Okay, so I'm two months early, but I've already asked my b/f for the Sony e-Reader for Christmas. I'm very much a techy geek, and I love new gadgets. I'm especially excited about this one.
Roughly the size of a paperback novel, but thinner than most, The Sony eReader can store hundreds of books in internal memory with the addition of an optional Memory Stick or Secure Digital (SD) flash memory card. I apologize for sounding like a commercial. I'm very excited about this long overdue gadget. One of the chronic complaints I hear from most readers regarding e-books is how they can't "take" their computer with them they way they can take their books. Well, this little baby is the answer. Not only can you take your favorite book with you, you can take hundreds! This is the first reader (allegedly) with a backlight display as well as zoom and scroll capabilities. So, in essence, you get a far better reading experience, and you don't have to go out searching for those "large print" books anymore. I'll wait until I actually have one to post my "official" review. But the eReader looks like its set to revolutionize epub as we know it. Of course, it's still a bit pricey. Give it time, that too will come down. And just think how much money you'll save downloading all your favorite authors at half the cost of dead tree. Ya gotta love technology.
3 comments:
Ah, a fellow geek girl. My heart runneth over. :)
Okay, so you've answered the backlight question, which was quelle critical for me. But what about formats? I'm a diehard Mobipocket (PRC) fan. Just cannot get into PDF on my e-reader. (Or maybe that's a limitation of my old iPaq...?) Does the Sony (and I'm saying this through gritted teeth, girlfriend, 'cos I sooo dislike DRM-heavy companies like Sony and Apple) support Mobipocket?
Can't wait for the review. It's all very exciting. Hope those e-books fly off the proverbial shelves;-D
Hey K!
Ok, so the bad news is no, it does not support Mobipocket (for now) though there is hope in the future. It's not about technology limitations, of course. You and I have been in this biz long enough to know the only things limiting technology are money and greed. Here's the "official" response from OverDrive Inc. regarding this compatibility issue:
"Mobipocket eBook titles, provided by OverDrive, Inc., use DRM protection technology. Unfortunately the Sony eReader does not currently support this type of DRM-protected eBook file. OverDrive, along with hundreds of online eBook providers, is hopeful to reach an agreement with Sony, so that it would enable support for DRM-protected Overdrive eBooks on the Sony eReader."
So there you have it, girl. Currently the Sony eReader displays all non-DRM PDF files, RTF files, DRM lrf files and non-DRM lrf files.
I expect (or at the very least, hope) Sony to substantially improve the product over the next year or so. I may hold off until then. I really like the backlight and the scroll capability. However, I think it needs a touchscreen and wifi, so I can download ebooks whenever I want (not have to wait until I'm on the internet to download and then upload on the eReader). Overall, though, I think it may be a first step in the right direction. Here's hoping Sony gets infected with a that little "OpenSource" bug...or am I borderline delusional now?
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