This review is from: Sony Reader Pocket Edition Silver PRS-300SC (Electronics)
I rarely, if ever, write reviews for products, simply because I rarely find a product that dramatically exceeds, or fails to meet, its published description. The PRS-300 “Pocket Edition” ereader is a device that did provide a far better than expected experience.
One device with which I was previously as impressed was the iPod Touch, which I’ve found to be simply one of the best consumer goods purchases that I’ve ever made. Funny enough, my principle use for the Touch was as an ebook reader, and it was the Touch’s shortcomings as an ebook reader that eventually prompted me to purchase the Sony PRS-300 “Pocket Edition”.
I read extensively, both on my work commute (1.5 hours each workday on public transit), and in the evenings and on weekends. Conservatively, I probably read upwards of 20 hours each week, both ebooks and downloaded news articles and the like. I previously purchased the Sony PRS-505, in late 2007, and found it to be a good ereader. The PRS-505 provided a sharp, glare-free page image that was easy and relaxing to read. Unfortunately, it was a bit delicate, and within a few weeks of purchasing I had managed to drop it (from only about 2.5 feet) and crush the upper corner, dislodging the power slider. After having it fixed under warranty, I held onto the PRS-505 until mid-2008, when I purchased an iPod Touch. I read on the Touch, and–briefly–on the Amazon Kindle 2, until I purchased the PRS-300.
The new PRS-300 “Pocket Edition” over-comes several of the short-comings of the Sony PRS-505 and Amazon Kindle 2:
1. Great form-factor: The PRS-300 really will fit in a pocket, either a jacket pocket or very comfortably in a pocket of my cargo shorts on the weekend. This is an improvement over the PRS-505, which always seemed either slightly too big (to fit in a jacket pocket, or anything short of backpack or my briefcase), or not quite large enough (to read work PDFs with charts and graphs, or more structured documents, like instruction manuals. The PRS-505 and the Kindle 2 were also awkward to tote by hand (which is why I dropped the PRS-505, while trying to get my mail). While the Pocket Edition won’t display large, structured documents either, you recognize this as a trade-off for this model, in favor of its truly convenient size. It’s perfect for books, news articles, blog posts and the like, and, not having to carry it by hand or in bag, I take it with me more often when I’m out, and use it more than either the PRS-505 or Kindle 2.
2. Excellent ergonomics: The PRS-300 simply feels great in the hand: it has excellent balance, and a really comforting heft that reminds me of the way a solid paperback book just rest in your hand without the need to consciously grasp it, or constantly adjust it. This is a true improvement over both the PRS-505 and the Kindle 2; both of these devices were very, very light, which in consumer electronics is usually the Holy Grail of product design, but neither was particularly well-balanced and I was always conscious of having to exercise control of the device, especially when clicking the page-turn buttons. The Pocket Edition isn’t by any means heavy–it’s actually a lighter than both the PRS-505 and the Kindle 2, at about 7.5 ounces–but the smaller form-factor, coupled with its superb balance, allows you to comfortably fade into your reading, without the physicality of the device intruding. While that kind of device transparency was a stated goal of the Kindle, I have to admit that I only rarely was able to read with the Kindle 2 without it intruding in some way (usually to re-balance it in my hand). The Pocket Edition has only one page-turn button–the large round navigation pad in the bottom-center–but the pad is in comfortable reach of your thumb while holding the Reader on the side. The button is firm without being obtrusively difficult to press (which was often a failing I noticed on both the PRS-505 and the Kindle 2). Of all the things that I enjoy about the Pocket Edition, its truly comfortable, unobtrusive physical design is probably the stand-out quality.
3. More durable design: The PRS-300 is, like the iPhone, or iPod Touch, or your laptop, a piece of consumer electronics that you simply don’t want to drop. Electronics are delicate (unless you spend ungodly amounts of money on Toughbooks and the like), and not tolerant of abuse. That said, the casing and design of the Pocket Edition is a very large step up from the PRS-505, which as I mentioned I managed to grievously injure with one (not very far) drop. I have “Whoops”-ed the Pocket Edition a couple of times, and was impressed that the more solid aluminum casing, coupled with the plastic end-caps and power slider, made it a great deal more resilient than its predecessor. In terms of durability, it’s probably about comparable to the Kindle 2; the Kindle 2, though, at least from Amazon’s marketing materials, does seem designed to “bounce back”…
This review is from: Sony Reader Pocket Edition Silver PRS-300SC (Electronics)
I never thought I would ever embrace digital books, but I think this reader has forever changed that. Every concern I had about an eReader was addressed.
Readability: It’s ‘just’ like reading on paper. In fact it took me all of about 20 minutes to realize that I actually prefer it to paper. With paper books you get shadows, you have to angle the book depending on which side of the pages you’re reading on, etc. Here, the ambient light is distributed evenly by the material on the screen so the text is easy to read. And there is little, if any, noticeable glare or reflection. Some people dislike the lack of a backlight, but I actually prefer it because its much less stressful on the eyes. The background is a soft white color thats very easy on the eyes. You can resize font to your preference. The 3 sizes available here are plenty. Its especially great for incredibly nearsighted people like me who like to take their glasses off when they read and not have to squint. between all of this, it makes for a very comfortable reading experience. I can read much faster on this device than on paper. I guess if I had to nitpick, the only thing thats distracting is the silver finish of the device itself, which actually reflects more light than the screen. If you think this could be an issue for you, I’d recommend a darker color.
Usability: Its a breeze. Its incredibly easy to use, and everything is very plainly labeled. Turning pages, bookmarks, and zooming are all performed with single button presses. Your library is organized alphabetically of course, so just navigate ansd click. It also remembers your place for you, and in addition you can create your own bookmarks. While in a book you can use the numbers on the side of the screen to key in a specific page number. Its just the right weight, and it feels just right when you’re using it. The software is very iTunes like in both appearance and function. It generally works as it should, though I find it a bit slower than I’d prefer when performing functions of browsing the Sony eBook store. One function I was surprised was missing was the lack of ability to edit file info in the software; if you get an eBook thats incorrectly labeled there’s really no way to fix it in the software.
What I’ve found is that its best to bypass the software entirely…Windows (and probably Mac as well) recognizes this as a mass storage device so you can put all your content on the reader using Windows Explorer or Mac Finder. MUCH faster. You can transfer books via drag n drop in seconds as opposed to minutes using the software. You can download Google books directly from Google (easier to browse) and drag them to the ‘books’ folder.
Content: a TON of it. I find the Sony store to be a bit too pricey though. The bestsellers are pretty reasonably priced but everything else costs just as much as its paper counterpart, so if you’re looking to save money on paperbacks and such buying this…hold off for now until the prices drop, if indeed they ever do. The best thing is the integration with Google Books. Granted, its all ‘older’ stuff but there’s a lot of great classics on there that should be in everyone’s library. It also dispays .txt .doc and .pdf files, so you can make your own content. For example, if you use the Firefox browser and have the PrintPDF add-on installed, you can literally print any page to a pdf and transfer it to the Sony for much for comfortable reading. For example…your local news website or magazines? It also supports the epub format and allows digital library checkouts. Unfortunately no library in my area supports this as of yet, but I’m hoping they do soon. This could revolutionize the concept of the library…for better or for worse. As far as storage, again some have griped about there being ‘only’ 512 mb of storage (only 440 mb is usable). When you consider most ebooks are 1 or 2 mb in size, this allows you carry 300 – 400 books around. I dont know about you, but ive never needed access to that many books at once in my life. But if thats an issue, look elsewhere.
So that’s my breakdown of the device itself.
Backing up a bit…the big decision I had to make was whether which model to get; Kindle, the Sony 300 or the 600. The big drawback with Kindle is DRM. It seems like a very controlled and locked down system. Sony supports many more open formats. Plus I don’t care about wireless…it drains the battery quicker and I want to spend as little time charging a reading device as possible. Plus, as I said, 300 – 400 books are plenty for me to carry around. As far as readability, the Kindle screen looks bigger, but the amount of reading space is almost identical between this and the Kindle 2. Kindle uses more screen space for displaying battery life, etc…where as the Sony uses literally the entire screen. I also found the Kindle’s font looked more thin and…
This review is from: Sony Reader Pocket Edition Silver PRS-300SC (Electronics)
I did a lot of research before I decided to buy the PRS-300. Initially I was set on the PRS-600 due to the extra features, including the touchscreen. After reading lots of reviews and doing some soul searching, I realized that the smaller brother, the PRS-300 is actually the perfect ebook reader for me. I will also mention that this is my first such device and I’ve been wanting one for a long time.
What drove me away from the PRS-600 (which otherwise has a whole bunch of useful extra features) is the fact that the screen isn’t as clear as the PRS-300 due to the extra layer for the touchscreen. In fact, the PRS-300 supposedly has the best and most contrasty screen of any reader currently in production. And this is the main reason that finally decided it for me. I want my reading experience to be as close to reading a book as possible.
To those who complain that this reader is missing a wireless connection I will say this: you are a bit misguided my friends. In fact, I wouldn’t have bought this reader if it had a wireless connection (like the Kindle). A book doesn’t have wireless and it works just fine. I don’t want to have the surprise to find my books deleted remotely. In fact I love the fact that I can connect my reader to my computer with a cable whenever I want to. Once I load my books on it, a long time will pass before I wish to fiddle with them again. And no, I don’t read news on the device. Strictly books.
The device itself is very elegant and well built. Even though the back is not metal (only the front is), the construction feels very sturdy and solid. It’s a little bit weighty in your hand, but just enough to not feel flimsy. The first time you lay your eyes on it might be a surprise because the PRS-300 is smaller in person than in pictures. Just so you can get an idea, it has the same width as a classic paperback but it is about 1 inch shorter. I find it very easy to hold in one or two hands.
The buttons are very satisfying to click and I realized that I prefer to use them rather than a touchscreen that can get grimy from all the touching.
The lack of a expansion (SD) slot is not an issue. I’ve loaded over 22 books on it and I still have over 300 MB left. Those 22 books will probably require 2 years to finish since some of them are over 1000 pages in length. Space is really not an issue here.
The screen is very good but it could have been better. More contrast would be nice but the e-ink technology is still young. I don’t mind the fact that it is only 5″ instead of 6″ because the resolution is the same as for the bigger model.
One other thing that could have been better is the speed of operation. Page turning is reasonably quick, and even though it’s not instant, you will get used to the speed after a while. These days I don’t even notice it. What would have been nice though is a slightly speedier processor. Some large books (1000+ pages) take a long time to load the first time but I assume that’s because the device is trying to format the book for its screen.
Battery life seems adequate, although I haven’t reached the claimed 7000-8000 pages with one charge. I’ve only fully charged the battery once though but on the first charge I must have read about 1000 pages before it gave out. I’m sure battery life will improve after a few charge/discharge cycles.
Another big issue with this reader is that the battery is not user-replaceable. Some people have stayed away from this reader due to this particular reason but I decided that the battery won’t lose more than half its capacity in the next 2 years, by which time the device will probably be replaced by something modern anyway so it’s really not such a big issue for me.
All these apparent negatives aren’t enough for me to give it less than 5 stars because as I said at the beginning, I had researched the PRS-300 thoroughly before I took the plunge and I knew exactly what its limitations were.
2 more things I want to mention before ending this.
1. I didn’t use Sony’s software. I used the freeware Calibre instead. It’s an awesome piece of software although it seems to have some bugs and it is a bit slow in operation.
2. Although Sony doesn’t supply the PRS-300 with a wall charger, you can check around your home for a compatible one with a mini-USB plug. I found out that the charger for my Garmin Nuvi 350 GPS works just fine since it has a compatible voltage which is about 5V. A word of warning here: do this at your discretion; I will not be held responsible if you damage your reader by using a 3rd party charger. What worked for me might not necessarily work for you.
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Sony PRS-300 “Pocket Edition”: A Truly Excellent, Portable eReader,
I rarely, if ever, write reviews for products, simply because I rarely find a product that dramatically exceeds, or fails to meet, its published description. The PRS-300 “Pocket Edition” ereader is a device that did provide a far better than expected experience.
One device with which I was previously as impressed was the iPod Touch, which I’ve found to be simply one of the best consumer goods purchases that I’ve ever made. Funny enough, my principle use for the Touch was as an ebook reader, and it was the Touch’s shortcomings as an ebook reader that eventually prompted me to purchase the Sony PRS-300 “Pocket Edition”.
I read extensively, both on my work commute (1.5 hours each workday on public transit), and in the evenings and on weekends. Conservatively, I probably read upwards of 20 hours each week, both ebooks and downloaded news articles and the like. I previously purchased the Sony PRS-505, in late 2007, and found it to be a good ereader. The PRS-505 provided a sharp, glare-free page image that was easy and relaxing to read. Unfortunately, it was a bit delicate, and within a few weeks of purchasing I had managed to drop it (from only about 2.5 feet) and crush the upper corner, dislodging the power slider. After having it fixed under warranty, I held onto the PRS-505 until mid-2008, when I purchased an iPod Touch. I read on the Touch, and–briefly–on the Amazon Kindle 2, until I purchased the PRS-300.
The new PRS-300 “Pocket Edition” over-comes several of the short-comings of the Sony PRS-505 and Amazon Kindle 2:
1. Great form-factor: The PRS-300 really will fit in a pocket, either a jacket pocket or very comfortably in a pocket of my cargo shorts on the weekend. This is an improvement over the PRS-505, which always seemed either slightly too big (to fit in a jacket pocket, or anything short of backpack or my briefcase), or not quite large enough (to read work PDFs with charts and graphs, or more structured documents, like instruction manuals. The PRS-505 and the Kindle 2 were also awkward to tote by hand (which is why I dropped the PRS-505, while trying to get my mail). While the Pocket Edition won’t display large, structured documents either, you recognize this as a trade-off for this model, in favor of its truly convenient size. It’s perfect for books, news articles, blog posts and the like, and, not having to carry it by hand or in bag, I take it with me more often when I’m out, and use it more than either the PRS-505 or Kindle 2.
2. Excellent ergonomics: The PRS-300 simply feels great in the hand: it has excellent balance, and a really comforting heft that reminds me of the way a solid paperback book just rest in your hand without the need to consciously grasp it, or constantly adjust it. This is a true improvement over both the PRS-505 and the Kindle 2; both of these devices were very, very light, which in consumer electronics is usually the Holy Grail of product design, but neither was particularly well-balanced and I was always conscious of having to exercise control of the device, especially when clicking the page-turn buttons. The Pocket Edition isn’t by any means heavy–it’s actually a lighter than both the PRS-505 and the Kindle 2, at about 7.5 ounces–but the smaller form-factor, coupled with its superb balance, allows you to comfortably fade into your reading, without the physicality of the device intruding. While that kind of device transparency was a stated goal of the Kindle, I have to admit that I only rarely was able to read with the Kindle 2 without it intruding in some way (usually to re-balance it in my hand). The Pocket Edition has only one page-turn button–the large round navigation pad in the bottom-center–but the pad is in comfortable reach of your thumb while holding the Reader on the side. The button is firm without being obtrusively difficult to press (which was often a failing I noticed on both the PRS-505 and the Kindle 2). Of all the things that I enjoy about the Pocket Edition, its truly comfortable, unobtrusive physical design is probably the stand-out quality.
3. More durable design: The PRS-300 is, like the iPhone, or iPod Touch, or your laptop, a piece of consumer electronics that you simply don’t want to drop. Electronics are delicate (unless you spend ungodly amounts of money on Toughbooks and the like), and not tolerant of abuse. That said, the casing and design of the Pocket Edition is a very large step up from the PRS-505, which as I mentioned I managed to grievously injure with one (not very far) drop. I have “Whoops”-ed the Pocket Edition a couple of times, and was impressed that the more solid aluminum casing, coupled with the plastic end-caps and power slider, made it a great deal more resilient than its predecessor. In terms of durability, it’s probably about comparable to the Kindle 2; the Kindle 2, though, at least from Amazon’s marketing materials, does seem designed to “bounce back”…
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|Great For Recreational Readers, Students / Researchers Should Get the 600,
I never thought I would ever embrace digital books, but I think this reader has forever changed that. Every concern I had about an eReader was addressed.
Readability: It’s ‘just’ like reading on paper. In fact it took me all of about 20 minutes to realize that I actually prefer it to paper. With paper books you get shadows, you have to angle the book depending on which side of the pages you’re reading on, etc. Here, the ambient light is distributed evenly by the material on the screen so the text is easy to read. And there is little, if any, noticeable glare or reflection. Some people dislike the lack of a backlight, but I actually prefer it because its much less stressful on the eyes. The background is a soft white color thats very easy on the eyes. You can resize font to your preference. The 3 sizes available here are plenty. Its especially great for incredibly nearsighted people like me who like to take their glasses off when they read and not have to squint. between all of this, it makes for a very comfortable reading experience. I can read much faster on this device than on paper. I guess if I had to nitpick, the only thing thats distracting is the silver finish of the device itself, which actually reflects more light than the screen. If you think this could be an issue for you, I’d recommend a darker color.
Usability: Its a breeze. Its incredibly easy to use, and everything is very plainly labeled. Turning pages, bookmarks, and zooming are all performed with single button presses. Your library is organized alphabetically of course, so just navigate ansd click. It also remembers your place for you, and in addition you can create your own bookmarks. While in a book you can use the numbers on the side of the screen to key in a specific page number. Its just the right weight, and it feels just right when you’re using it. The software is very iTunes like in both appearance and function. It generally works as it should, though I find it a bit slower than I’d prefer when performing functions of browsing the Sony eBook store. One function I was surprised was missing was the lack of ability to edit file info in the software; if you get an eBook thats incorrectly labeled there’s really no way to fix it in the software.
What I’ve found is that its best to bypass the software entirely…Windows (and probably Mac as well) recognizes this as a mass storage device so you can put all your content on the reader using Windows Explorer or Mac Finder. MUCH faster. You can transfer books via drag n drop in seconds as opposed to minutes using the software. You can download Google books directly from Google (easier to browse) and drag them to the ‘books’ folder.
Content: a TON of it. I find the Sony store to be a bit too pricey though. The bestsellers are pretty reasonably priced but everything else costs just as much as its paper counterpart, so if you’re looking to save money on paperbacks and such buying this…hold off for now until the prices drop, if indeed they ever do. The best thing is the integration with Google Books. Granted, its all ‘older’ stuff but there’s a lot of great classics on there that should be in everyone’s library. It also dispays .txt .doc and .pdf files, so you can make your own content. For example, if you use the Firefox browser and have the PrintPDF add-on installed, you can literally print any page to a pdf and transfer it to the Sony for much for comfortable reading. For example…your local news website or magazines?
It also supports the epub format and allows digital library checkouts. Unfortunately no library in my area supports this as of yet, but I’m hoping they do soon. This could revolutionize the concept of the library…for better or for worse. As far as storage, again some have griped about there being ‘only’ 512 mb of storage (only 440 mb is usable). When you consider most ebooks are 1 or 2 mb in size, this allows you carry 300 – 400 books around. I dont know about you, but ive never needed access to that many books at once in my life. But if thats an issue, look elsewhere.
So that’s my breakdown of the device itself.
Backing up a bit…the big decision I had to make was whether which model to get; Kindle, the Sony 300 or the 600. The big drawback with Kindle is DRM. It seems like a very controlled and locked down system. Sony supports many more open formats. Plus I don’t care about wireless…it drains the battery quicker and I want to spend as little time charging a reading device as possible. Plus, as I said, 300 – 400 books are plenty for me to carry around. As far as readability, the Kindle screen looks bigger, but the amount of reading space is almost identical between this and the Kindle 2. Kindle uses more screen space for displaying battery life, etc…where as the Sony uses literally the entire screen. I also found the Kindle’s font looked more thin and…
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|The ideal ebook reader for me,
I did a lot of research before I decided to buy the PRS-300. Initially I was set on the PRS-600 due to the extra features, including the touchscreen. After reading lots of reviews and doing some soul searching, I realized that the smaller brother, the PRS-300 is actually the perfect ebook reader for me. I will also mention that this is my first such device and I’ve been wanting one for a long time.
What drove me away from the PRS-600 (which otherwise has a whole bunch of useful extra features) is the fact that the screen isn’t as clear as the PRS-300 due to the extra layer for the touchscreen. In fact, the PRS-300 supposedly has the best and most contrasty screen of any reader currently in production. And this is the main reason that finally decided it for me. I want my reading experience to be as close to reading a book as possible.
To those who complain that this reader is missing a wireless connection I will say this: you are a bit misguided my friends. In fact, I wouldn’t have bought this reader if it had a wireless connection (like the Kindle). A book doesn’t have wireless and it works just fine. I don’t want to have the surprise to find my books deleted remotely. In fact I love the fact that I can connect my reader to my computer with a cable whenever I want to. Once I load my books on it, a long time will pass before I wish to fiddle with them again. And no, I don’t read news on the device. Strictly books.
The device itself is very elegant and well built. Even though the back is not metal (only the front is), the construction feels very sturdy and solid. It’s a little bit weighty in your hand, but just enough to not feel flimsy. The first time you lay your eyes on it might be a surprise because the PRS-300 is smaller in person than in pictures. Just so you can get an idea, it has the same width as a classic paperback but it is about 1 inch shorter. I find it very easy to hold in one or two hands.
The buttons are very satisfying to click and I realized that I prefer to use them rather than a touchscreen that can get grimy from all the touching.
The lack of a expansion (SD) slot is not an issue. I’ve loaded over 22 books on it and I still have over 300 MB left. Those 22 books will probably require 2 years to finish since some of them are over 1000 pages in length. Space is really not an issue here.
The screen is very good but it could have been better. More contrast would be nice but the e-ink technology is still young. I don’t mind the fact that it is only 5″ instead of 6″ because the resolution is the same as for the bigger model.
One other thing that could have been better is the speed of operation. Page turning is reasonably quick, and even though it’s not instant, you will get used to the speed after a while. These days I don’t even notice it. What would have been nice though is a slightly speedier processor. Some large books (1000+ pages) take a long time to load the first time but I assume that’s because the device is trying to format the book for its screen.
Battery life seems adequate, although I haven’t reached the claimed 7000-8000 pages with one charge. I’ve only fully charged the battery once though but on the first charge I must have read about 1000 pages before it gave out. I’m sure battery life will improve after a few charge/discharge cycles.
Another big issue with this reader is that the battery is not user-replaceable. Some people have stayed away from this reader due to this particular reason but I decided that the battery won’t lose more than half its capacity in the next 2 years, by which time the device will probably be replaced by something modern anyway so it’s really not such a big issue for me.
All these apparent negatives aren’t enough for me to give it less than 5 stars because as I said at the beginning, I had researched the PRS-300 thoroughly before I took the plunge and I knew exactly what its limitations were.
2 more things I want to mention before ending this.
1. I didn’t use Sony’s software. I used the freeware Calibre instead. It’s an awesome piece of software although it seems to have some bugs and it is a bit slow in operation.
2. Although Sony doesn’t supply the PRS-300 with a wall charger, you can check around your home for a compatible one with a mini-USB plug. I found out that the charger for my Garmin Nuvi 350 GPS works just fine since it has a compatible voltage which is about 5V. A word of warning here: do this at your discretion; I will not be held responsible if you damage your reader by using a 3rd party charger. What worked for me might not necessarily work for you.
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|