Sony’s new ebook reader
I’ve collected books ever since I was 9 years old and love them. We have more than we can accommodate in the house and yet still we keep acquiring more. There’s a copy of Prideaux’s Histories on the shelves, dating back to 1664, as well as, for some strange reason, the UK Board of Education’s syllabus for physical training in schools 1933 (it contains advertisements in the front for Weetabix and Ovaltine, with an explanation for teachers as to why they should recommend them to parents of “listless children” - deserving of a full blog post in its own right one day, I think). An eclectic collection but, as my old gran used to say, it “furnishes the rooms”, and to see them all on display warms the heart.
It was with some hesitation, then, that I recently purchased the new Sony ebook reader, with its promises of portability and signficant storage capacity (160 books on its internal memory - countless more through SD card slots). If I was to give up both the visceral and cerebral appeal of books, what could it give me in return?
I have to say, having access to a library on one device didn’t really appeal. After all, I rarely have more than two books on the go at any one time. I did, though, think it would be useful to have the IB’s document library accompany me on my travels and so I experimented with the Diploma core guides.
They went on easily enough via the software that came with the device, although I did have to rename them for ease of navigation on the Reader’s menu system. They rendered quite small initially (see below) so the increase font size button came in handy. Page turning was slower than I would have liked (I noticed it was much quicker when just reading one of the pre-supplied books), but the table of contents worked well.
Ebook reader and the IB's Learner Profile
Ultimately, though, I was disappointed with its lack of features. I wanted to annotate and comment on content - I couldn’t do this. Nor could I share these notes with others - it doesn’t even have bluetooth connectivity. I was looking for a device that had real application for teaching and learning. Instead, I simply had convenience. Yes, it stores images, but displays them in black and white only, and yes, you can store your music collection on there too. However, to justify its £200 price tag, Sony really needs to give us a little bit more.
Steve
4 December 2008 at 9:01 am
Lee, I also ummed and aahhhed about getting one of these, but (for the same reason that you vaccillated, being a lover of the HB variety) have not yet given in. I may get one in my Christmas stocking, I suspect - it may still be useful on public transport, esp. trains/planes, but (unlike you) I don’t like having more than one book on the go (too much like having two wives/girlfriends! I need to give my undivided attention to one at a time) so unless I have a paper copy and an e-copy of the same book, I may have to resort to polygamy. Can you swap (or pass on) books, without having to swap devices?
Lee Davis
4 December 2008 at 10:49 am
Thanks for your comment, Steve.
No. Sadly, you can only share via a computer, which is why I think it’s limited as a learning tool.
And as an update to the post, an MYP associate regional manager, who shall remain nameless (Beaverford!) managed to freeze mine recently while looking at the IB’s programme standards and practices.
As there’s no re-set button, looks like I’ll have to wait until the battery dies or take off the back…
Steve
4 December 2008 at 11:06 am
I imagine that restriction is a deliberate commercial one (they’ll want to protect e-book sales). It sounds like there’s more “against” the current reader than “for” - if I don’t get one for Christmas, I’ll wait ’til the price drops and the functionality improves. No reset sounds daft - I’d take the battery off, I think - presumably the content of the device is protected. What else do you have on there, apart from the IB stuff?
If you find you need to clear out some book space in your library lee, I’m your man……