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So I want to buy a Kindle

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Yeah, the Sony build quality is great. They are one of the only manufacturers of e-readers going with metal over plastic for their housings, and it gives it a noticeably more solid feel. The 505 with the included cover feels the most "book like" of any reader, imo.
chico said:
so i just checked the sony readers.
the 505 with the best display is discontinued here in europe. a shame...
reviewers say, that the 600 is great, but the display lacks the sharpness of the 505 because of the touch display.

so the only option right now is the sony prs-300, but his display has only a size of 5". too small? im not sure...
Click to expand...
The 300 is nice, but the screen was a bit small for me. You could probably find a lightly used or even new PRS-505 on eBay if you looked around. I liked mine so much that I already got a backup unit while they are easy to come by online. They go for around $200 U.S. used in good shape.
 
Ding said:
I read my Kindle in bed, almost exclusively. On balance, it's great for that.

While I hardly ever use the Kindle's keyboard, it's existence creates a large "bezel" at the bottom of the device. This is good in the sense that it keeps the screen unobstructed when it's resting on your blankets or whatever.

A book requires two hands to "operate", while the Kindle can be operated one-handed. And equally well with either hand. So, you can lie on your side if you want. This is not something I'd likely even attempt with a regular book, but it's surprisingly comfy to be able to change positions every once in a while while reading.

The only downside I can think of is that the Kindle requires somewhat better/brighter lighting as compared to a book. (The contrast is not as great as ink-on-paper.) So, you'll want a decent bedside reading light. (Slightly better than what you would want for a regular book, all else equal.)

Clip-on booklights work well also, since they only have to light one "page".
Click to expand...


thanks a lot, very informative post! pretty much sold on the concept, now to scrounge up some money :)
 
Forsete said:
I decided to get a E-reader, since I read quite a bit and books are piling up in my room and around my bed (#1 reading place). Sadly the selection where I live (Sweden) is not a whole lot both on books and readers. Adlbris is probably the biggest but they mostly (exclusively?) seem to focus on Swedish titles at the moment. :/

Anyway, I got the Sony 6" Touch reader. Very impressed by E-ink I must say, the screen has a bit of glare which I was annoyed by at first, but since E-ink does not have a view angle problem you just tilt the screen a little. Love the fact that you can make notes in the e-book (reason I decided to get the Sony).

I am very annoyed by the fact that the largest Ebook library Amazon has locked its book down to the Kindle. Please move on to ePub for all platforms!

Currently for international titles I am using ebooks.com

4565849746_db5402d038.jpg

Large view
The Touch reader has a bit of a diffusion layer on top of the E-ink, I never noticed that before I took this macro shot, so you really dont notice it when you use the device.

4565218667_81701c46e9.jpg

Large view
Its a very sexy looking device, feels very sturdy as its built out of metal and its thin (around 1 cm).

EDIT: Do we have a E-book thread yet?
Click to expand...
Wow, why aren't more people talking about this? My biggest gripe with ereaders is the lack of a decent touchscreen interface and Sony seems to have done it pretty well. What's the PDF support like? And does it have a note taking app? More pics please :)
 
Charred Greyface said:
Wow, why aren't more people talking about this? My biggest gripe with ereaders is the lack of a decent touchscreen interface and Sony seems to have done it pretty well. What's the PDF support like? And does it have a note taking app? More pics please :)
Click to expand...

PDF-support is something I haven't used a whole lot yet, but I did give it a try and it seemed to work well. You can choose the orientation (holding the unit so the screen is wider works best for PDF) and zoom around, panning around.

Yes it has a note taking application (you can scribble notes in the books themselves, or in a separate app), I can provide pictures of this later today. :PO
 
That diffusion layer probably also adds a bit more glare to the e-ink screen than regular screens have.

Touch is useless to me at this point, but that Sony looks pretty nice. Always liked their designs.
 
Coming off an Ipod touch, it's really tough to get used to the Sony touch reader when I was playing with it just because the difference in lag. Highlighting stuff would always have a noticeable delay, same with jotting notes.
 
VistraNorrez said:
That diffusion layer probably also adds a bit more glare to the e-ink screen than regular screens have.

Touch is useless to me at this point, but that Sony looks pretty nice. Always liked their designs.
Click to expand...

I think the diffusion layer is to reduce the glare that the touch screen adds. I think Sony had a prior model to this one with touch capability that had a serious glare problem. The diffusion layer makes the reflection look out of focus, so you never get a mirror effect like on the iPads or a glossy LCD-screen (its nowhere near as prone to glare as those).

Took some more pics.

4570716421_07e6e9f8f7.jpg

Large view (warning 7MB)
(Going from left to right)
Picture 1 - PDF file, rendering between pages is pretty snappy. This picture is showing a full page from the eReader manual.
Picture 2 - Zoom view with panning controlls.
Picture 3 - PDF view in the horizontal orientation. You can see a small icon at the bottom of the screen showing which part of the page is displayed, if you swipe your finger up and down you change between the view. Swipe left or right (or by using the buttons) you change page.
Picture 4 - Drawing/Handwritten notes application
Picture 5 - Showing notes being written in a book, also the underline feature.
Picture 6 - Regular notes
 
I'll be testing out the Kindle 2.0 for about a week. So far I'm loving the e-ink display, which really is quite amazing, but I'm not impressed with the whole user interface. It's not particullary user friendly, nor very advanced. I wasn't exactly expecting the iPod of ebooks, but still. Surprisingly, I find the speed (turning pages, navigating the menus), which I though would totally suck, to be the smallest problem here. In fact, it's not a problem at all. Also, I tried uploading some manga scans and, woah, looks great. But 6" really is way too small for this. That's what she said.
 
Forsete said:
I am very annoyed by the fact that the largest Ebook library Amazon has locked its book down to the Kindle. Please move on to ePub for all platforms!
Click to expand...

Didn't the EU make apple change their policy on enabling mp3 players other than the ipod to be compatible with itunes? This would be the same thing right?
 
That Sony reader looks nice. Two questions:

How big is the screen?

Is the there a "page advance" button on both the left and right bezel?
 
Snoodaard: Camera white balance. :P

PjotrStroganov: Not sure, but I hope that happens for Amazon. Really sucks being locked out.
B&N wont sell to people outside the US or Canada.

Ding: Screen is 6", the only buttons for page turning are the ones on the front and by touch.
 
Forsete said:
I think the diffusion layer is to reduce the glare that the touch screen adds. I think Sony had a prior model to this one with touch capability that had a serious glare problem. The diffusion layer makes the reflection look out of focus, so you never get a mirror effect like on the iPads or a glossy LCD-screen (its nowhere near as prone to glare as those).

Took some more pics.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3507/4570716421_07e6e9f8f7.jpg[IMG]
[URL="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3507/4570716421_b34ca1f59d_o.jpg"]Large view (warning 7MB)[/URL]
(Going from left to right)
Picture 1 - PDF file, rendering between pages is pretty snappy. This picture is showing a full page from the eReader manual.
Picture 2 - Zoom view with panning controlls.
Picture 3 - PDF view in the horizontal orientation. You can see a small icon at the bottom of the screen showing which part of the page is displayed, if you swipe your finger up and down you change between the view. Swipe left or right (or by using the buttons) you change page.
Picture 4 - Drawing/Handwritten notes application
Picture 5 - Showing notes being written in a book, also the underline feature.
Picture 6 - Regular notes[/QUOTE]Thanks for the pics :). It's exactly what I want [spoiler]forgetting color :/[/spoiler]. I could (should?) sell the iPad and get the Sony reader instead... But I can't give up color comics and magazines. If the Sony Reader were half the size and/or half the cost I could find a place for it in my bag.

Is that menu bar at the bottom always present? What a waste.
Click to expand...
 
total eReader newbie here......a tad off-topic, but some of these eReaders have very limited internet access, right? What's the likelihood of one of these things ever having access to certain websites like wikipedia, or the NYTimes, or whatever? I was just thinking yesterday at a cafe with my laptop, it'd be awesome to be able to pull out a small 10 ounce device and browse something like wikipedia in e-ink.
 
demon said:
total eReader newbie here......a tad off-topic, but some of these eReaders have very limited internet access, right? What's the likelihood of one of these things ever having access to certain websites like wikipedia, or the NYTimes, or whatever? I was just thinking yesterday at a cafe with my laptop, it'd be awesome to be able to pull out a small 10 ounce device and browse something like wikipedia in e-ink.
Click to expand...

Kindle has wikipedia and basic browsing in the states i believe.
 
demon said:
total eReader newbie here......a tad off-topic, but some of these eReaders have very limited internet access, right? What's the likelihood of one of these things ever having access to certain websites like wikipedia, or the NYTimes, or whatever? I was just thinking yesterday at a cafe with my laptop, it'd be awesome to be able to pull out a small 10 ounce device and browse something like wikipedia in e-ink.
Click to expand...
It sucks.
 
demon said:
total eReader newbie here......a tad off-topic, but some of these eReaders have very limited internet access, right? What's the likelihood of one of these things ever having access to certain websites like wikipedia, or the NYTimes, or whatever? I was just thinking yesterday at a cafe with my laptop, it'd be awesome to be able to pull out a small 10 ounce device and browse something like wikipedia in e-ink.
Click to expand...

The Kindle does that. The Mobile version of G-mail works great for quickly checking up on e-mails. Wikipedia works great but takes a little bit to load. Not too bad considering I can access it anywhere for free.
 
A lot of mobile websites are pretty good on Kindle. I like checking my twitter and facebook on it. Wikipedia isn't too bad either. Slower definitely, but I turn off images.

Forsete said:
I think the diffusion layer is to reduce the glare that the touch screen adds. I think Sony had a prior model to this one with touch capability that had a serious glare problem. The diffusion layer makes the reflection look out of focus, so you never get a mirror effect like on the iPads or a glossy LCD-screen (its nowhere near as prone to glare as those).
Click to expand...

Yea you are right. Hell it's right in the name. Still all the reviews I've seen of that exact model indicate it's glare is still worse than non touch models.

Looks real nice anyway.
 
Just took the plunge and bought the Sony Pocket Reader. Best Buy and Costco.com have it on sale this week for $150. If you order it from Costco, it also comes with a case and an AC adapter for the same price.
 
Am I crazy or did Amazon offer Kinle subscriptions to The Guardian at one point? It's not available now. Bummer.
 
just use calibre to automatically syndicate everything from the website for you! i have no idea how amazon's version of newspapers would justify the price - surely a formatted story on e-ink will be basically the same thing however you read it?
 
LCfiner said:
nice. the dedicated e-ink readers will need to keep fighting a price war now.

considering the lifetime, worldwide 3G access in the kindle, the sub 200 price is pretty awesome for anyone on the fence.
Click to expand...

just curious, as i'm looking to get an ereader, what is the difference between wi-fi and 3g? is the wi-fi a hotspot only use and 3g is everywhere?
 
metamonk said:
just curious, as i'm looking to get an ereader, what is the difference between wi-fi and 3g? is the wi-fi a hotspot only use and 3g is everywhere?
Click to expand...

That is correct. As an added bonus, the Kindle can access the internet wirelessly in many different countries for free. That's the big reason I am planning on buying one soon, because I will be living in Japan after August.
 
MadraptorMan said:
That is correct. As an added bonus, the Kindle can access the internet wirelessly in many different countries for free. That's the big reason I am planning on buying one soon, because I will be living in Japan after August.
Click to expand...

ah okay. thanks for explaining. i'll probably just get the wi-fi version since i don't travel much. i'll just take it with me to bn or some local wi-fi spots.
 
mantidor said:
how does 3G works for the kindle? don't you need a data plan from a carrier? I'm wondering because I don't live in the US.
Click to expand...


no data plan. you buy the device and you just connect to the 3G automatically. no user names, no passwords. it's just there.


the kindle arrives with your amazon account already loaded on it so there's nothing stopping you from getting a book as soon as you wake it up (as amazon clearly wants)
 
Liu Kang Baking A Pie said:
Being able to access the Internet and actually being a usable device for the Internet are two separate things.
Click to expand...

For email, facebook, and twitter I find the Kindle pretty decent. Even the secondapps neogaf is useable. Of course having any sort of smartphone is better. And the main advantage is free global wireless downloads of books, which is a pretty big selling point for a lot of people.

These price drops are great, in another year we'll be looking at $99 units from the major players.
 
The only reason to wait now is that Amazon is rumored to announce a new Kindle 3 model (code name "Shasta") this August.

Possibly wi-fi only, around $149, and the first e-readers on the market using the new higher contrast E-ink screens.
 
I bought my Kindle on May 31st for $249.

Naturally I was a bit bummed that I missed the price drop so I sent them an email.

Got the reply now:

Since you were charged a higher price for your Kindle than what is currently being offered, I'll issue a refund for the price difference in the amount of $70.00. You should see the refund in the next two to three business days.
Click to expand...

I definitely didn't expect them to be that nice. :D :D
 
I'm sorely tempted to get the Kindle now that it's less than $200, even though I can't justify the purchase :lol

Here's to hoping the Kindle 3 rumor and price is correct.
 
$149 Nook looks great, but a $189 Kindle tax free looks better. I just can't tell who has more books and which has cheaper prices. I also don't know if I'd ever use the 3G, all you need is wi-fi for a sec and you can buy a book right?
 
MadraptorMan said:
That is correct. As an added bonus, the Kindle can access the internet wirelessly in many different countries for free. That's the big reason I am planning on buying one soon, because I will be living in Japan after August.
Click to expand...

That's not true to my understanding. I remember looking into this for e-mail access while traveling to Europe only to be sad to find out that there are international fees that get added on. Sure you got access but it is not free when you do so.
 
Marty Chinn said:
That's not true to my understanding. I remember looking into this for e-mail access while traveling to Europe only to be sad to find out that there are international fees that get added on. Sure you got access but it is not free when you do so.
Click to expand...
Not anymore. I'm in Norway and get no extra fees when surfing the net. They're talking about it on mobileread and it seems this applies to everyone with a Kindle International.
 
So tempted right now, but with the next Kindle rumoured to be here in August I just have to hold back a little longer.
 
Zinga said:
So tempted right now, but with the next Kindle rumoured to be here in August I just have to hold back a little longer.
Click to expand...

I think I aim to get the one they reveal in August, though it just seems that its going to be a bit faster, I guess.

The new price of the Kindle is extremely attractive now, lol.
 
will see if the new kindle is up to snuff, and if not im going down on the nook.
(tries really hard not to make a Limp Bizkit reference)
 
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