.FLYINGHEAD PRODUCT REVIEW
.TITLE Take your library with you, but on which eBook reader?
.AUTHOR G. Denise Lance
.SUMMARY Since most companies that sold dedicated eBook readers had gone belly-up after they did not sell like TiVos. At $110, the eBookwise 1150 seemed to Denise Lance like an inexpensive way to explore eBook world, especially since she doubted my bibliophile mind would even like reading this way. Is this inexpensive eBook reader for you? Read Denise’ review.
.FEATURE
A few years ago, the eBook buzz hummed loudly. In the future, paper books would be passi. We would all be downloading our reading material to eBook readers and saving trees in the process. As quick as we were to take to cell phones, MP3 players, and DVR’s, the eBook thing never took off.
I think I understand why. As much as I love my tech gadgets, nothing is as satisfying as sitting in my favorite chair, illuminated by just the right light, turning pages to see where an enthralling tale will take me. I spend all day with eyes glued to a monitor, so smelling real ink on real paper offers a nostalgic treat.
.TEASER Want a cheap eBook reader that doesn’t suck? Tap here to read our review.
In this hectic life, however, getting to sit in that great reading chair is a luxury for which I rarely have more than an hour. My sister and I commute to work together about 45 minutes each way. She drives, so I often use this idle time to read. I make at least one plane trip each year and often ride to in-state meetings.
About two years ago, I, um, "found" some eBooks I wanted to read while playing with a file sharing program (back before the download police started fining people). I didn’t want to be tied to a computer, so I broke down and bought an eBook reader. While I did own a couple of PDA’s that I could have used, they were sadly stuffed in a drawer, dead from lack of battery charging. In addition, I didn’t think my eyes would stand reading for long on such a small screen.
.H1 Introducing the eBookwise 1150
There weren’t many options at that time, as most companies that sold dedicated eBook readers had gone belly-up after they did not sell like TiVos. At $110, the [[http://www.ebookwise.com|eBookwise 1150]], shown in Figure A, seemed like an inexpensive way to explore eBook world, especially since I doubted my bibliophile mind would even like reading this way.
.FIGPAIR A The eBookwise is a nice, inexpensive device.
It took a bit of getting used to, but now I love this thing! The eBookwise 1150 weighs about a pound and has two large buttons on the side to move back and forth in a book. The touch screen allows you to flip the orientation so that you can peruse left or right handed.
A tap on the screen allows you to change the brightness and contrast of the backlit screen, which is great for reading in different lighting situations. I find this a great help during winter trips, since natural light is waning on the way home from work. I also find it easier to manage on the plane than a book.
Through the touch screen, you can enlarge the text size (there are only two sizes to choose) and a tap in the upper right corner of the page places a bookmark.
Touching the books icon in the lower right corner brings up a table of contents listing all books on the device, as shown in Figure B. The 8mb flash memory on-board holds four to six eBooks, and with an optional 64mb SmartMedia card, it will hold about 10 selections.
.FIGPAIR B You can take a small library with you.
You can purchase proprietary formatted books from the eBookwise site, or load your own documents in plain text (.txt), Rich Text format (.rtf), Microsoft Word documents (.doc), HTML (.htm or .html), and Rocket eBook Editions (.rb). The major weakness of the eBookwise 1150 is that it does not support Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) or Microsoft Reader (.lit) eBooks from other sites. Most of these also have DRM encryption, so you cannot convert them to a compatible format.
In the past few months, a new crop of eBook readers featuring [[http://www.eink.com/products/matrix/High_Res.html|E ink technology]] have raised the interests of techies and bookworms. More closely resembling black ink on white paper, these EPD (Electronic Paper Displays) displays are touted as reflective and easy to read in bright sunlight or low light conditions while being readable from any angle. The [[http://products.sel.sony.com/pa/prs/reader_features.html|Sony Reader]] and [[http://www.irextechnologies.com/products/iliad|iliad]] by iRex are the two major contenders. At $350 for the Sony Reader and $699 for the iLiad, trying one of these requires more than pocket change.
These new devices can read PDF files and have added features such as synching with your computer to download RSS feeds to read on the go. Perhaps the prices will come down in time for my dog to buy me one for Christmas. He always buys just what I want within his extremely low canine credit limit.
I give the eBookwise 1150 a 4. It’s got a nice beat and you can dance to it!
.RATING 4
.BEGIN_SIDEBAR
.H1 Product availability and resources
Learn more about the [[http://www.ebookwise.com|eBookwise 1150]].
Learn more about the [[http://products.sel.sony.com/pa/prs/reader_features.html|Sony Reader]].
Learn more about [[http://www.irextechnologies.com/products/iliad|iliad|iRex’s iLead]].
.END_SIDEBAR
.BIO G. Denise Lance, Ph.D. is a researcher, online instructor, and freelance writer who often covers assistive technology.
