Sony Reader Digital Book E-book E-reader

MPN: PRS505SC

Description: The Reader Digital Book offers a unique, on-the-go reading experience and is the perfect travel companion. With a compact and lightweight design, you can take it almost anywhere and read your books whenever and wherever you want. More compact than many paperbacks, it weighs ... read more

The Reader Digital Book offers a unique, on-the-go reading experience and is the perfect travel companion. With a compact and lightweight design, you can take it almost anywhere and read your books whenever and wherever you want. More compact than many paperbacks, it weighs about 9 ounces (without cover), is under a half-inch thin, and holds up to 160 eBooks. You can easily hold it in one hand, and with its rechargeable battery, you can turn up to 7,500 continuous pages on a single charge. minimize

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kakaku

Member Since
Feb 2007

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User has 3 Days of experience with this product

Good for reading eBooks (but not regular PDFs)

Strengths:

Build quality. Compact. Takes SD card and Memory Stick for extra storage.

Weaknesses:

Sloooow. Needs bigger screen.

Posted Apr 26, 2008 - The build quality is so good that it's even therapeutic just to handle this Sony reader. Screen resolution and contrast is very good, and there is no problem reading dedicated eBook content or plain text content. However, because of the small screen size, displaying PDF files that you download from websites or receive as e-mail attachments are often unpractical. Even after switching to horizontal view and using zoom feature, text (and diagrams) are so small and painful to read that you'd rather lug around paper copies. The other weakness is lack of responsiveness. I understand that this is a limitation of the e-ink technology in general and therefore not Sony's fault, but the bottom line is that it is unrealistic to flip through pages. In summary, this reader is an excellent choice if you intend to use it to read novels, but it is not very usable for browsing office documents.

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flexkeys from WA

Member Since
Jul 2004

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User has 3 Weeks of experience with this product

Save a Tree & Shelf Space

Strengths:

Lightning download speed, easy to read.

Weaknesses:

Cannot delete books unless connected to computer. Econnect website hard to view from computer library.

Posted Jan 14, 2008 - I absolutely love this thing! Very easy to hold - no hand fatigue. Sleek and portable. Very nice leather cover which is removable. The only downside is the website which can be viewed online, but you can only pay for and download books from your computer's 'library'. The left third of the screen is taken up with your source view which means you are scrolling back and forth. Recommend choosing books from the web view and then open your library, find those book(s) you want and buy.

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Green_Z from VA

Member Since
Oct 2004

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User has 1 Day of experience with this product

A must have for every traveler

Strengths:

Lighter and thinner than any novel, yet it reads like a book, not a computer screen.

Weaknesses:

Neither the unit nor the e-books are inexpensive and you can't swap or loan e-books like you might with a friend with a paper book. No Mac support either.

Posted Dec 15, 2007 - I first saw this at a local bookstore and fell in love. It felt great in the hands and sure beats lugging around a 3lb novel when traveling. But I hesitated because of the price. Then I saw an online store advertise it with a $50 gift card in addition to Sony's own offer of $200 worth of classic books. That was enough to hook me in. The e-ink on this reader looks just like a book so it's very easy on the eyes under any normal lighting condition. And because it's not backlit you can go through several books without have to charge it, so no need to bring a charger with you when you travel. The size is incredible if you travel to. Having to tend with bulky, heavy books can be a chore. The one thing I hate, but I guess is just part of modern life, is that the eBooks have Digital Rights Management embedded in them. That means you won't be able to buy an eBook and then when you are done give the copy to a friend or vice versa. The other thing that is a slight negative is that the eBooks cost as much as printed book on online bookstores or even brick and mortars with a coupon. There should be a much greater discount given there are fewer costs to distribution. So the eReader is truly a luxury. My guess though is that one day this will be the norm rather than the exception. I just wish they had this when I was in school. I know my back does.

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usasma from TX

Member Since
Mar 2003

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User has 2 Days of experience with this product

Good product, lousy support

Strengths:

Well readable in most light conditions when viewing the BBeB books

Weaknesses:

Slow to turn pages, no variable lighting, doesn't adjust font size to readable for imported .pdf files. Software wouldn't install on 64 bit Vista Ultimate

Posted 1 year ago - Overall I love this little toy - but am getting eyestrain trying to read the small lettering on imported .pdf documents. Others may want to try converting the .pdf to text or html - there's either support or converters for each.

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alevin from UT

Member Since
Jan 2001

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User has 3 Weeks of experience with this product

A great new and usegul gadget

Strengths:

I am sorry I didn't buy one sooner. It is a whole new way of reading. The display is great and it as easy to read as a book. Controls are well placed and it is simple to use.

Weaknesses:

Software from Sony is still a bit rough but hopefully will improve with time. Reading native PDF files can be difficult unless they are converted to the Sony format.

Posted Dec 2, 2007 - The Sony Ereader is a cutting edge product that should change how we read books. It can hold hundreds of books in the add in memory card slots. The battery life is long and the size of the unit is perfect.

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donglianzhen...

Member Since
Mar 2005

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best reader out there

Strengths:

clarity

Weaknesses:

price

Posted Dec 2, 2007 - as of now this is the best e book reader out there but there is still room for improvement. The contrast for this reader seems higher than that of the previous generation, and is really close to paper copy made of recycle paper.

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RGizzi from IL

Member Since
Jun 2008

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User has 14 Days of experience with this product

Great Product

Strengths:

Amount of book storage is amazing. I like the easy movement of turning pages, etc. Very lightweight

Weaknesses:

Until you start getting used to it, to me it feels clunky learning your way around, but then again, that can be with any new software

Posted 1 year ago - I just love it. It is so covenient for someone that is a voracious reader and hates to have to be carrying so many books around. I haven't throughly checked out all that I can do with it but if in time you could get online and download the local paper that day, that would be great

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