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Sony PRS-500 e-Book Reader

Posted by Chris Leckness on February 16, 2006 – 10:07 pm  Share
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ebook.jpgWhile searching the highways and byways of the internet, I came across this little toy from Sony that, according to their site, is due to be released in the spring of this year. The PRS-500 comes with an 800 x 600 gray-scale screen and a battery life that should allow for 7,500 turns of the page.

Sony provides the following list of features:

  • Impressive, Paper-like Display with its E-Ink Display technology
  • Ultra Portable with a weight of only nine ounces and 1/2" thick
  • Content Storage Capability with enough internal memory to store approximately 80 titles and up to 270 titles using a memory stick or an SD card
  • Lots of ebooks to choose from all over the internet – Sony mentions the Connect® eBookstore specifically.

The price comes in around $349.99 and is available for purchase at the Mavo Store and 24h Paradies. Frankly, with the ability of users who own pocket pc’s to read e-books, I am not sure there will be much of a market for this device. With the price being fairly close to some decent vga handhelds I can’t see the benefit.

But, Sony is not known for introducing products that fail, so the larger screen and claims of a paper-like display may be the real draw. One thing is for sure – for the avid reader who does not need a pocket pc, this could be a real solution for the upcoming summer vacation of reading!

More info.

 

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Chris Leckness (3547 Posts) - Website | Twitter | Facebook

Chris Leckness is the Owner/Administrator of Mobilitysite. He is a Microsoft MVP, Mobile Devices and a member of the exclusive focus group, Mobius. Chris runs a Mobilitysite, GotZune, and a few other smaller sites and blogs. His personal blog is chris.leckness.com.


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  • Zach
    I, too, own a Pocket PC (Dell Axim X50v), but would still find this device pretty useful. Being a high school student, I've been toying around with the idea of scanning the papers that I'm forced to carry around in a back-breaking binder, maybe even scanning a few commonly used text book pages. Anthing to lessen the weight at this point.

    But I haven't really done any of this yet for a variety of reasons:

    1. Screen. The X50v has an LCD screen with 3.7" to its name. It's just plain too small for me to read a page comfortably and the eye-strain caused by staring at an LCD screen for so long isn't helpful, either. Being able to read in daylight would be another selling point for me.

    2. Task switching. I often type on my Pcket PC while working, and sometimes I have to write while looking at a text book. I could use "Alt-Tab" or a similar function, but it takes too long to switch between the two and often interupts my train of thought. A second display would be really helpful.

    3. Battery life. With both an extended and standard battery I can use my Pocket PC for quite a while without worrying about power. But it's when I'm unable to recharge for a long period of time that I really start to wish I had more without sacrificing brightness.

    Even though I love my Pocket PC, I think this would be an excellent device to own also. Better start getting them pennies together...
  • janine
    Completely agree with you, Jordan. The concept is cool but the price is ridiculous. A cool idea, I suppose, if you've got the money :) (which I don't) :)
  • Jordan Wigley
    Interesting concept janine.... but I don't think I could force myself to pay $30 to $50+ PER BOOK! :) That's the going rate on the PlayawayDigital audio books.

    For the book-fans, I'm sure $350 for a device they can read endless amounts of eBooks on would be more enticing than a single audio book for $50. But again, I'm not much of a book reader, so I don't know. :)
  • janine249
    I would rather get something a little more for my money if the price is 349.99. Or, like Jordan mention, I would really have to be an avid reader...which is what this product is designed for anyway.
    I saw an interesting take on audiobooks on another blog recently . The guy who blogged about it saw these audiobooks in a store at an airport:

    www.playawaydigital.com

    Maybe you've seen these before but it was the first I've heard of them. Kind of interesting....
  • Druish
    no No NO! It has NOTHING to do with functionality. It also has nothing to do with display technology. You can, (I have) read a backlit LCD screen (specifically, an Axim) for HOURS at a time. That particular screen can display just about anything I can think of trying to display on it. In fact, it can display EVERYTHING I can think of, short of modern (ie less than quake II) 3d games. So why will this succed, while the PDA market continues to shrink? In a single word.... "MARKETING". Sony isn't selling a PDA, or a task list, or a calendar, they're selling an "eBook Reader," whether or not Pocket-PC's can do that and oh so much more. With the backlinght turned down I can, and have, read eBooks on my Axim for more than 6 hours straight, but when was the last time you saw "eBook Reader" on Pocket-PC packaging? Or mp3 player? Or hand-held gaming platform? Or Personal Media Player? Or video player? Or pocket web-browser? Or GTD organizer? Or Mobile IM? Or Pocket-VOIP? Or pocket communicator? The very sad fact is that eBook readers, nay eBook readers and SO MUCH MORE have been available for YEARS but thanks to naive customers and poor marketing only a very few are in the know. So sadly, heart-wrenchingly sadly, I must look forward to purchasing my NEXT Pocket-PC not as a PDA but as a cellphone or whatever else they decide to call it. But they know, and I know, that it's REALLY a pocket-pc and a PDA, but not in name because of the mother of all screw-ups in the technology marketing world. Viva la Axim!!!!!!
  • Jordan Wigley
    While I am not much of a reader and would not use an eBook reader, I think this will likely be a very popular device.... at least moreso than past eBook readers.

    The main thing that the "average consumer" will like about this device is the eInk display. Many people have problems reading PDA/Laptop/Monitor/etc screens for long periods of time because of the way they are lit. With the eInk display on this reader, it is pretty much as easy on the eyes as a sheet of paper. So for people with sensitive eyes, this will likely be the best option around for eBooks.

    Also, the battery life will be a big selling point. The only time that power is drawn from the battery is when the eInk display is refreshed ("page turn"). So you can set it down just like a book and pick it back up hours later without even having to press a power button, and you won't be losing any charge from your battery.

    If I were an avid reader, I honestly might would look into something like this once the prices drop a bit. But alas, I haven't touched a book in quite some time. :)
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