What is an eBook?
September 8, 2008 by gadget · 1 Comment
eBooks
eBooks, or “electronic books”, come in many guises – popular contemporary novels, popular works of non-fiction, etc. – just like printed books. Unlike the printed equivalent, however, eBooks are not necessarily intended to be read from cover to cover. An eBook written specifically for the Internet, for example, may feature text that can be searched, by a word, phrase or subject, or may contain hypertext links to other sections of the eBook, itself, or to external sites on the Internet.
eBooks are available for download directly from the Internet, from our eBook Store, or can be purchased on CD, or DVD, and read on a computer, laptop or PDA (”Personal Digital Assistant”) screen, or on a dedicated device, known as an eBook reader ( See What is an eBook Reader? ).
Indeed, many eBook titles are in what is known as the “public domain”, and are available free of charge, from libraries, or from suppliers such as Amazon. eBooks also provide an avenue for authors to self-publish, if they so desire, making their work available to the general public for a small fee, without the need for an agent, or publisher, per se. The cost of publishing electronically is minimal, when compared to the cost of hard copy publishing, and – whether an author distributes, or sells, 1 or 10,000 copies of an eBook – no additional costs are incurred.
Current eBook Market Share
Despite several “false dawns” since the appearance of book titles on CD-ROM in the 1990s – a technology which, unfortunately, coincided with the advent of, and was quickly superseded by, the Internet – the market for eBooks remains small, at present.
The construction of sufficiently sophisticated, yet affordable, eBook readers has proved a major challenge for manufacturers – unlike digital music technology, which dates back to the CD, reading device technology is something new, and demands a more complex interface, and longer battery life – as has the standardisation of file formats and DRM (”Digital Rights Management”) systems across the industry. Adobe, Microsoft and Sony, amongst many other manufacturers have all introduced proprietary eBook file formats at one time or another.
To continue the digital music technology analogy, the development of eBook readers was also hamstrung by the fact that consumers need to purchase not only the reader, but eBooks to read as well; digital music, conversely, existed long before the birth of the MP3 player. Buying books, of any description, is something that consumers are loathe to do; a survey conducted in 2004 revealed that 34% of adults never read at all, and that, on average, we buy just 7 books per person, per year.
The Future of eBooks
The future of the eBook is not all gloom and doom, however. In fact, recent signs are very encouraging indeed. The arrival of the Kindle eBook reader, produced by Amazon, has, indeed, “rekindled” interest in a previously flagging market for eBooks and eBook readers, to the extent that at least 2,000 units were sold in the first few months of production, with a corresponding rise of 10%, or more, in eBook sales. This increased awareness of eBooks in general has also stimulated interest in downloadable eBooks for the original Sony Reader, released in 2006, which have seen increases of between 100% and 150% in the same time period. The Sony Reader PRS-505 is due to launch in the UK in September 2008, and – following its success in the United States, where it has been available since 2006 – can only help to promote eBook readers, and eBook technology in general.
eBooks have remained the preserve of a minority of enthusiasts, to date, principally because of the sheer inconvenience of the technology – the fact that eBooks needed to be read on a computer screen – but the advent of compact, portable, ergonomically designed eBook players means that the general public may, at last, be prepared to embrace what is, fundamentally, and highly attractive and useful technology. The fundamental challenge, of course, is to convince readers that they are as comfortable, if not more so, in holding an eBook reader – with its inherent technological advantages – as they are in holding a “real”, printed book.
It would appear, too, that eBook technology is attracting the attention of major publishing houses in the United Kingdom. Two of the largest, Random House, and Hachette – collectively responsible for 30%, or more, of the domestic market – have announced plans to offer downloadable eBook versions of all their best-selling titles, and this move is likely to covered by all the major publishers in the country.
Best Prices - Sony eBook Reader PRS-505
| Stockist | Product Name | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dixons | Sony Reader PRS505 | £195.04 | Visit Store |
| Advanced MP3 Players | Sony Reader PRS505 | £199.00 | Visit Store |
| Play.com Electronics | Sony Reader PRS505 | £199.99 | Visit Store |
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eBook Readers
September 8, 2008 by gadget · 1 Comment
What is an eBook Reader?
The term “eBook reader” sometimes refers to a software program – such as Microsoft Reader, or Adobe Reader – that allows you to read an electronic book, or eBook - “What is an eBook?“ - in the same way that you read a conventional, printed book. More often than not, however, the term is reserved for hardware, in the form of portable electronic devices – laptop, or tablet-style, computers, PDAs (”Personal Digital Assistants”) and dedicated eBook readers – that are employed for the same purpose. A dedicated eBook reader, for example, can allow the text of a book to be downloaded from the Internet, or elsewhere, in digital form, and presented to the reader in high resolution, and high contrast, akin to that of the printed page.
Advances in screen technology mean that eBook readers, today, no longer require optimal lighting conditions, and can be viewed for long periods without inducing eye strain. Furthermore, the digital nature of an eBook reader means that additional features such as dictionaries, cross-references and URL (”Universal Resource Locator”) links to relevant Internet content can also be included to enhance the reading experience.
eBook Readers Now & in the Future
Theoretically, the idea behind eBooks is an attractive one, and it has been predicted for some time now that the printed book is about to be superseded by the eBook, and the eBook reader. However, despite an estimated 65% of new books being available in eBook form, the market for eBooks and eBook readers remains a fraction of the size of that for the conventional equivalent.
Books, of course, have been written, or printed, on paper for 5,000 years, or more, and printed books are inexpensive, versatile and relatively durable. It has therefore taken time to convince readers that they are, at least, as comfortable reading from a powered, electronic device – albeit a compact, lightweight, and highly functional device – as they are from a familiar paperback, or hardback, book.
However, the emergence of a new technology, known as eInk®, has provided the basis for new generation of eBook readers and rekindled enthusiasm in eBook technology as a whole. eInk® was developed by the eInk Corporation in the United States, and attempts to mimic the physical behaviour of paper, using microscopic black-and-white beads suspended in a clear liquid. By reversing the polarity of the circuitry of an eBook reader, black, or white, beads can be made visible, effectively resulting in a four-colour greyscale. This produces a bright, clear display – significantly easier to read than, say, a small, backlit LCD (”Liquid Crystal Display”) – with a wide viewing angle, and on a par with printed books.
Furthermore, the absence of a backlit means that power is only consumed when the display is updated – that is, when a page is turned – rather than continually. eInk® technology is incorporated into eBook readers such as the Sony Reader PRS-505 – the subject of very good reviews in the United States, where it has been available since 2006 – the Amazon Kindle, and the iRex iLiad, amongst others.
eBook Reader Pros & Cons
eBooks and eBook readers offer enormous potential benefits to book publishers, retailers, authors and readers alike. Publishers can save the costs of printing, binding, distribution, etc., and there is substantially less risk involved in publishing an eBook rather than a conventional, printed book. eBooks can be stored, digitally, on a file server, and have no physical manifestation, per se, such that no warehousing facilities are required, and books can remain “in print” indefinitely. Authors can also self-publish, making their work available for download, for a nominal fee, by way of gaining exposure. Readers, of course, have almost immediate access to hundreds of eBook titles, which, nevertheless, occupy minimal space when compared to the printed equivalent, and are not subject to loss, damage or deterioration over time. The ability to jump back and forth in the text of an eBook and to adjust the font size to the visual ability of the reader are other potential benefits of an eBook reader.
This is, of course, dependent on being able to read the screen, clearly, in shade or bright sunlight, and without any undue straining of the eyes. Inferior screen technology can make an eBook reader less appealing, as can a battery life that does allow reading for long periods; mains electricity is an alternative but, obviously, limits the portability of an eBook reader. It can also be argued that certain elements of eBook technology – plastics, batteries, etc. – are not biodegradable, raising environmental issues when compared with sustainable, biodegradable paper products. However, the fact that eBooks are not printed, at all, does more than compensate for this.
See more information on eBook Readers - Sony eBook Reader PRS-505 Review.
Best Prices - Sony eBook Reader PRS-505
| Stockist | Product Name | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dixons | Sony Reader PRS505 | £195.04 | Visit Store |
| Advanced MP3 Players | Sony Reader PRS505 | £199.00 | Visit Store |
| Play.com Electronics | Sony Reader PRS505 | £199.99 | Visit Store |
Copyright Gadget Heaven ™
Sony Reader eBook PRS-505 - PRS505
August 14, 2008 by gadget · 1 Comment
If you enjoy reading, you’ll love the new Sony Reader PRS-505. Electronic book readers are simply a way of carrying dozens of books but without the backache, in the Sony Reader’s case, carrying 160 books.
Broad benefits of the Sony Reader PRS-505, include being environmentally friendly, lightweight alternative to books, compact and portable. At £199 the Sony Reader is exceptional value compared to many of its rivals.
So how does the Sony Reader PRS-505 (PRS505) work?
The Sony Reader is an alternative way to read. When you buy a Sony PRS-505 Reader, install the software that comes with it and manage your eBooks via your computer in the same way you’d manage your MP3 files for your iPod or your photographs for your digital camera.
Sony has teamed up with Waterstones to offer over 25,000 eBooks, enough to keep even the most dedicated reader busy! If 160 books isn’t enough, then the PRS-505 supports Sony Memory Stick Duo™ and SD memory cards.
For a more in-depth look at the PRS-505, see this Sony Reader eBook PRS-505 Review.
Sony Reader PRS-505 Key Features
- Stores approximately 160 electronic books (eBooks)
- Smaller than a typical paperback, 8mm thick and very light: it’s a stylish aluminium unit that fits in your coat pocket
- Easy to read 6″ eInk® screen. High resolution and multi-shade grey scale give fine detail on text or black-and-white photos
- Unlike a PC, the screen has no backlight or flicker to give the experience of reading a paper page
- Easy to use menu and simple, intuitive controls
- Add bookmarks, scroll smoothly down the page, read page-by-page or fast forward through the book
- Automatically find the page you were last reading, a bit like the start where you left off feature on a dvd
- Call up your stored books quickly: by Author, Title or Date
- MemoryStick™ DUO and SD Card slots allow you to optionally increase capacity up to around 13,000 titles
- Very low power consumption allows nearly 7000 page turns from a single battery charge
- Can be fully charged in only 4 hours from a laptop or PC via supplied USB cable
- Two hours charge time using optional UK/continental mains Adaptor (ACS-5220E)
- Uses the EPUB standard: the most widely used eBook type. But can also read other very common text documents.
- Can also display most common image and photo file types. Note: images are black and white, not colour.
- Use with headphones to listen to music while you read (mp3 or AAC files). Sony recommend the Sony MDR-NC22CX in-ear, noise cancelling headphones, but any Sony headphones are suitable.
- Supplied pre-loaded with sample new eBooks and all necessary software (eBook Library) plus quick start instructions supplied. Full user guide is included on PDF
- Comes with soft tan case. Other cases available as optional accessories (see box below)
Best Prices - Sony Reader eBook PRS-505 - PRS505
| Stockist | Product Name | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dixons | Sony Reader PRS505 | £195.04 | Visit Store |
| Advanced MP3 Players | Sony Reader PRS505 | £199.00 | Visit Store |
| Play.com Electronics | Sony Reader PRS505 | £199.99 | Visit Store |
