http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/ Engadget Comments for Sony Reader goes open, will be able to work with other booksellers http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:00AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/"No price yet, sorry folks, but we heard people say something of around £200."

Should be available for pre-order later today or tomorrow apparently.]]>Jul 24th 2008 9:14AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:00AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:04AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Drm.
Lack of open-ness.

Pretty much everything this article says they fixed, except it's made by Sony.]]>Jul 24th 2008 9:07AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Aug 23rd 2008 7:49PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/]]>Jul 24th 2008 10:00AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 10:01AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/For example, it had some bestselling recent works of fiction, out of a series. They only carried the first book in a series or trilogy: odds are you've already read the first, and want to get the follow-ups, which Sony didn't have.

Another reason: the Sony store is only for Windows, but the Kindle has a cell modem in it and downloads books directly on the device.

When I saw the headline, I was hoping it meant the store will be open to other operating systems...]]>Jul 24th 2008 10:41AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
While there is a notable refresh, I find it's similar to or shorter than actually turning a page; it's hardly a wait, or killer for that matter, not even while reading 150MB PDF casebooks.

That said, the one thing this device had really fallen behind on is the e-book store, which is archaic and cumbersome, but most of all made me want to do for only working with Windows.

Now that this update is out, I'm happier, but wary. I'm happy for obvious reasons in that I can buy anything I want now; but I'm wary because it's almost a white flag saying they're just not pushing for it.

We'll see.

]]>Jul 24th 2008 10:44AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
...Casebooks? You mean law case books? How?

If you speak the truth and have your casebooks in PDF and readable via an ereader, I'm not going to be able to convey how sad I am that I had to lug 50+ lbs of books for 3 years...]]>Jul 24th 2008 11:20AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 11:27AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.internetevolution.com/author.asp?section_id=526&doc_id=139702&f_src=flffour are the lack of an extensive library, the cost and the inability to access web content like weblogs.]]>Jul 24th 2008 11:40AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
For the Kindle you have to convert it to Kindle's format, which either means emailing your file in, or paying Amazon for the conversion. Not very useful when you have tons of files.

If Sony's Reader can do EVDO and use Amazon's store, I'm in.]]>Jul 24th 2008 11:41AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
I think the Kindle is doing better because of the free EVDO and the ability to shop and download books without using a computer. It's basic web browser is also a great freebie to read rss feeds and non graphic intense web pages.]]>Jul 24th 2008 11:42AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
Once I heard about the Kindle being able to connect to the web (though not really to browse web pages, which makes sense) and download e-books directly, I felt that the Kindle was what I would wind up getting --even though I think Sony's design is much more sleek and user-friendly.

However, I figured that the most use I'd get out of it was viewing PDF's. I have access to a binding cutter and a fast optical scanner designed for converting books to electronic file formats. So I've converted some of my own personal library of books already. And the huge difference in price, plus this news is making me think that Sony's Reader is the way to go after all.]]>Jul 24th 2008 1:57PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 25th 2008 5:21AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
Oh, and I'm actually excited for this. Anyone that uses the Sony eBook store knows how painful the selection can be. Let alone the bugs that many have encountered. However, I've used both the Kindle and the Sony Reader, and the quality of the Sony Reader (and the speed) is far superior to the Kindle I was using. ]]>Jul 24th 2008 9:04AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
Can the Kindle do PDFs? That seems like a pretty big feature to me. Lots of the technical books I buy include a PDF version on an included CD.]]>Jul 24th 2008 9:08AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.43folders.com/2007/11/11/my-fling-sony-reader). The iRex iLiad has a larger display and can deal with PDFs very well (tried it at Borders, it showed a 250 page technical document with lots of illustrations without problems), so I really hope they'll eventually open up the iLiad to be able to read the proprietary, protected formats, too. ]]>Jul 24th 2008 9:32AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
That stinks.]]>Jul 24th 2008 10:06AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 10:06AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/It removes the white borders and can even split up multicolumn documents correctly. It's not perfect. Sometimes the bottom line on a page is not cut properly and whenever you have a combination of multicolumn and single column elements, it messes up. However since buying the ereader I've used it for reading almost every paper I've read and my desk at work is a whole lot tidier. ]]>Jul 24th 2008 10:54AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
Do you have a 505? I don't think so. PDFs are not illegible as you claim. The problem is that the PDF will only zoom to medium size. The trick is to view them in landscape mode. Secondly, the firmware upgrade Sony is about to release for the 505 will include PDF reflow which should make viewing PDFs much easier.

BTW, while the Iliad is a more capable device (i.e. touchscreen) it is also much larger and twice as expensive ($699 was the cheapest I saw).]]>Jul 24th 2008 12:36PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://news.cnet.com/8301-13512_3-9799560-23.html). And honestly, when I was playing around with the iLiad (PDF in landscape mode), I had the impression that the display shouldn't be smaller than that.. and the iLiad has a larger display than the 505.]]>Jul 24th 2008 7:32PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:11AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:53AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 10:27AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 11:25AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/- Instant gratification. Ease of obtaining a book at any hour of the day/night without having to drive anywhere
- Able to bring multiple books with you on trips without lugging heavy space consuming books in your carry-on.
- I like grabbing the iPod and eReader as I leave for a trip and knowing I have all my books, most of my music and my good movies with me. No more choosing what books to bring or what CDs to bring when I pack.
- Able to search an entire book for references or passages very quickly & knowing you didn't miss anything
- For those that like simplicity & no clutter but like to read. Its nice not having stacks of books to store in a house, having to give away or having to recycle them. For me some books I never read again so they just take up space once I am done with them.
- For environmental people, they can feel like they are saving a tree]]>Jul 24th 2008 1:39PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:26AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:45AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/]]>Jul 24th 2008 9:54AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 10:56AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 12:39PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 9:56AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
There are tons of devices you probably already have that have LCD screens and can display text files, but a true e-book reader is a completely different experience. It really isn't comparable.]]>Jul 24th 2008 10:36AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 10:02AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 10:23AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 11:18AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
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Walk into a library and its empty, only these are in there.

Customer: "Urm, do you have Harry Potter?"
Librarian: "Yeah, its on every shelf, you can't miss it"]]>Jul 24th 2008 11:41AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/Jul 24th 2008 12:19PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
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Many of the books I buy for reference (and even some of the fiction) I like to tag, make notes and mark up in general. Even with the closed platform on the Kindle, make it cheaper for me to own both an electronic and hard copy and I'm sold. The model is moving this way already in the DVD world (MPEG4s and WMVs included on-disc).]]>Jul 24th 2008 4:10PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
You also seem to imply that everything has to be converted. The Kindle reads MOBI files (.prc) directly and their are programs to convert to that format right on your PC if you don't want to bother with emailing them.]]>Jul 24th 2008 5:23PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/24/sony-reader-goes-open-will-be-able-to-work-with-other-bookselle/
To be honest, when we got the PCs in our stores for our customers to browse our online store I felt that technology was encroaching on the traditional bookstore a bit too much. Our stocking of an e-book reader is something I'm not best pleased with.

Obviously we are posturing to take on Amazon, possibly pre-emptively, and the Kindle. Still... the absurdity. I love gadgets as much as the next guy, but why reinvent the wheel?

Amazon advertises the Kindle as a "wireless reading device"..... *cough*BOOK*cough*

Still, if indeed e-books do take off. I think support of multiple formats is a must for these devices.... that or the BA and PA settling on an industry-wide standard.... because I hate the prospect of Amazon becoming to ebooks what Apple is to music. One company having a monopoly on both the sales of ebooks and ebook readers is a terrible thing for the book industry in my opinion, and I really hope they don't make the mistakes made by the music industry.....

So in summary.

Bah to ebooks, but if they are a necessary evil, support for multiple formats or forms of DRM: good, Amazon becoming the sole significant player in the ebook industry: bad.]]>Jul 24th 2008 5:26PM