Binding: Electronics Brand: Sony EAN: 0027242723658 Label: Sony Manufacturer: Sony Model: PRS-505/LC Modem Description: None Native Resolution: 6' Publisher: Sony Studio: Sony System Memory Type: SDRAM Warranty: 1 year warranty
Features:
Easy to read display - e-paper display with quicker page turns
Premium design - Simple, yet sophisticated with easier navigation
Compact and lightweight
Integrated eBookstore with 20K titles
Up to 7,500 page turns on full charge
Rating: - Be careful which Amazon supplier you purchase from.
I live the PRS 505, but am returning it because I need a larger screen for my business docs. Amazon used Ace Photo and Digital as the supplier, and they only have a 15 day return policy as opposed to Amazon's 30 days. So, guess what, it cost me 15% plus the original shipping amount to return the unit. Be very careful which Amazon supplier you purchase from.
Rating: - PRS-505 Review After 4 weeks of use
The following is copied from my blog entry on the PRS-505
This review is based on several weeks of use with a personally purchased PRS-505. I understand that SONY just announced an upgraded reader - The PRS-700, but I feel this review can easily be extrapolated to provide you with an idea of how the 700 would compare.
This review is unbiased and written from the perspective of a middle aged individual who enjoys casual book reading.
I will not dwell on the specs or features of the product. These are easily obtained from the SONY website itself or from the many reviews posted on the web by others. In that sense this is more a discussion of my feelings about the product than a formal review that simply rehashes much of the product literature.
First, some observations about e-ink and the vizplex display that both the SONY and Amazon kindle share. The "paper like" qualities you may hear about are simply somewhat overstated in all the literature and in the many reviews published on the net. The e-ink background is simply not paper "white" like one would expect (or hope for). To me it is more like the color of pages from an aged paperback book.
Advantages to this screen over an LCD device are numerous for sure- it is static (no refresh or back lighting to strain the eyes); can be easily (and perhaps optimally) viewed outdoors; uses very little power. So little that a battery charge lasts up to several weeks (you'll read over and over on other reviews how power is only consumed when a page is refreshed and that a single battery charge will last for over 7,000 page flips etc.); doesn't get warm with use (again typically little or no power is being consumed thus little heat is dissipated; no blinking lights or distracting fans or noise. In short, it is pretty much as passive as a paper book in your hands.
Some disadvantages of this particular screen and technology - The display is only 6" on the diagonal. Keep in mind the entire reader itself is smaller than a typical DVD case. This is something that many perhaps won't fully realize until they have the product in their hands. It does not scroll text. Instead It "flips" pages by refreshing the entire screen at once. The refresh cycle is roughly 1 to 2 seconds from the time a button to flip a page is pressed.
Font size selection is limited to 3 magnification levels, but I suspect this is adequate for most users. The font type itself is fixed. I suspect others might wish they had some flexibility there.
Like with a standard paper book, proper lighting is key to viewing the text comfortably. I would say the display is at its best outdoors in plain dayllight. Unfortunately most of my free time these days happens in the evenings and indoors. I find that my bedroom lighting is not entirely sufficient to allow me to comfortably read the device. I also suspect that the supplied binder blocks some of the light as I hold the reader with it, yet I am hesitant to bend it back all the way while reading since I suspect doing so will, over time, ruin the cardboard that gives it structure.
I have therefore resorted to using a clip-on LED reading light (the PRS700 solves this by including front mounted LEDs integrally into the unit) with the device for my nightly reading sessions.
Since the PRS-505 lacks wireless access, the only way to get reading material into the unit is via the supplied USB cable or by pre-loading a memory card (memory stick and SD- thank you SONY card slots are both available)
The software that ships with the unit to facilitate the loading of ebooks unto the reader is functional if unexciting. It seems sluggish on my PC, but I will assume this is a function of my PC for now.
I have only tried the Sony online book store to download a couple of the classic titles included with purchase (an ongoing promo lets you download 100 classic titles for free with purchase) These are mostly titles that are available elsewhere for free anyways, but gets you to practice the experience of getting a book from the SONY site in the hopes that you will plunk down some cash for a non-free book soon thereafter.
If you are like me then you probably did not buy this reader to then purchase or re-purchase every single book you intend to read on it. You are therefore, likely to spend a considerable amount of time locating, downloading and converting e-book formats to transfer them unto the PRS-505. In fact, I can easily say that I have spent much more time doing just that than actually reading on the device.
I found a free third party app titled Calibre was extremely useful for this purpose. It too seemed sluggish at times on my PC, but it appears that the developer is constantly improving its functionality and overall user experience (based on the number of releases just in the past month).
The bottom line. These e-ink based eBook readers. taken with a broad brush, take a small subset of what a laptop or desktop pc can readily do (in this case display text and play mp3s) and try to approximate the experience to that of reading a traditional book.
I suspect the makers of these products are looking for customers who read voraciously, travel a lot and are looking for the latest titles and can devote a lot of money to that pursuit. Amazon realized this and made it very convenient for that type of individual to keep their Kindle reader current and loaded with material by providing free wireless access to their book store. Sony's USB tether removes much of that spontaneous buying instinct.
These e-ink readers serve a small niche market for now (in a sense, I see them as gadgets for the elite). Admittedly, given their pricing models (these things retail for $300 and up) there is significantly much more bang for the buck to be had with a nice lightweight laptop or even a PMP (personal media player) - the apple iTouch and the new Archos players come to mind.
Before purchasing this product I did research just about every other commercially available ebook reader product. Having said that, once you know what you are in for, I am partial to the Sony reader vs the offerings of the other makers at this time.
For one, the aesthetics of the SONY beat the Kindle with little argument from any sides (pun intended). The products from Irex (the Iliad) in its various incarnations are not as reliable, require shipment overseas for any potential repairs, are much pricier and are simply not as portable or efficient as the SONY and Amazon products. Unless you need pen input capability in a reader I see no reason to go with one of these devices. Bookeen and other similar devices from Asia are essentially "also rans" and in some cases further reduce the already small viewable screen area.
Other devices are simply "vaporware" at this point and we will have to see what comes from them in 2009 (products from ASTAK and Plastic Logic come to mind).
What I (and just about everyone else I know) am clamoring for is something similar to the SONY reader in terms of weight, power consumption and unobtrusive operation (quiet, cool), but with a somewhat larger color display that can be easily viewed under various lighting conditions and can communicate wirelessly via WiFi. Pen and touch input capability would be a plus as well as voice recognition. In short, a lightweight tablet PC that is dedicated to playing/displaying media and browsing/interacting via the web. Steve Jobs will probably rescue me some day.
I welcome your thoughts about the Sony and other e-readers and particularly how your experience compares to mine.
PS - I should mention that SONY offers a $100 to $150 cash back credit from time to time for opening up a SONY Visa credit card and charging your first purchase of $299 or greater making their reader a relative bargain at a net cost of $200 or $250 depending on the deal you grab.
Rating: - Sony Reader
Exceeded my expectations. I own the previous version of the reader and this one is great.
Rating: - Great Way to Read!
I ordered this product to help me get more reading done without lugging around a ton of books. So far, I've barely put it down. The best part is that it is compatible with my local public library's digital offerings, so I can digitally "check out" eBooks and read them on this reader. Works great! Be aware, though, the Sony eBook software that you need for it is a little clunky and could use a lot of polishing, but I would only need it if I wanted to buy a book from the Sony store or if I wanted to synch up my Reader with music or pictures on my computer. Mostly, I just use Adobe's Digital Editions software to drag and drop books I check out onto this really nice reader device and I'm done!
Rating: - My solution for reading on the road
As a very frequent traveler, I was in the past carrying a ton-load of documents to read. Documents going from corporate reports, articles from business magazines, product reviews ... Ect, ect. And also one or two books ... It was always a serious hassle.
After having this eReader, I transfer PDF files easily to the Sony PRS-505 and have all documents on one (small) device. If tired of reading business documents, I switch quickly to one of my favorite books.
After using it for the last month, I cannot imagine to go back to the files-and-book-carrying experience!
The quality of reading is great. The text quality is like amazingly sharp!
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- Sony Reader