College student looking for a cheap & light ebook reader..

[Grapeomaniac]

I have heaps of articles and books on my laptop that I have to read in the next few months for my final thesis. I also commute a lot to & from the campus and around the city. And, I'm hoping I can put some of that time into good use.

What I'm looking for is a cheap ebook reader that has a large screen (6"-9") and that can display PDFs. That's it! A 5lbs laptop is too heavy to carry around. lol.

Netbook is an option. But I'm looking for a cheaper and lighter alternative. Smart Phones? Handheld PC? Any suggestion?

How's the HP Jornada 720? It has a large screen and used ones are selling for $100. Anything else that matches its price and screen size?

Thanks.

[Ham88]

First off Welcome to mobileread.

Second I know of one reader that is sub 100 dollars this is the eBookman 900, it has a smaller screen than the jornada, and it only has 8 mb of built in memory, expandable via a mmc card. The only redeeming feature that I know of is that its dirt cheap (as far as ereaders go) its only 80 bucks off the ectaco website. The next cheapest one that I know of is the Ectaco Jetbook, but its $200 on Newegg, last time I checked anyway. But I'm not sure if it would work for you as most ereaders don't display pdf very well, as the screen is too small, and they lack text reflow.

For more information I direct you to the mobileread wiki.

Hope you the best of luck in your decision on an ereader.

[rgeorg]

People on MR are happy with the Smart Q7 - a 7" linux tablet (LCD backlit). Costs about 250$. About 1 lb weight if I remember correctly. Check out the threads...
Even 7" is not-so-great for textbook (with diagrams) PDFs...you might be much happier with a 9-10" netbook - they weigh about 2,5 lbs in general and can have an 8-hour battery (the Asus 100?).

8-10" iRex readers run about 500-900 euros - which may be too expensive for a student. And you have to be VERY careful not to break the screen.

[DDHarriman]

Hi

What you are looking - "a cheap eBook reader that has a large screen (6"-9") and that can display PDFs” - does not exist.

Best similar thing you will get is a netbook.

Best regards,

[desertgrandma]

Welcome to MobileRead, grapeomaniac.

What price point are you looking at?

Let us know where you are from, that might help a little.......

[Grapeomaniac]

Thanks everyone.

I live in Pakistan and will have to order whichever ebook reader I buy from North America or Europe. Just as I was falling in love with iRex, I saw the price. And oh, it's expensive! $200 is the most that I can spend.

Another option is to buy one of those old ultra-portable laptops (10" display, 2lbs weight, etc). That's the cheapest option. Can anyone share their experience of reading ebooks on such devices?

Thanks again.

[shighfield]

I have an IBM Thinkpad X41 tablet. 12" that let's you flip it sideways for reading. It works, but I only use it as such for those PDF books that just are not in any other format.

[Grapeomaniac]

Originally Posted by shighfield

I have an IBM Thinkpad X41 tablet. 12" that let's you flip it sideways for reading. It works, but I only use it as such for those PDF books that just are not in any other format.

Most of my articles are in PDF format. I was mainly wondering whether portability and eyestrain would be issues with those machines.

[rgeorg]

Not all netbooks have the same screen quality. I have absolutely no eyestrain reading on my Asus netbook, but can only read the Classmate tablet in ambient lighting - the backlight cannot be dimmed enough to comfortably read in the dark.

Obviously there is is difference in size and weight of a netbook vs reader, and you should also consider battery life which could be 2-3 hrs for a netbook vs 20 hrs or so for a dedicated reader.

That being said, your choice will depend on your projected use. If you have a long commute ride and want it for daily carry-around portability then a netbook may be too heavy and bulky for you. On the other hand, my husband is quite happy using an old laptop (15") - but uses it to read/browse at home or while (infrequent) travelling, so it's not a problem.

I purchased the jetBook (for fiction/novels - not PDF technical) for portability as well as screen quality - but I find that actually I don't have much need to port it around too much. It is still great for readability, "home portability" and the odd Dr-office wait.

[richman]

I can share what is working for me. I do have an acer 8.9 netbook that I use for tech type pdf's and prs-505 for pdf's that covert to the reader.
Also, I have notes I've made and other txt and other stuff that works great on the 505. The 505 takes 1/2 second to turn on and opens right to where I left off. Whereas with netbook it takes 1 min to turn on and battery life is limited. I get 3 weeks battery life per charge and can leave the 505 on the whole day and not waste battery life.
Maybe if the 505 becomes a niche thing, you use it for studying certain type of stuff that works for you and switch to other devices for other times. I do have itouch too which is nice for reading too, but I just don't use it for that since I got 505.
A bigger screen on these ereaders would be nice to view pdf's in full format but they aren't out yet , but probably will be over the next few years.
Lot's of times it really nice to just open the cover on 505 turn on and 1/2 second later continue reading what I was reading earlier and then turn off and put away. A few minutes here and a few minutes there , quick and easy. Netbook and most other electronic stuff has 1 minute turn on and off and battery life not as great.
Now if you had to study for tests, the 505 is way cool, type up notes and load on 505 and zoom it so it becomes like flash cards.
I have 20 or 30 books loaded on mine, and when I open any of them, it goes to page I was at last. Also has table of contents and with push of button go to that chapter.
Everyone is different , so if it works for you , nobody knows , maybe get it at a place that they have a 30 day return policy.