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Kindle Alternatives – the Sony Prs-505 E-book Reader
Lucy Thatcher asked:
The Sony Prs is one of the strongest rivals of the Amazon Kindle. Launched a few weeks after Kindle, Sony’s e-book reader is quickly catching up in terms of sales and popularity. Both e-book readers basically share the same functions. The biggest difference in the features of the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Prs 505 would be their price, design, user friendliness, and readability.
One of the major differences is the price of these two models. Kindle cost about $100 more that the Sony model. Does the Kindle have any additional features that warrant this hefty premium? The main difference between the Amazon Kindle and any other e-book readers is Amazon’s own wireless connectivity, Whispernet. This uses the mobile phone’s 3G technology, enabling you to access the Amazon E-book store wherever you are. The Sony Prs-505 on the other hand uses normal WI-FI wireless technology. You will only be able to access Sony’s E-book store though internet connection. Does this extra feature warrants the additional $100? You be the judge.
Another great difference between these two e-book readers is its design. The Amazon Kindle has a bright white exterior with a minimalist design. The Sony Prs 505 on the other has a metallic silver exterior, which is more sleek and thin-looking compared to the Kindle. Many reviews sited Sony’s model as having a higher ‘cool-factor’ compared to the other models.
Personally, I think that one of the best features of the Sony Prs-505 is its user friendliness. Its user interface is shockingly simple and easy to use. Once connected to your PC, you can download over a dozen e-books in less than 2 minutes. There are nine buttons on the left side of the screen that allows you to easily access pages that you have book-marked. The only set back is that the page turns of the Sony Prs 505 is a little sluggish compared to Kindle.
Readability would be another highlight of the Sony model. The screen is bigger than the Kindle, which is a big plus. In addition to that, Sony has improved on the screen’s readability under bright light where the words on the screen become more visible under bright lights. The screen contrast is sharp but yet easy on the eyes.
The Sony Prs is one of the strongest rivals of the Amazon Kindle. Launched a few weeks after Kindle, Sony’s e-book reader is quickly catching up in terms of sales and popularity. Both e-book readers basically share the same functions. The biggest difference in the features of the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Prs 505 would be their price, design, user friendliness, and readability.
One of the major differences is the price of these two models. Kindle cost about $100 more that the Sony model. Does the Kindle have any additional features that warrant this hefty premium? The main difference between the Amazon Kindle and any other e-book readers is Amazon’s own wireless connectivity, Whispernet. This uses the mobile phone’s 3G technology, enabling you to access the Amazon E-book store wherever you are. The Sony Prs-505 on the other hand uses normal WI-FI wireless technology. You will only be able to access Sony’s E-book store though internet connection. Does this extra feature warrants the additional $100? You be the judge.
Another great difference between these two e-book readers is its design. The Amazon Kindle has a bright white exterior with a minimalist design. The Sony Prs 505 on the other has a metallic silver exterior, which is more sleek and thin-looking compared to the Kindle. Many reviews sited Sony’s model as having a higher ‘cool-factor’ compared to the other models.
Personally, I think that one of the best features of the Sony Prs-505 is its user friendliness. Its user interface is shockingly simple and easy to use. Once connected to your PC, you can download over a dozen e-books in less than 2 minutes. There are nine buttons on the left side of the screen that allows you to easily access pages that you have book-marked. The only set back is that the page turns of the Sony Prs 505 is a little sluggish compared to Kindle.
Readability would be another highlight of the Sony model. The screen is bigger than the Kindle, which is a big plus. In addition to that, Sony has improved on the screen’s readability under bright light where the words on the screen become more visible under bright lights. The screen contrast is sharp but yet easy on the eyes.
Amazon Kindle How-to Series: Replacing the Battery on Your Amazon Kindle
Michael Piston asked:
Since the Amazon Kindle is a fairly new innovation, most owners have not had their Kindle e-book reader long enough to require a new battery. However, if you use your Kindle frequently and charge it often then you may get to the point where the battery doesn’t seem to last as long as when your Kindle was new. This is not an usual phenomenon – most rechargeable batteries have a “life” measured in number of re-charges.
Another reason that you may wish to replace the battery on your Kindle is that you are going to be using it for a long period of time and can’t charge it. For example let’s say you are planning a trip with a long international airplane flight. In this case you can take two (or more) fully charged Kindle batteries with you and replace them as required.
To save battery life, the Kindle goes into a “sleep” mode if you have not been reading an e-book or listening to an audio book for a long period of time. You’ll recognize when your Kindle has entered “sleep” mode because a screen saver will appear on your screen in-place of the book you were reading. Kindle comes with built-in screen savers, or you can check the site in the resource box below to learn how-to create your own.
Your Amazon Kindle has a built-in battery power meter you will find at the bottom right-side of the screen. The battery power meter is right next to the wireless signal strength meter. It’s sometimes easy to get these meters confused. The wireless signal strength indicator appears as a bar graph with a small antenna in-front of the first bar. When your battery power meter shows nearly all white you know it’s either time to recharge your Kindle or replace your battery. If the power meter goes down quickly after a charge it may be time to replace your battery.
Here’s how you replace the battery on your Amazon Kindle:
1. Turn-off your Kindle
2. Find a soft cloth or other means to protect the face of your Kindle
3. Place your Kindle face down on a flat, secure surface
4. Slide the gray back cover off of your Kindle
5. You will see the gray battery in it’s compartment
6. Note the battery compartment has a rounded “notch” on one end
7. Using your finger (not a screwdriver or any other device that might damage your Kindle)gently push the battery to the back of the compartment then lift it out
8. The battery is attached to your Kindle by a white plastic connector and several wires
9. GENTLY pull the white connector back until the battery is disconnected from your Kindle
10. Attach your new battery by pushing the white wiring connector into the proper location in the battery compartment
11. Seat the battery into the back of the battery compartment – make sure the white wiring connector is attached properly
12. Press the battery down at the front of the battery compartment – note that the battery and the compartment have a small notch and grove to help you line-up the battery
13. Replace the cover
14 Turn on your Kindle and you’re ready to get back to reading your favorite e-book or listening to your favorite audio book
Congratulations! You have just learned how-to replace the battery in your Amazon Kindle.
While this is not a procedure everyone will do regularly it’s helpful to know either when your battery does not hold a charge or if you are traveling with more than one charged battery.
One more important point! The battery in your Amazon Kindle is made from Lithium Polymer. It should be disposed of properly – likely at a battery recycling center located near you.
Since the Amazon Kindle is a fairly new innovation, most owners have not had their Kindle e-book reader long enough to require a new battery. However, if you use your Kindle frequently and charge it often then you may get to the point where the battery doesn’t seem to last as long as when your Kindle was new. This is not an usual phenomenon – most rechargeable batteries have a “life” measured in number of re-charges.
Another reason that you may wish to replace the battery on your Kindle is that you are going to be using it for a long period of time and can’t charge it. For example let’s say you are planning a trip with a long international airplane flight. In this case you can take two (or more) fully charged Kindle batteries with you and replace them as required.
To save battery life, the Kindle goes into a “sleep” mode if you have not been reading an e-book or listening to an audio book for a long period of time. You’ll recognize when your Kindle has entered “sleep” mode because a screen saver will appear on your screen in-place of the book you were reading. Kindle comes with built-in screen savers, or you can check the site in the resource box below to learn how-to create your own.
Your Amazon Kindle has a built-in battery power meter you will find at the bottom right-side of the screen. The battery power meter is right next to the wireless signal strength meter. It’s sometimes easy to get these meters confused. The wireless signal strength indicator appears as a bar graph with a small antenna in-front of the first bar. When your battery power meter shows nearly all white you know it’s either time to recharge your Kindle or replace your battery. If the power meter goes down quickly after a charge it may be time to replace your battery.
Here’s how you replace the battery on your Amazon Kindle:
1. Turn-off your Kindle
2. Find a soft cloth or other means to protect the face of your Kindle
3. Place your Kindle face down on a flat, secure surface
4. Slide the gray back cover off of your Kindle
5. You will see the gray battery in it’s compartment
6. Note the battery compartment has a rounded “notch” on one end
7. Using your finger (not a screwdriver or any other device that might damage your Kindle)gently push the battery to the back of the compartment then lift it out
8. The battery is attached to your Kindle by a white plastic connector and several wires
9. GENTLY pull the white connector back until the battery is disconnected from your Kindle
10. Attach your new battery by pushing the white wiring connector into the proper location in the battery compartment
11. Seat the battery into the back of the battery compartment – make sure the white wiring connector is attached properly
12. Press the battery down at the front of the battery compartment – note that the battery and the compartment have a small notch and grove to help you line-up the battery
13. Replace the cover
14 Turn on your Kindle and you’re ready to get back to reading your favorite e-book or listening to your favorite audio book
Congratulations! You have just learned how-to replace the battery in your Amazon Kindle.
While this is not a procedure everyone will do regularly it’s helpful to know either when your battery does not hold a charge or if you are traveling with more than one charged battery.
One more important point! The battery in your Amazon Kindle is made from Lithium Polymer. It should be disposed of properly – likely at a battery recycling center located near you.
Amazon Kindle How-to Series: Learn to Access the "secret" Functions in Kindle 1
Michael Piston asked:
Amazon has built a number of different features into the Kindle that never made it to the menus you use to access your e-books and audio books. You can do everything from make screen shots of your Kindle screen to find your location on Google Maps using the WhisperNet wireless technology in the Kindle.
NOTE- the features discussed here are for the Amazon Kindle 1 device. The Kindle 2 device available after February 24, 2009 likely will have different keyboard accessible features.
To access these features you will use a combination of keys on your Kindle’s keyboard. Most all of the features begin by pressing the key which is the at the lower left-hand side of your Kindle keyboard. You also may have to press the key which is directly above the key and has an upright arrow symbol. Here are a few of the special features you can access:
1. Play a game of Minesweeper on your Kindle – From the Home Screen press the key and the key and then the key to access a basic Minesweeper game. The Minesweeper menu lets you control the grid size and the number of mines you have to find.
2. Find-out the time – From the Kindle Home Screen press the key and the key. The page number display (i.e. 1 of 3) at the bottom left of your Kindle screen will change to a time display.
3. Find-out the time – From the Kindle Reader Screen (i.e. while reading and e-book) press the key and the key. The “Locations” display at the bottom left of your Kindle screen will change to a time that is in text vs. numeric format. For example 1:31 is “Twenty-nine till two”.
4. Take a “screen shot” of your Kindle screen – From any screen press the and key, then the key. You won’t get any notification that a screen-shot has been taken but you will find the screen shot on your Kindle’s SD card. The Kindle won’t save screen shots to its internal memory.
5. Find your current location – Open the Kindle’s browser – Menu > Experimental > Basic Web then press the key and the <1> key. Google Maps will open with your location shown. Your location is “triangulated” from the WhisperNet wireless access built into the Kindle so it’s not entirely accurate. But you can zoom in and out on the map to get a better idea of where you are – this gets you in the ball park.
6. View your e-book as a slide show – From the Kindle’s e-book reader press the key and <0> key to turn on the slide show capability. Then press the key and <1> key to start the slide show. Press the key and the <2> key to turn the slide show off. Press the key and the <0> key again to disable the slide show capability.
7. Control the Kindle audio player – Press the key and
Amazon has built a number of different features into the Kindle that never made it to the menus you use to access your e-books and audio books. You can do everything from make screen shots of your Kindle screen to find your location on Google Maps using the WhisperNet wireless technology in the Kindle.
NOTE- the features discussed here are for the Amazon Kindle 1 device. The Kindle 2 device available after February 24, 2009 likely will have different keyboard accessible features.
To access these features you will use a combination of keys on your Kindle’s keyboard. Most all of the features begin by pressing the
1. Play a game of Minesweeper on your Kindle – From the Home Screen press the
2. Find-out the time – From the Kindle Home Screen press the
3. Find-out the time – From the Kindle Reader Screen (i.e. while reading and e-book) press the
4. Take a “screen shot” of your Kindle screen – From any screen press the
5. Find your current location – Open the Kindle’s browser – Menu > Experimental > Basic Web then press the
6. View your e-book as a slide show – From the Kindle’s e-book reader press the
7. Control the Kindle audio player – Press the
key to play or stop the audio player. Press the
8. Reboot your Kindle – If you Kindle has been acting a bit “flakey” you can do a soft reboot by pressing the
The eight features listed above should give you an idea of the capabilities that are “hidden away” in your Kindle. Some of them will make your Kindle experience a bit better, and some will help you when you’re trying to trouble shoot problems with your Kindle. Keep this list handy so when you get tired of reading your favorite e-book or listening to your favorite audio book you can give them a try.
Kindle Reader – is it a Good Buy?
Alan Cruz asked:
World over there are a number of books – fiction as well as non fiction. For most people it is often difficult to even look at the number of titles that are available, let alone reading them. Books dealing with incisive details of a variety of subjects like Economics, Science, Medicine, Engineering, Religion, Culture, Philosophy, Parenting, Fashion from across the world hold a treasure house of knowledge in them. We are unable to search the physical copies of these books or do not get them where we want.
Reading and Modern technology
With digitalization of texts, the world of books has changed dramatically. You can be anywhere in the world, and yet access books of your choice from any author, language, subject, or market. The Internet makes that possible. Some of the books are available as free downloads, while for others you may have to pay small sums of money. But, opposed to the cumbersome process of ordering the physical edition of a valuable book from a foreign country, you can preview the book on your computer monitor within minutes and then decide to buy or preview another in the same class. You can access multiple book stores or libraries within a few minutes.
Yet Another bold initiative
Taking technology to even greater heights, Amazon has introduced a device called Kindle which facilitates reading of any book through the device. It is aptly called book reader. Kindle works independent of wires and allows you to browse and read a variety of books even when you are on the move. You can even download these books when necessary subject to certain conditions. Travelers, particularly on long haul routes will find the Kindle an extremely useful and friendly device. When you love reading books, Kindle is an indispensable accessory for you.
World over there are a number of books – fiction as well as non fiction. For most people it is often difficult to even look at the number of titles that are available, let alone reading them. Books dealing with incisive details of a variety of subjects like Economics, Science, Medicine, Engineering, Religion, Culture, Philosophy, Parenting, Fashion from across the world hold a treasure house of knowledge in them. We are unable to search the physical copies of these books or do not get them where we want.
Reading and Modern technology
With digitalization of texts, the world of books has changed dramatically. You can be anywhere in the world, and yet access books of your choice from any author, language, subject, or market. The Internet makes that possible. Some of the books are available as free downloads, while for others you may have to pay small sums of money. But, opposed to the cumbersome process of ordering the physical edition of a valuable book from a foreign country, you can preview the book on your computer monitor within minutes and then decide to buy or preview another in the same class. You can access multiple book stores or libraries within a few minutes.
Yet Another bold initiative
Taking technology to even greater heights, Amazon has introduced a device called Kindle which facilitates reading of any book through the device. It is aptly called book reader. Kindle works independent of wires and allows you to browse and read a variety of books even when you are on the move. You can even download these books when necessary subject to certain conditions. Travelers, particularly on long haul routes will find the Kindle an extremely useful and friendly device. When you love reading books, Kindle is an indispensable accessory for you.
The Amazon Kindle 2 Review
Andrew Mullins asked:
The electronic book reader should be considered the wave of the future and the Kindle 2 is no exception. The basic features include an e-Ink screen with 16 shades of grey, 6 different type sizes (good-bye reading glasses!) and a 10oz light weight. (no more hand cramping for arthritic hands, fingers and wrists!).
The Kindle 2 electronic book reader can hold up to 1500 average sized books and uses wireless technology when connecting to the internet for book downloading and access to Wikipedia. There is no monthly fee for the wireless access or any fee other than the cost of the Kindle 2 and each book. As a matter of fact, most of the Kindle books are priced at about $9.99, which is about $4/book cheaper than the Sony DRM versions on average.
The Kindle 2 also includes text to speech capability for those times when you need for hands for something. I can see this feature as a great help in the kitchen when you’re preparing ingredients while the Kindle 2 reads the recipe to you!
In addition to books, you can also download newspapers, magazines and some 1000 blogs. An average book, they say, takes about 60 seconds to download at their fastest speed. There are currently 230,000 titles available for download at Amazon’s Kindle Store with more being added everyday.
While Sony offers a very similar product, the Kindle 2 electronic book reader offers more options at a much better price. The advantage of being able to download books without a computer, included chargers (USB and wall charger) access to Wikipedia and newspaper and magazine downloads and the price of individual books is just to much of an advantage over the Sony version.
The one and only downfall of the Kindle 2 electronic book reader is it’s lack of an LED light for night reading. However, this omission on the part of Amazon can easily be overcome by purchasing a $15 clip light.
Overall, The Kindle 2 is a clear leader in the electronic book reader genre. Expect it to sell out quickly!
The electronic book reader should be considered the wave of the future and the Kindle 2 is no exception. The basic features include an e-Ink screen with 16 shades of grey, 6 different type sizes (good-bye reading glasses!) and a 10oz light weight. (no more hand cramping for arthritic hands, fingers and wrists!).
The Kindle 2 electronic book reader can hold up to 1500 average sized books and uses wireless technology when connecting to the internet for book downloading and access to Wikipedia. There is no monthly fee for the wireless access or any fee other than the cost of the Kindle 2 and each book. As a matter of fact, most of the Kindle books are priced at about $9.99, which is about $4/book cheaper than the Sony DRM versions on average.
The Kindle 2 also includes text to speech capability for those times when you need for hands for something. I can see this feature as a great help in the kitchen when you’re preparing ingredients while the Kindle 2 reads the recipe to you!
In addition to books, you can also download newspapers, magazines and some 1000 blogs. An average book, they say, takes about 60 seconds to download at their fastest speed. There are currently 230,000 titles available for download at Amazon’s Kindle Store with more being added everyday.
While Sony offers a very similar product, the Kindle 2 electronic book reader offers more options at a much better price. The advantage of being able to download books without a computer, included chargers (USB and wall charger) access to Wikipedia and newspaper and magazine downloads and the price of individual books is just to much of an advantage over the Sony version.
The one and only downfall of the Kindle 2 electronic book reader is it’s lack of an LED light for night reading. However, this omission on the part of Amazon can easily be overcome by purchasing a $15 clip light.
Overall, The Kindle 2 is a clear leader in the electronic book reader genre. Expect it to sell out quickly!
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