if you prefer a UK retailer there definitely several options for you including http://www.greenreader.co.uk/products/pocketbook-360 Last edited by Dulin's Books; 07-11-2010 at 08:26 PM.

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07-12-2010, 02:04 AM	#3
lila55 Fanatic Posts: 595 Karma: 456534 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Stuttgart, Germany Device: PocketBook 360° , iPhone 5, PRS-650, Sony PRS-T2, Sony PRS-T3, Tolino	The Pocketbook 360 would have been my suggestion as well. I also have a Mac, and the combination (with calibre to organize the books) works perfectly. It does all the things you want, and it is pretty as well (I think ), also very practical with the lid that can be just slid on to protect the screen when you are not reading - while you are reading it is clipped onto the back of the reader.

07-12-2010, 06:40 AM	#4
nick101 Groupie Posts: 190 Karma: 1248 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Milton Keynes UK Device: Sony PRS-600 Touch, iPhone	I have a Sony 600 and it works fine with my Snow Leopard Macs. I like it a lot: good size, easy to hold and use. Some people don't like the slightly reflective touch screen - if that's you, you may prefer the smaller 300. I can't comment on other e-readers, but one very significant (to me) characteristic of the Sony readers is their excellent build quality. If I were travelling a lot, that would be a big factor for me.

07-12-2010, 06:48 AM	#5
kealiiballao Bibliophile1980 Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Sony Reader PRS-600	I have a Sony-600 reader and it definitely works with a Mac. However, the Sony Reader Library software is something that I hate to use to sync my e-books. From the very first day the software was buggy, and for a period of 2 months I was unable to upload any books to my reader. I recommend downloading calibre to sync your e-books. The great thing about calibre is that it allows you to convert your ebooks to most major ebook file types. I current convert all my ebooks to epub formats even though calibre does support conversion for the sony native lrf formats. The one downside of the sony reader is it's reflective screen. If you have direct light on the reader, it is harder to read the screen text. However, I've managed to cope with it, and I really love it now.

07-12-2010, 10:19 AM	#6
bowiegirl1982 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 60 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK Device: none	Thank you so much for the help everyone! I'm now very interested in the Pocketbook 360, I like the screen better than the Sony 600. I've been having a read on here and am a little confused... can you put bought ebooks on the Pocketbook 360 or not?

07-12-2010, 11:36 AM	#7
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	Yes its compatible with Adobe drm for ePub and PDF.

07-12-2010, 12:05 PM	#8
bowiegirl1982 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 60 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK Device: none	Perfect! I think I'm going to get one of these - thank you all for the advice!

07-22-2010, 10:31 AM	#9
bowiegirl1982 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 60 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK Device: none	I just wanted to update this thread in case someone is looking for a reader with the same constraints I listed in the original post. I now have the PB360, it arrived yesterday, but my computer won't recognise it and now found a thread on here saying it might be my OS which is the problem. That was one of the major factors in buying the PB360 - I'd been told it would work. I am trying to solve the problem with help in this thread here: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=65136 just in case anyone is having the same problems with tiger. Not a happy reader right now!!

07-22-2010, 12:02 PM	#10
clintbradford Older ... slower ... Posts: 450 Karma: 1924 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Jurupa Valley CA US Device: Kobo, Kindles 2/3/Keyboard/Fire/Fire HD, HDX.	>> ... running OSX 10.4.11 (tiger) ... Why are you running such an old OS?

07-22-2010, 12:22 PM	#11
bowiegirl1982 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 60 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK Device: none	Because that's what my computer came with and I don't want to buy a new one. I bought a mac because they last longer than PCs and this one has. Why should I have to upgrade my system?

07-22-2010, 12:32 PM	#12
cmdahler Addict Posts: 292 Karma: 24688 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: Sony PRS-505, iPad	You can upgrade the operating system without having to buy an entirely new computer.

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07-22-2010, 12:35 PM	#13
bowiegirl1982 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 60 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Maidstone, Kent, UK Device: none	But I still have to spend £132 to do that, which is what I meant, Every time I've ever upgraded something like this it has lost stuff and not worked also. So I don't want to.

07-22-2010, 05:27 PM	#14
clintbradford Older ... slower ... Posts: 450 Karma: 1924 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Jurupa Valley CA US Device: Kobo, Kindles 2/3/Keyboard/Fire/Fire HD, HDX.	>> ... Why should I have to upgrade my system? OK. Sorry to interrupt. Gotta go and get on my horse and ride into town for my monthly food run. We refuse to get modern and buy a car ... By the way, Snow Leopard OS X is US$29 - I do not know where you got your "132 pounds" number. Clint Bradford

07-22-2010, 05:28 PM	#15
clintbradford Older ... slower ... Posts: 450 Karma: 1924 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Jurupa Valley CA US Device: Kobo, Kindles 2/3/Keyboard/Fire/Fire HD, HDX.	>> ... Every time I've ever upgraded something like this it has lost stuff and not worked also ... You have NEVER upgraded Mac OS software - so your logic is flawed. That is Microsoft Windows mentality. But I digress - I need to get complaining that my eReader doesn't support my Commodore 64.