The PRS-300 isn't cheap, but it looks and feels like a quality device and does what it is supposed to do, which is let you comfortably read your books, without having to lug around a bag of paper copies.
With a 5-inch E-ink display, the Pocket Reader is the smallest offering so far from the major eBook Reader manufacturers. But don't let its small stature fool you. While I approached the device with a healthy amount of skepticism, I came away pleasantly surprised.
In the end, I can't recommend either device wholeheartedly, but I can tell you that if you plow through books fast and dirty, without jumping around a lot, you could do worse than drop $200 on the Pocket. It's simple, it's easy on the eyes, and for the time being, it's the cheapest ebook reader out there.
At $199, the Sony Reader Pocket Edition isn't a total bargain (we'd like to see it at $150), but it is appealing because it's more compact than the Kindle 2 and costs $100 less. If you're looking for an e-reader that has such extras as notes and annotations capabilities and the ability to display large font sizes with a decent amount of text per line, this is not the e-reader for you.
At $200, the Pocket Edition is Sony's least-expensive digital reader, undercutting the Kindle 2 by $60 and Sony's own Touch Edition by $100. It doesn't feature bells and whistles like memory slots and wireless book downloads, but as a simple, straightforward book reader it's a pleasure to use.
Overall, I found the Sony Reader Pocket Edition to be an appealing choice, not just for buyers on a budget (after all, the Amazon Kindle is no longer a lot more expensive), but for anyone who wants a small, no-frills e-book reader to carry in a purse or backpack.
If you take so many books on holiday that you rack up excess baggage charges, the Pocket Edition is an excellent compromise, thanks to its high capacity and low weight. But if you only flip through a few pages per night your bank balance will thank you for choosing paper over plastic.
Despite these drawbacks, it’s hard not to like the Pocket Edition. It offers an excellent reading experience, superb build quality, and is currently the cheapest eBook reader on the market. Given that we'll be twiddling our thumbs for some time while the UK Kindle gets up to speed, this well-designed little eBook reader is an attractive alternative.
