Ereader…What To Do?

Posted December 15, 2009 by Tracy in Reviews | 32 Comments

A couple of years ago I finally got an ereader. I had heard from a couple of friends that they had an ebookwise ereader and I checked it out. Not being flush with money at the time (when am I ever?) I thought it was a wise $$ choice and purchased one. I have been nothing but thrilled with it ever since. It has a back light and once I got the hang of loading books on it from the GEB Librarian it was even better. (I got the hang of it within just a few books).

So now it’s been a couple of years and I think I might have dropped the ereader or something, I’m not sure what I did, and the darn thing has a mark on it…internally. It was small at first but now it’s gotten a tad bit bigger and it throws me off my reading on almost every single page. (The picture on the left was taken with my phone – the blob doesn’t look all that big but it is compared to the word on the screen..and yes, it looks like the blob’s on my head. haha). I have to stop myself while reading to try and figure out what the darned word behind the blob is. lol Funny, yet frustrating.

So I’ve been thinking about getting a new ereader but I’m torn. I don’t know whether I should get a new ebookwise (which is currently on sale for $89.95), which I already know I love, or move to another one that I’ve been looking at, the Sony Reader Pocket Edition ($199.99). I’ve read some great reviews about this reader but I really am scared (yes, I’ll admit it) of heading into the unknown. Will I like it? Will it be as comfortable to hold as my current reader? Will it be as easy to work with as my current reader? Will the lack of back light bug me because I can’t read in bed without the light on and not bother my hubby…or while driving in the car at night? I tell ya, I’m torn!! I did read this review from Dear Author about the SRPE which helped answer some questions but I’m still up in the air.

So I want to get feedback from my reliable online friends. Do you have an ereader? Do you like it? Which one? Is it easy to use? What are the good and bad points? Is the lack of a back light (which is huge point in favor of the ebookwise) a problem for you? Are you looking at another? And if so, which one? If any of you have the Pocket Edition please let me know what you think. I’d like all the feedback I can get. And Christmas is coming! 🙂


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32 responses to “Ereader…What To Do?

  1. If you dropped the ereader, something internal might have happened. I've dropped my ereader several times, I suprised it's still in one piece.

    I ended up getting a Kindle a few months back and love it. But I've heard the Sony reader is a good one too. 🙂

  2. Do you still use your ebookwise at all Anna? Can you only download books from Amazon on the Kindle (I know very little about it) or can you upload your other content as well?

  3. I'm going to follow this discussion closely, because as I posted on twitter and facebook, my ebookwise just died after about 6 years (the port to plug in the charger slipped inside the case – ugh). And I'm in the same boat as you, Tracy. I love my ebookwise. And lord knows, the price is right.

  4. I've had my Sony Reader 505 for 3 years now and have been really happy with it. The no backlight issue isn't one for me, since I rarely read in bed. I have a lightweight booklight that easily clips on the cover I have for it – but that does give me a little glare.

    I know jack about formats – but my Sony easily reads PDF, EPUB and Word. The only downside is that if you like to blow up the text REALLY BIG, the formatting can get wonky with PDF. Totally readable, but it's not always "pretty." Doesn't bother me, but I hear it bothers some. I could probably "fix" this issue by converting files – but frankly I just don't care that much.

    Have you checked out the Sony Readers in Borders? Most of the Borders I've been in have been displaying the pocket editions and the touch screen 700 models. That will give you an idea of look and feel at least.

    If you haven't made a decision by the time Renee's bookstore hop rolls around – I'll bring along my 505 for you to play with.

  5. I have the Sony pocket edition and I think it's just okay. It was my first "real" e-reader, and it didn't fill me with joy as I hoped it would. It's nice to be able to read all my .pdf books without the hassle of conversion, but the screen isn't as large as I'd like, and the page-turn button is in an awkward place.

    Other than that…LOL…it's great. 😐

    If I could do it all over again, I'd probably go for the Sony 505.

    I hate to admit this, but I'd probably even pony up the extra $60 to drink the Kindle kool-aid.

  6. Tracy, I have a Sony 505 and I really love it! But I have heard that it's not a good time to buy an ereader – I hear better lower-priced ones are just over the horizon. Including possibly an apple reader. But then, how long have they been saying that?

  7. Oh Lori! What a bummer! Sorry to hear about the demise of your ereader. Wait…didn't you have another one? Or was that Nikki? I could swear one of you showed me something when we had lunch that last time.
    The ebookwise – I KNOW! The price is one of the huge factors as well.

    Chris – It says on the site that it supports 20+ different formats. Can you tell me what all the buttons on front are for?

    Wendy – I only learned about formats because of the ebookwise. I usually buy in html or .lit cuz they come out so nice when they are added to the ebookwise (btw – the lit doesn't got directly on, I have to convert it to html).
    I was at Borders the other day, but their displays weren't working! Wahhh! lol Just my luck. I'll have to check back and see if they've rectified the problem.

    Jen – interesting info…I appreciate your candor. I think the screen of the pocket is the same as the ebookwise so that wouldn't bother me. I think I'll have to look more into the AZtak and the 505.

    CJ – You're right…they've been crying wolf with the cheaper ereaders for a while now and it's not happening across the board. I think they're becoming more popular and that's probably why. Not sure. 🙂

  8. Sure. There are two different places to advance and reverse the book (maybe there's a third on the PRO?) – one on the bottom and one on the left side (wondering if the new one has a spot on the right, too).

    There are 10 numbered keys across the bottom (1-9, 0). On the navigation screens (before you open a book), you can select from 1-8 on any given screen, then use the 9 to reverse and the 0 to advance.

    After you open a book by selecting 1-8, you can use the 6 (which has a little M glyph on it) to make a bookmark, the 7 to pull up a menu (little menu glyph on it), or the 8 to change the text size (little magnifying glass on it).

    To the far right is a round button, which is split. One side of it has a back arrow, and it takes you to the previous menu level, rather than to the previous page. The other side of the round button says OK and has a menu glyph. In a book, it will bring up a menu with things like "Goto first page, Goto last page, Goto page xxxx (you can use your number keys to enter the page number), etc.

    Whew! 🙂

  9. Wow – that's very cool, thanks Chris. Now…on the Pocket (Jen) and the 505 and the Astak do you have to bookmark the page when you stop reading in order to find your spot? The ebookwise returns you right where you were when you turned it off, whether it's the menu or a certain page of a book. How does this work with the others?

  10. The Pocket saves your place when you turn it off. And if you decide you want to switch books mid-read, it will save your place in the current book while you browse the menu. It's pretty sweet in that regard. I mostly just don't like the placement of the page button. I read lying on my back in bed, and I end up dropping the damn thing on my face.

  11. No help here I'm sorry as the only eBook readers available in NZ are the iTouch and the iPhone…and they aren't actualy eBook readers 🙂 But I'm still going to get one…

    I look forward to seeing what you pick!

  12. I have the Sony 505 and love it. The eInk technology (I think the Kindle has that too, but don't get me started on the kindle) is amazing and doesn't strain my eyes. I don't read in bed so I don't need a backlight. But, if you've been happy w/ the ebookwise, that price is pretty sweet so I think you can't go wrong either way 🙂

  13. JenB already answered this – but yes, the Sony will bookmark your spot. And if you "leave" your current read to go to something else – when you get back to it, it gives you the option of picking up where you left off. There's also a bookmark feature where I'm assuming you could bookmark page after page to go back to certain passages – but I haven't really tinkered with this at all.

    I've had no luck reading HTML files on my Sony – so I'm assuming it no likey HTML. This could be an issue for you if you have a pile of HTML books you want to read without having to convert.

    Chris's Astak EZReader looks pretty sweet! And I keep hearing about readers going the route of reading on netbooks – although I personally don't know anybody who is. Doesn't mean they aren't out there, lurking in the blogosphere….

  14. I have the Sony PRS505, which I love! I'm actually thinking of getting the 300 for my daughter, as she's not a re-reader and doesn't need to expand the memory. I never leave home without it 🙂

    But I must say that an ereader for under 100, is very tempting.

  15. I have a netbook and really can't imagine using it as an ebook reader. It's heavier and doesn't have the battery life of an eink reader.

  16. Chris – good to know, thanks!

    jen – omg thank you. I needed that laugh today. The thought that it would fall in your face is soooo something that would happen to me, that's why I had to laugh. Imagery is everything. 🙂

    Orannia – that sucks! Those little things aren't big enough to read on for any length of time! I'm sad for you.

    Katie – It sounds like quite a few people are happy with their 505, it's good to hear.
    I know…the price is a factor and I think it's what's stopping me up.

    Wendy – I do have quite a few html books, but it's so easy to turn them into .doc's or .rtf's that it's not an issue.

    Lily – Another happy 505 user. Good to know.

    Mariana – Yet another happy 505er! I think I'm going to have to head to Borders again after work and see if they have their demo units working. They were attempting to fix them when I was there the other day.

    Ok – another question…What do you use to load books – does it come with a program and is it user friendly?
    Also – speaking of battery life…approx. how long do your readers last – both the 505 and the Astak?

  17. For the Astak, I just copy book files to it like it was a disk drive – I have books arranged in author folders, etc.

    However, you can also use the free program Calibre to load and manage your ebooks. I use it convert formats mostly, because I'm a geek and I like managing my reader manually.

    I have all sorts of thoughts on formats, etc, but that's better taken offline into email. 🙂

  18. I've found that my 505 has a long battery life but I've never "timed" it. According to the Sony site it lasts "7,500 continuous page turns."

    It does come with software for loading & organizing your ebooks – and I think it's very user friendly. There wasn't much of a learning curve, at least for me.

    http://ebookstore.sony.com/download/

    That being said, I know a lot of Sony users are using Calibre for their downloading and organizational needs and really love it. I haven't made that leap…..

  19. D'oh – forgot about battery life! The cool thing about eink is that it only uses power when changing pages or screens, not when it's just sitting there. I think the Astak claims about the same as the Sony (7500 continuous page turns). Probably it only has to be charged after 10-14 hours of serious reading. Possibly less often than that.

  20. Yes I still use my ebookwise for Ellora's Cave. You can have books not bought through Amazon(pdf's) transferred to your Kindle, but i think there is a small fee. I haven't tried that yet. But I did see a bunch of EC books now available for Kindle the other day.

    It's nice not having to deal with the GEB Lib. The only thing that bothers me about Kindle books is that the length is determined by Locations instead of actual number of pages.

    Kindle is like the ebookwise in stopping matters. When you go back to reading a book, it opens to whatever place you were at.

    I have seen the Sony at both Borders and Walmart. I looks very nice. It is an ideal size compared to other ereaders.

  21. What Wendy said. Sony upgraded their Reader Library too… so it's a bit prettier; and their book format is now ePub (when purchasing through Sony). The reader will continue to read pdf and lrf (BBeB), but all their books will be epubs.

    Also, I really like their cataloging (Collections) for my books, so I can separate my books as I like it. The defaults are Date, Author and Title; but the user can create "collections" to catalog the books.

    Battery life depends on page turning, but I get pretty good mileage.

    I use their bookmarks quite a bit. If I get bored with a book, I'll bookmark it and start another. I can get back to it if I choose to without having to remember what page. For the most part though, when my reading is interrupted I just leave the page up and turn the reader off. When I turn it back on, that same page is up; which is nice.

  22. Tracy I have the Kindle. I got it as a gift in February — the Kindle2 — and I love it. Yes, I purchase books from amazon for it, but I purchase must of my M/M ebooks and others in pdf format or html for it from other sites (publishers, AR ebooks, etc) and send it to my Kindle. I can read them just fine.

    The pdf files don't have to be converted and you can load them directly from your computer to your Kindle via USB cable or you can e-mail them wirelessly. The, html, mobipocket, and other documents need to be converted for the Kindle and they'll do that for you. I wind up mostly buying pdf because I have a Mac anyway and that's what I can download.

    Hope that helps. 🙂

  23. Alrighty then…I think I've narrowed the field to another ebookwise, a Sony 505 or the Astak EZreader. I hate making decisions! lol And again…I'm scared. 🙂

    Thank you all for your input. Hopefully I'll not have more questions…but you never know with me. 🙂

  24. OK, this isn't helpful to me, LOL. I would get a Kindle, but they charge for uploading your own content (if I'm understanding correctly). And like you, Tracy, I usually buy in html.

    I wouldn't want to have to convert all my html books to epub in order to read them on the Sony, although I'm sure there's a program that can batch them and change them all at once.

    And, most stores don't let you download the book again in a different format (Samhain being the exception – they rock). So all the conversion is on me.

    Hate to say it, but my ebookwise is looking better and better. Inexpensive, dimmable backlight (hubby appreciates this late at night when he's sleeping), and all my books will still work on it.

    My only concern is if everyone stops selling html and ePub becomes the standard everywhere. In which case I'd have to buy a new reader again.

    Ugh!

  25. No! Lori, don't worry. Epub's looking like it might win the standard wars, and html is so basic – it's what the web is written in.

    Calibre can batch convert for you, too. You will be ok. 🙂

  26. Lor – after looking at all of the readers in the last couple of days I have to say that I'm leaning toward either another ebookwise or the Astak reader. I looked up yet more info about it tonight and it seems to be a great little thing. That back light issue is really the only thing holding me back. Oh, and the cost, but my hubby's being generous so I'm debating taking him up on it while he's feeling it! lol

  27. A coworker brought in a Sony 505 today. She's selling the reader & the light for $150. The buttons aren't terribly responsive, but the price is good. Wondering if this is worth it. Cause I'm also leaning toward getting another ebookwise. Inexpensive and I love it. Do I really need to upgrade right now?

  28. Hmmmm on the html on the Sony – I was sure I just loaded html files the other day. I will have to go check. Other than they were missing the emdash they came out sweet on my 505.

    Love my 505!

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