Tag: ebook

April 20, 2008

Sony Reader vs. Amazon Kindle = Form vs. Functionality

I’ve been considering my options on ebook readers for about a week now, and I’ve been going both ways on the topic of which one to pick. However, I think I’ve finally made up my mind.

Sony Reader

Pros:

  • Slimmer, sleeker, and all around a nicer looking machine.
  • Requires less time between charges (charging my iPhone once every other day is enough).
  • Simple, straightforward button layout which makes reading easier.
  • Slightly cheaper (though I will address this below).
  • More firmware hacks and the like are available, though I don’t mess with that stuff usually.
  • 8 shades of gray available, as opposed to 4 on the Kindle.
  • Comes with a very nice case.

Cons:

  • Lack of any text-search capabilities on the reader itself (you can do it on the software).
  • Less books to choose from.
  • Books are generally a few dollars more than through the Kindle store.
  • The Reader software is honestly not so good, having messed with it myself.
  • No easy way to subscribe to blogs, newspapers etc.
  • Doesn’t include an AC adapter.
  • No way to take notes, limited bookmarking functionality.
  • PDF support is bad at the moment.

Amazon Kindle

Pros:

  • Full text search capability through everything stored on the machine, including PDFs, Office Documents, and all types of eBooks.
  • Annotation and bookmarking is also available, thanks to the QWERTY keyboard.
  • Books can be beamed to your Kindle over the air through Sprint’s EVDO network.
  • This wireless capability also lets you subscribe to newspapers like the NYT and Washington Post, subscriptions running anywhere from $5.99 to $13.99 monthly.
  • You can also import blogs like this one (hint, hint) through an RSS feed, and Whispernet (the aforementioned EVDO network) will poll your blogs regularly for new content.
  • More books to choose from than the Sony store (though that may of course
(More) “Sony Reader vs. Amazon Kindle = Form vs. Functionality”