PRS-300 Charging seems totally random. Unable to get full charge at all

[reader8317028]

That was it!

I had it on for a good few hours before retiring and when I unplugged it it showed 4 bars, which was a lovely sight to behold, and it still could have taken more charge.

I notice I am also able to plug it back in and it will continue charging (from partial charge) whereas that didn't work before with the none pc usb.

So I have replugged it back in now to get a full charge.

I am really pleased I persevered. Thanks for all the replies pointing me in the right direction.

I hate the idea of perceived obsolescence and people trying to push you into 'new stuff' just 'because'. I love to bring these old, perfectly good, devices back to life.

[Sirtel]

"Perfectly good" is subjective. I still have two old ereaders from 2011 in working order. I never use them for reading - the reading experience is terrible compared to modern devices. They're slow, the screens look much worse than on my two Kobos from 2021, almost no customization options compared to my Kobos and so on. In short, just awful.

I wouldn't want to use a 15-year-old computer either.

So no, my recommendation to buy a newer device was not "just because". But then YMMV.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

"Perfectly good" is subjective.

Yep.

Originally Posted by Sirtel

I still have two old ereaders from 2011 in working order. I never use them for reading - the reading experience is terrible compared to modern devices. ...

That's also subjective.

Originally Posted by Sirtel

I wouldn't want to use a 15-year-old computer either.

I use them (the one I'm typing on now is 11 years old). For my purposes it is "perfectly good."

Originally Posted by Sirtel

So no, my recommendation to buy a newer device was not "just because". But then YMMV.

I'm currently reading on a Sony T3 (also 11 years old). It's the lightest 6" eReader that I own and I like the way it renders fonts. More "vertical" than a modern Kobo (not that I'm running down Kobos, they just render fonts differently).

Preferences are always subjective.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by reader8317028

I hate the idea of perceived obsolescence and people trying to push you into 'new stuff' just 'because'. I love to bring these old, perfectly good, devices back to life.

I'm happy that someone was able to give you better advice than I was able to give you. I'm also happy that you got your PRS-300 up and running. I'm like you, I like to revive (and use) older devices. The idea of throwing something away that still works bothers me.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rcentros

Preferences are always subjective.

Of course, and as I personally wouldn't want to use an ereader/tablet/computer/phone over 10 years old even if they paid me, and IMO the user experience on ancient devices is awful compared to newer ones, my advice is always to buy a newer device. I sincerely cannot imagine why anyone would want to use so old a device, although I know lots of people do. So I don't say "buy a newer one" just because, for no reason - in my view the user experience really is lightyears better.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Of course, and as I personally wouldn't want to use an ereader/tablet/computer/phone over 10 years old even if they paid me, and IMO the user experience on ancient devices is awful compared to newer ones, my advice is always to buy a newer device. I sincerely cannot imagine why anyone would want to use so old a device, although I know lots of people do. So I don't say "buy a newer one" just because, for no reason - in my view the user experience really is lightyears better.

I understand. But I don't consider newer readers "lightyears better." I like smaller, lighter readers. And I've already mentioned that I like the way Sony readers render fonts. But I use newer readers also — often alternating between old and new (which is why I use ePubs with consistent page numbers, instead of KePubs). For some reason I still sometimes have trouble with front-lit readers. It's usually easier on my eyes to use a non-lit reader with my Glocusent reading light (which is what I've been doing a lot of lately). I'm currently reading a book on my Sony T3 with it.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I understand. But I don't consider newer readers "lightyears better." I like smaller, lighter readers. And I've already mentioned that I like the way Sony readers render fonts. But I use newer readers also — often alternating between old and new (which is why I use ePubs with consistent page numbers, instead of KePubs). For some reason I still sometimes have trouble with front-lit readers. It's usually easier on my eyes to use a non-lit reader with my Glocusent reading light (which is what I've been doing a lot of lately). I'm currently reading a book on my Sony T3 with it.

Yes, obviously people and their tastes are very different. I charge my ancient ereaders regularly and compare them to my current ereaders every time... and frankly, I can't understand how I was able to read on them and even enjoy it - they really seem terrible to me now. Of course, back when I used them, there was nothing particularly better, that was where the technology was at the time. But now I couldn't imagine using them. Well, if I were stuck on an uninhabited island with only these for company, maybe then I would be forced to use them. But not if I had any other choice.

Anyway, what I wanted to say is that what's perfectly good for one person, may be far from being so for another, and I resent the suggestion (expressed by the OP) that you're just "pushing" new stuff for no reason if you don't find every ancient piece of tech to be perfectly good.

[reader8317028]

Originally Posted by rcentros

Yep.



That's also subjective.



I use them (the one I'm typing on now is 11 years old). For my purposes it is "perfectly good."



I'm currently reading on a Sony T3 (also 11 years old). It's the lightest 6" eReader that I own and I like the way it renders fonts. More "vertical" than a modern Kobo (not that I'm running down Kobos, they just render fonts differently).

Preferences are always subjective.

Right on. My PC is also just the same age circa 2013 build. I still have an endless list of games I could run on it and works fine for general browsing. Only time I will change something is if it breaks from long service life.

I suppose the capitalist system relies on the majority of people being dissatisfied with their gadgets after a year or two.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by reader8317028

Right on. My PC is also just the same age circa 2013 build. I still have an endless list of games I could run on it and works fine for general browsing. Only time I will change something is if it breaks from long service life.

I suppose the capitalist system relies on the majority of people being dissatisfied with their gadgets after a year or two.

If you use your PC only for gaming and browsing, then of course it's no wonder you're satisfied with your 11-year-old device. There are folks who use their computers for other things and an ancient device may not be capable of keeping up with those demands.

And who is talking about a year or two? I'm talking about devices more than a decade old. My main laptop is 4 years old, my Kobos are 3 years old; I have no intention of ditching any of them yet. But a 11-year-old or older device just doesn't do what I want it to do.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Tho only worthwhile S/H Sony readers, if cheap, are the PRSx50 family and the PRS-T2

But even they are so old now they will need a new battery and the plastic is disintegrating.

I disagree on the plastic disintegrating. The battery could well and truly be shot. The PRS-650 has a bad battery and the last time I used my T1, the batter was OK. But I've not used the T1 since the just after the Kobo Aura H2O came out.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I disagree on the plastic disintegrating. The battery could well and truly be shot. The PRS-650 has a bad battery and the last time I used my T1, the batter was OK. But I've not used the T1 since the just after the Kobo Aura H2O came out.

The plastic on my PRS-350 is disintegrating and the battery is OK. I agree the battery is the most likely thing to fail. I can buy a new battery, but hardly seems worth it.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

If you use your PC only for gaming and browsing, then of course it's no wonder you're satisfied with your 11-year-old device. There are folks who use their computers for other things and an ancient device may not be capable of keeping up with those demands.

I'm curious as to what you do on your computer that I can't do on my "ancient one?" My "ancient" computer runs really well using an SSD and 16 GBs of RAM (with Linux as the OS).

If I was a "gamer" (I'm talking about the huge, modern video games) then this micro computer would obviously not be adequate (it would need a better video card, for starters). But I'm not a gamer and there's nothing I want to do on a computer that can't be done well on the "ancient" computer I'm using.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I'm curious as to what you do on your computer that I can't do on my "ancient one?" My "ancient" computer runs really well using an SSD and 16 GBs of RAM (with Linux as the OS).

If I was a "gamer" (I'm talking about the huge, modern video games) then this micro computer would obviously not be adequate (it would need a better video card, for starters). But I'm not a gamer and there's nothing I want to do on a computer that can't be done well on the "ancient" computer I'm using.

Photo and video editing, for example. And I don't own or use desktops where it's easier to upgrade components; as I need to be able to carry my daily driver around, I only use laptops. An 11-year-old laptop (unless it was a very high-end and expensive one) is not capable of doing what I want it to do on an acceptable level, at least not a Windows laptop. I know nothing about Linux.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Photo and video editing, for example. And I don't own or use desktops where it's easier to upgrade components; as I need to be able to carry my daily driver around, I only use laptops. An 11-year-old laptop (unless it was a very high-end and expensive one) is not capable of doing what I want it to do on an acceptable level, at least not a Windows laptop. I know nothing about Linux.

I rarely edit photos but, when I do, GIMP seems to work fine. It's true that I can't run Photoshop in Linux, if you're specifically speaking of that application.

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I rarely edit photos but, when I do, GIMP seems to work fine. It's true that I can't run Photoshop in Linux, if you're specifically speaking of that application.

RAM and storage were also not sufficient; being a laptop, they couldn't be upgraded to today's standards (I need at least 32GB RAM and 1-2TB storage). And the screen was not 4K, which is what I need these days.

With a desktop it's simpler - you can upgrade RAM, internal drive etc easily enough, and buy a newer monitor (if your computer is capable of working with it). Unfortunately I can't sit in one place for several hours when using a computer - I need to be able to move around with my device.