Archive for the ‘bebook neo review’ tag
Bebook Neo Review– Update 4 comments
I’ve come to like the Neo ereader, although it is a bit hard to go back to the smaller screen after using the DR800SG. Function wise, the Neo is comparably a very capable ereader – it is too bad we can’t do some sort of ereader mind meld. I had hoped to do some videos this weekend of the controls and maybe of the PDF handling on the Neo.
The control scheme on the Neo is quite good; you can even adjust the font size with a single click of the control rings. PDF’s can be zoomed and panned. And what’s more the Neo will remember your zoom setting between page turns on PDF’s, so there is no more tedious resetting of your zoom level from page to page.
Yes, I planned to update my Neo ereader reports and shoot some video this weekend. Unfortunately…
I have cracked the Neo’s screen.
I’m sure you too have had a few of those “OMG, I can’t believe I just did that please God let me wake up now I know this is just a bad dream” kind of moments before. Well … welcome to my latest bad toon.
I am currently waiting to hear back from Bebook with an RMA and the cost of replacing the screen.
My wife is not a happy camper.
“Camping??? What you talking about camping for? We don’t have any money left for camping! Maybe you better go camping in 
the backyard for a while!”
Looking at things from the “Well, the aquarium is still half full” point of view as I slowly and methodically begin banging my head against the wall, I reflect on how I can now check out Bebook’s customer service.
‘And stop banging your head on that wall – we just had it painted!!”
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Bebook Neo Update: Wi-Fi and the eBook Store Portal no comments
One of the interesting features of the Neo ereader is its ebook store portal which is accessed through the wireless connection. Depending on what country you are in the portal will list different participating third party ebook stores from which you can use your wireless connection to purchase ebooks.
At the moment the Neo only uses the WPA wireless protocol rather than the more common WEP. I just got a chance to switch my cable modem to WPA so I can check out the wireless features of the Neo.
In the United States the participating stores that are listed in the ebook portal (Mybebook in the pic below) and from which you should be able to wirelessly download ebooks are:
- eBookMall
- Project Gutenberg
- eBooks.com
- Barnes & Noble
In addition to shopping for ebooks, you also have access to Wikipedia and Google – from which you can browse the Web, check your email, etc. As expected, the browser on the Neo is a bit clunky, but browsers on dedicated ereaders usually are.
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Bebook Neo Unboxing no comments
Imagine a tech company that not only gets its new gadget out by the
announced date but even manages to fill the preorders a week early. This is what Bebook has done with the Neo ereader, which I received a couple of days ago.
As you can see in the pic, the Neo comes with a USB cable and quick start guide. No sleeve or cover. In fact Bebook does not yet have covers for the Neo. I suspect that nook covers might fit the Neo as the two ereaders are almost the same size, but I have not been able to try that out yet.
I like the Neo, but I have had a couple of problems. First of all, I have not yet been able to make my wireless network available to it so I have so far been
unable to use the Wi-Fi. This is disappointing as one of the interesting features of the Neo is the ebook store portal. I also have a problem with Adobe Digital Editions and have not yet been able to read a book with ADE DRM. More on that later.
Some things I like so far:
- The ereader itself seems to be well built and feels very solid; comes with a 24 month guarantee.
- When you zoom in on PDF documents your zoom is maintained when you turn pages – you don’t have to zoom in again for each page as you do with some other ereaders. There is a panning function as well.
- The Wacom – based display gives you some of the benefits of a touchscreen without sacrificing display quality.
- Both Onyx – which manufacturers the hardware – and Bebook are working to add features. The latest firmware from Onyx has been successfully installed on the Neo, and presumably the Neo firmware from Bebook will also work on the Onyx Boox 60 when it is available for download. If you prefer one firmware over another you should be able to choose.
Everything on the Neo ereader does not work perfectly yet. Unlike the nook, which when released by Barnes & Noble felt barely functional to me, the Neo is quite usable and just feels like most of the foundations of the features are in place but some of them need to be fleshed out more or further refined. Some of the problem areas I’ve found so far:
- The dictionary function needs lots of work.
- Annotation feature is not yet fully implemented. You can highlight, and on PDF documents you can do freehand drawing and notes. There is also a notepad feature where you can draw and write.
There are also a couple of features that may not appeal to some:
- No page turning buttons on the sides of the ereader. The control ring at the bottom is used instead. It works fine for me, even when reading in bed while holding the Neo with one hand, but side buttons would add convenience if you want to change position. You can also use the stylus to do a page turning swipe.
- Some do not like using a stylus. For me the stylus is much better than the screen glare associated with other types of touchscreens.
Overall I like the Neo ereader so far and think that it will be a keeper for me. My biggest problem right now is getting Adobe Digital Editions to work.
When I connected the Neo to my computer ADE asked if I wanted to activate it. I clicked yes and the program seemed to do the activation. There were certainly no error messages telling me that the activation process had been unsuccessful. However, when I tried to open a book with DRM by ADE the Neo was unable to open it. So I reconnected and Adobe asked me again if I wanted to activate the ereader. I went through this process several times, tried deleting the book and reinstalling it with the same result. Then Adobe spit out the “too many activations” error. So I had to submit a service ticket to Adobe and am waiting for them to reset my counter so that I can try again.
When looking at Adobe’s DE forums I find a number of people there with the same problem with various brands of ereaders or with their computers. Many are irate because they are waiting a long time for Adobe to fix their problem by resetting their account and cannot access books they have paid for in the meantime. This is DRM hell of the worst possible kind. Adobe really needs to get this straightened out. One poster even asks if Adobe works for Amazon and gets rewarded for converting people into Kindle buyers.
£149.00
£109
