Sony Reader PRS-505

Sony Reader PRS-505 Review

The Sony Reader PRS-505 is an eBook reader – an electronic device dedicated to presenting the text of electronic books, or eBooks, in a manner similar to printed books.

Developed inconjunction with E Ink®, the E Ink Corporation in the United States. E Ink® is an example of what is known as an EPD (“Electronic Paper Display”) and allows text and black-and-white images to be displayed in high resolution, and high contrast. This allows a reader the experience of reading from what appears to be a glossy printed page, rather than a computer screen.

The Sony Reader PRS-505, itself, features a 800 x 600 pixel, 166 dpi, display, measuring 6″, diagonally, and – because E Ink® is a passive display technology – is illuminated by natural, ambient light, rather than a powered back light. This means that the display is easy on the eyes, but still sufficiently crisp to be viewed in direct sunlight.

Sony Reader PRS-505 Features

The 6″ display of the Sony Reader PRS-505 is incorporated into an aluminium unit measuring just 7″ x 5″ x 1/3″ and weighing 9oz – sufficiently heavy to give the device a feeling of durability, without restricting its portability – such that it can be carried, unobtrusively, in a pocket or bag.

In terms of storage capacity, the Sony Reader PRS-505 can accommodate up to 160 eBooks at a time, in its integral memory, but this capacity can be increased – using SD (“Secure Digital”) or Sony Memory Stick Duo™ memory expansion cards – to accommodate as many as 13,000 individual eBook titles. High storage capacity, coupled with inherent portability, means that the Sony Reader PRS-505 is ideal for use whilst travelling, allowing you to access all of your favourite eBook titles wherever, and whenever, you wish.

The controls of the Sony Reader PRS-505, too, are arranged ergonomically, with the human reader in mind. Navigation is performed by buttons to the bottom left, and to the right, which effectively mimic the positions of your thumbs when reading a printed book, and make page turning a natural, and intuitive, operation. Memory expansion card slots are positioned along the top edge of the device, with jacks for power, headphones, and USB ports along the bottom edge, together with a volume control.

As mentioned above, E Ink® is a passive display technology, and this means that power is only consumed when the display is updated, that is, when a page is turned – and, even then, only a minuscule amount – so the Sony Reader PRS-505 is capable of 7,000, or more, page turns on a single battery charge.

Furthermore, the Sony Reader PRS-505 can be fully charged in 4 hours via USB – a USB cable is supplied – or 2 hours via an optional AC adaptor.

The Sony Reader PRS-505 conforms to the EPUB standard – the most widely adopted eBook standard, allowing hardware and software interoperability for publishers and consumers alike – but also supports popular Adobe®, Microsoft® and other formats, including PDF, Microsoft® Word, RTF, and BBeB® – BroadBand eBook, a proprietary Sony format – amongst others, so there is no shortage of compatible eBook content.

Indeed, the Sony Reader PRS-505 is supplied with a collection of eBook samples, and excerpts, plus – for a limited period – a disk containing 100 complete, classic works free of charge. Most of the common image formats are also supported, albeit in black-and-white, rather than colour, and you can listen to music – in MP3, or AAC, format – while you read, if you so desire. The headphone jack is compatible with a number of different noise-cancelling headphone models available from Sony.

If you are unfamiliar with the operation of eBook readers, in general, you should find that the Sony Reader PRS-505 is straightforward to use, menu driven, and with simple intuitive controls. eBooks can be retrieved by title, author, or the date that they were added to the device, and you can find the page that you were last reading automatically. Indeed, you can also bookmark pages, and read page-by-page, or skip backwards and forwards between pages, just as you can with a printed book.

The necessary software – that is, Sony eBook Library – and instructions (a “quick start” guide, and full user guide) to get you started are included, as is a soft carrying case. Other, more robust, cases are available as optional extras.

Copyright 2009 Gadget Heaven™

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