Find eBook Readers Blog » Sony eBook Readers

Sony launches a new Reader app for Android

Richard — Tue, 01 May 2012 20:42:34 +0000

Sony has updated its Reader app for Android. Perhaps ‘updated’ is not quite the word, since Sony has released a totally new Reader app – users are requested to delete the old app after installation of the new one. This appears to be a forced upgrade – the old app would not open on my phone, but would direct me to install the new version. On my Xoom I didn’t get the message to install the new app, but the old one would not sign into my account (actually, I don’t think I was ever able to successfully sign into the Reader Store on my Xoom).

Sony does not go into detail on the changes it has made to the app, other than to say that it has a new and improved interface and bug fixes. There are many user complaints about this new version, the most egregious being that some users apparently can no longer access the ebooks they have previously purchased at the Sony Reader Store.

I only have a few ebooks I’ve bought from the Reader Store, and they all are present and accounted for in the app’s bookshelves. In fact, and rather bizarrely, on my Xoom the app is even picking up Nook books that I’ve downloaded with the Nook app on that tablet, including a magazine that I subscribe to from Barnes & Noble, and displaying them in my Reader library, from which they can be opened and read. The magazine is presented differently than the manner in which the Nook app does it, and in my opinion not as nicely.

I have noticed some other odd misbehavior. Several times when trying to change font sizes on both my phone and Xoom the app dropped me at another page in the ebook – and not a nearby page, either. Why does it seem as though with Sony’s digital reading business it is often a case of two steps forward and one step back? Actually, this time the backwards to forwards ratio might be much worse than usual, especially for those who have lost access to their library.

On the plus side, the new home page on my tablet is quite nice, with a side scrolling panel of recommended ebooks and other panes showing what I’m now reading as well as recently added and opened titles. Another nice feature is a two page view in landscape mode. On the downside, there is no built-in dictionary.

Possibly Related Posts:

Sony opens Reader Store in UK

Richard — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 18:27:18 +0000

Sony has finally opened a UK branch of its Reader Store. Previously the Sony website directed its ereader users in the UK to Waterstones, WHSmith and Mills & Boon to purchase contemporary ebooks or Feedbooks, Gutenberg and ManyBooks for public domain and other free titles.

The ebooks at the Sony Reader Store UK are, of course, in ePub format with Adobe DRM. The free Reader desktop app will need to be downloaded and installed before downloading ebooks purchased at the Reader Store, unless one is using the Reader Wi-Fi (PRS-T1) or the Reader for Tablet app on one of the Sony tablets. The desktop app will enable sideloading of purchased ebooks onto your Sony ereader or other brands of ereader that are compatible with ePub and Adobe DRM.

(via International Business Times)

Possibly Related Posts:

Sony PRS-T1 Reader – Review

Richard — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 17:15:29 +0000

This time around Sony has refreshed its ereader lineup with a single ereader, the PRS-T1, rather than offering a selection of different devices at different price points and screen sizes as it did with the last generation. This would seem to make more sense in today’s ereader market and retailing environment. The PRS-T1 does introduce a couple of interesting and innovative features, although nothing that I would call really revolutionary.

Sony has jettisoned the aluminum casing of its previous ereaders. The PRS-T1 is all plastic except for a metal strip below the screen where the hard buttons are mounted. This makes sense as plastic is both lighter and cheaper. The aluminum case of the older Sony ereaders was something I liked as it seemed to lend a feeling of durability. That was deception of course, as the screen is the most fragile part of an ereader and the aluminum case did not add much protection to that. So plastic it is.

The new Sony ereader is available in several colors; I got mine in black. On the black model Sony has used a shiny black plastic for the front bezel while the back of the case is covered in a matte black nonslip coating. The shiny black bezel is quite the little dust magnet.

Sony does not include a charger for the PRS-T1, although one is available as an optional accessory. The included USB cable provides for charging at your desktop. Mine came with a partial charge out of the box. Sony claims a battery life of 3-4 weeks with the Wi-Fi on and that feels about right based on my usage so far. In the settings there is the option to enable Network Standby Mode which turns the Wi-Fi off when idle for a period of time and reconnects the PRS-T1 as needed. If enabled, this feature should give better battery life than leaving the Wi-Fi on all of the time, although it will result in a delay while reconnecting.

Besides the USB cable the PRS-T1 also comes with a rather cheap-looking plastic stylus that will clip to a cover if you have one, but you cannot store it in the housing of the ereader as you could with past generations of Sony ereaders. The PRS-T1 has a handwriting and drawing app for which the stylus might be useful if it doesn’t get lost or eaten by the family pets.

The home screen of the Sony features two pages. The first page shows your most recently read book at the top, below which are shown the covers of the three ebooks most recently added to the library. Below that are four buttons: Books lets you see the ebooks in your library; Periodicals; Collections and a button to connect to the Reader Store.

Sony has used the touchscreen of the PRS-T1 to provide a more graphical interface by providing virtual buttons for apps and menus. This is much more appealing than just having a line of text to tap on and it works well.

The second page is all about these buttons — there are buttons here that will connect you to the Public Library, Google Books (don’t get all exited — this is just the free public domain book collection from Google at the Sony Reader Store), the web browser and your online library of purchased titles at the Reader Store.

Additionally there are buttons here to access the dictionary, your annotations (all of your annotations from across all books and periodicals in one place), pictures, audio, and settings. Sony has provided a lot of settings for you to play with — everything from choosing which direction you swipe the screen to turn the page forward to what picture will be displayed on the screensaver. You can also choose to set the internal memory of the ereader or the SD card as the destination for downloads. There are even tools here to let you format either the SD card or the PRS-T1’s internal memory. The web browser has 19 different settings.

The Library button works quite well but you will need to first connect the PRS-T1 to an account at the Sony Reader Store before you can search for and then connect to your local public library. Once this is done you can just download a library ebook directly to your ereader or, more likely, join the waiting list to do so.

Initially connecting my PRS-T1 to my account at the Sony Reader Store was not exactly glitch-free. Several times, after processing my account information, the PRS-T1 came back with a network error which seemed to indicate that I was not connected to the Internet. When I checked the Wi-Fi status however, the ereader was still connected. Once the Reader Store app force closed and before I could get it to open and try again I had to reboot the ereader.

Finally, after a number of tries and some deep breathing exercises I did get connected to my account. But then when I tried to download a couple of previously purchased ebooks from my Reader Store library to the PRS-T1, Sony seemed to think that I should have to pay for them again. After logging off and waiting awhile before connecting to my account again I was able to download titles from my library to the new ereader without repurchasing them.

Connecting to Sony’s ebookstore has gone smoothly enough after getting over these initial hurdles. It is possible that the Reader Store just happened to be out to lunch when I tried to connect, but I doubt it as I remember having similar problems when first trying to connect to my account with the Reader for Android app on my Android phone and Xoom.

Library management tools on the PRS-T1 include being able to create and delete Collections to organize your ebooks into; being able to delete ebooks from the device itself; and the ability to sort through your ebook collection by Title, Author, Date, File Name and Recently Added.

When reading an ebook you tap the hard Menu button to access the reading tools. There are a number of features available here, including:

Navigation: Go to the Table of Contents, back to the previous view; enter a page number to go to; a slider to rapidly move back or forward through the ebook.
Notes: View your bookmarks, highlights, and notes — either handwritten or typed via the virtual keyboard.
Font: There are eight font sizes and seven font styles, although handwritten notes won’t be displayed unless the Original font is selected. The largest font size is a little smaller than that of the Kindle.
Customize View: Lets the reader select full page or 2- or 3- column split view. There is a fit-to-width landscape mode as well. Other settings here let you crop pages that have large margins and adjust the contrast, which might make scanned documents more readable. These features will probably be most useful when viewing PDFs.
Handwriting: Create or erase handwritten notes.
Additional tools available here include screen orientation and a search tool.

Hyperlinks are supported, and when you are done reading at the linked to material you can return to your previous page by tapping on the icons Sony has thoughtfully provided at the bottom of the page. If these return-to icons are lost you can also go back by tapping the Previous View button in the Navigation menu.

Tapping and holding a word in an ebook brings up a definition and also results in five buttons arranged near the word: Highlight, Add Note, Search, Wikipedia and Google. The PRS-T1 comes with the New Oxford English and American dictionaries as well as a number of translation dictionaries. You can change the default dictionary without closing the ebook, but you cannot install new dictionaries.

The zForce touchscreen works very smoothly and Sony has done an excellent job of implementing it. There is a pinch-to-zoom feature that comes in very handy for expanding graphics found in an ebook. Once zoomed in, you can drag the view around with your finger. If you have ever tried in vain to make a chart or graph larger and more readable on another ereader you will appreciate this feature.

Pinch-to-zoom does not seem to be implemented in the public library app or in the Sony Reader Store, but when browsing the web with the PRS-T1’s browser it does work. You can also view webpages in landscape mode. There is nothing experimental about the web browser on the PRS-T1, and it is one of the better ones I’ve seen on an e-ink ereader. There are three pages of browser settings that can be accessed from the hard Menu button while the browser is open or from the virtual Settings button on the second Home page.

Pinch-to-zoom and panning around the pages of a PDF document also is quite smooth and speedy for an e-ink device. Notes and highlights can be made on PDFs, but sometimes not while zoomed in. Sony adds some options to adjust the brightness and contrast that might help to make some poorly scanned documents more readable. There is also a cropping tool that can help with documents that have excessive margins. Zoom levels are maintained as you page through a document.

The current trend in e-ink based ereaders is to completely refresh the display every sixth page turn or so. Sony has elected not to do this and you get e-ink’s traditional flash to black with every page turn. I would like to see Sony release an update that offers users the option for intermittent full refreshes.

The e-ink display of the PRS-T1 seems slightly more contrasty than that of the new Kindle 4. The screen of the new Sony ereader seems to have slightly less gray in it and under some lighting conditions looks like fine porcelain. The PRS-T1 is very nice to read on.

Below is my rather long video review of the PRS-T1.

Sony PRS-T1 vs Kindle 4 & Nook ereaders

The PRS-T1 is an excellent example of ereader hardware and is a pleasure to read with. It is light and very comfortable to hold and use. In appearance it is rather plain (I guess I’ve been spoiled by the good looks of the Nook Touch) but okay. If I could change something about the styling I would prefer a matte bezel (ala the Kindle Keyboard graphite) to the shiny plastic Sony used for my black model. This would have helped to reduce the dust magnet effect.

When it comes to features, Sony has included all of the bells and whistles we have come to expect in our ereaders. Navigation is very good and well thought out. There is a lot of depth to the feature set when it is needed, yet the PRS-T1 manages to still be intuitive to use and has an easy learning curve. I like the buttons that Sony uses to open apps and settings menus and I expect we will be seeing this more graphical type of interface in other touchscreen ereaders in the future.

While Sony’s new ereader is very nice it does have two major drawbacks, at least for North American users. The first is the price tag. While Sony has made the PRS-T1 much more competitively priced, at $150 it is still pricier than most of the competition.

Then there is the fact that the PRS-T1 will not give you access to the Kindle Store or the Nook store, which are the biggest ebook stores in the US. You can shop for ebooks at the Sony Reader Store, Kobo and other ePub shops supporting Adobe DRM. For users in other countries this will perhaps be less of an issue, as Barnes & Noble will be taken out of the equation.

If you are happy with the available content and are willing to pay the somewhat higher price of entry, the PRS-T1 is an excellent ereader. Some of Sony’s retailing partners seem to have dropped the company’s ereaders, but at present the stores where you can find it include Sony Style, Best Buy and Target.

Possibly Related Posts:

Sony to launch European Reader Stores

Richard — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 16:02:48 +0000

Sony announced today that it will be expanding its ebookstore to Europe. The first new store will launch in the UK with over 100,000 titles by the end of October, 2011. This will be followed by a Reader Store serving German and Austrian customers by the end of this year. Next year Reader Stores will be coming to France, Italy and Spain.

Here’s hoping that Sony does a better job with its European ebookstores than it has with the US version.

Possibly Related Posts:

Sony tablets available for pre-order

Richard — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 17:14:04 +0000

Besides a new ereader, Sony today also announced the availability of one of its previously announced tablets for pre-order. The new tablet is expected to ship in mid-September.

The Sony Tablet S is Honeycomb powered. It features a 9.4-inch touchscreen, NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor, front and rear facing cameras and is Wi-Fi only. Its asymmetric design is meant to be more ergonomic, allowing the Tablet S to be held more comfortably for longer periods. The tablet will have access to Sony Entertainment Network Services and is Playstation Certified. DNLA is also supported for interaction with DNLA compatible televisions and other devices.

The Tablet S is available now for pre-order from Sony Style in the US and Canada. There are two configurations: 16GB priced at $499 and a 32GB model priced at $599.

The smaller clamshell Sony Tablet P is expected to be available in time for the holidays.

Possibly Related Posts:

Sony unveils new ereader

Richard — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 15:53:51 +0000

Sony officially released the details of its newest ereader today. The Sony Reader Wi-Fi (PRS-T1) will feature a 6-inch Pearl display and will weigh in at under 6 ounces. The new Sony ereader will feature a touchscreen — one on which pinch to zoom has been enabled. A stylus is supplied, but is not necessary to use the touchscreen.

The PRS-T1 will allow users to use the Wi-Fi connection to connect directly to public libraries in the US and Canada via a dedicated icon. eBooks can be checked out from the device itself rather than having to be sideloaded.

Sony also confirms earlier rumors that it would be bundling the Harry Potter ebooks with its new ereader, although the release does not specifically say whether the Potter books will come to the new Sony Reader before going on sale to the general public. The PRS-T1 will come with a voucher for the first book of the series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, to be downloaded from Pottermore “when it becomes available.”

The PRS-T1 will come with two English (British and American) and 10 translation dictionaries on board. Other features include 2GB memory, headphone jack (the PRS-T1 can play back music), six font styles with eight font sizes and user changeable screensavers. Sony claims a battery life of over a month or 3 weeks with the Wi-Fi turned on.

The PRS-T1 is expected to be available in October (this is according to the release from Sony — at the Sony Style site it says mid-September) and will be priced at $149. Three colors will be available — Red, White or Black.

It is good to see that Sony got the Wi-Fi in there this time around. The pricing is much more competitive as well. Looks like the lower pricing and the very light weight come at the cost of the metal case that previous generations of Sony ereaders have had. This is necessary in order for Sony to be at all competitive, but one thing I like about my PRS-650 is the metal case, which makes it feel more durable and solid than the plastic cases of other ereaders.

Possibly Related Posts:

Next gen Sony ereaders to get Harry Potter ebook bundle?

Richard — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 20:48:18 +0000

The Register is reporting that the new Sony ereaders which are expected to be unveiled soon may come bundled with the Harry Potter ebooks. Other ereaders will most likely have to wait until next year for digital versions of the Potter books, which will be sold exclusively through the Pottermore website. Pottermore just went into beta yesterday and is expected to open in October.

This has apparently not been confirmed by Sony, but it sounds more than plausible as Sony is a partner in the Pottermore site. I’m guessing that Sony’s unveiling of its new ereaders will be tied to the public launch of Pottermore.

Possibly Related Posts:

New Sony ereaders on the way?

Richard — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 16:56:00 +0000

Bloomberg is reporting that Sony plans to refresh its line of ereaders, with new models possibly arriving on store shelves in August. Sony also has a couple of tablets on the way.

I have to say that I’ve had the feeling of late that Sony is abandoning the ereader market in the US. The company’s ereaders have fallen behind the Nook and Kindle ereaders in terms of marketshare.

My take — To get back in the race Sony will need to achieve more competitive pricing and include expected features like Wi-Fi. To do this it will need to put more emphasis on selling content than it currently does. The competition makes relatively little on the ereader devices themselves, which are subsidized by the sale of ebooks. This seems to be a concept that Sony has so far been unwilling to grasp.

Possibly Related Posts:

Sony Honeycomb tablets unveiled

Richard — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 19:55:22 +0000

Today Sony officially confirmed that it is working on a couple of Android 3 tablets that are expected to be released by this fall. Both models of the Sony Tablet, dubbed the S1 and S2, will feature Wi-Fi and WAN (3G/4G).

The S1 will have a 9.4-inch display and will feature an off-center of gravity to make it more comfortable to hold. The S2 will sport two 5.5-inch displays in a folding design. The individual screens of the S2 can be configured to operate together as one larger display or as two separate screens with differing functions — for example one screen could show a keyboard with the second displaying the document being worked on. No mention as to whether an ebook will be able to display a separate page on each screen.

Both tablets will feature integration with other Sony products. They can be used as remote controls for Sony Bravia AV products; connect with the Sony Reader Store to purchase and download ebooks; output content to DLNA Certified televisions and wireless speakers; play PlayStation titles via PlayStationSuite (to be launched later this year – will bring PS games to Android); and subscribe to streaming music and video on demand services through Sony’s Qriocity platform.

We will have to wait for more detailed specs and pricing. Sony has released the promotional video below for the new tablets. Don’t know about functionality yet, but aesthetically both tablets appear to be well designed.

Possibly Related Posts:

Borders store closing sale

Richard — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 06:35:55 +0000

Generally I don’t attend going out of business sales. The companies running these things start off by offering enticing discounts, but the discount is off of the MSRP. If you buy something in the early days of the sale you are likely to regret it when you find the same item for a lower price somewhere else that is not going out of business. By the time the discounts offer real savings there is often nothing of interest left.

But today I had some extra time to kill between appointments, so I stopped in at one of the Borders stores that is on the chopping block. There were still quite a few interesting books left, but to be honest I really prefer reading digitally now.

The Area E section (Borders’ in-store digital reading section) was long gone, but there was a small display of generic one-size-fits-all ereader covers left. And in the midst of this was one of Sony’s official lighted covers for the PRS-650 Touch Edition ereader. This cover originally sold for $50, but is pretty much unavailable anywhere now, at least in this country. After the discount I walked out the door with a new lighted cover for my Sony Touch for $15 plus tax.

Sony’s lighted cover features a small LED light that turns on automatically when flipped up and turns off when stowed. The light is powered by a single AAA battery (included) and features a high and low brightness setting. The ereader is held in place by two pins that fit into holes set into the top and bottom left corners of the ereader. This system allows the ereader to swing back and forth freely in the cover — but avoids any danger of damaging the bezel should you inadvertently open the cover backwards, as has been the unfortunate case with the Kindle 2 hinge system.

The cover does have stiffeners sewn inside, but I think Sony should have used stiffer materials for the front cover to better protect the screen. I’m not sure if I would have been entirely happy with the cover at its original price of $50, but for what I paid it is a bargain. If you have been looking for this cover you might check your local Borders stores that are having a going away sale.

Sorry, the photos are not that great. The top one was taken with my cell phone and the bottom two with my Xoom under artificial light — the batteries of my digital camera died and I didn’t want to wait for them to recharge.