Cybook Gen3 to support ePub and PDF reflow

Bookeen, makers of Cybook Gen3 have just announced that the next firmware release, due in quarter 1 2009, will support the ePub format and PDF reflow.

ePub is a common format, said by some to be the future ebook standard format.

PDF reflow, as already offered on the Sony PRS505, makes the reading of PDF files on the 6 inch eink screen, easier.

These two additions make the already great Cybook Gen3 an even more fantastic buy .

Ebook readers versus netbooks?

I’ve been reading a post on the cheap netbooks blog that suggests a netbook is as good for reading on as a dedicated ebook reader.

Well I’m here to tell you that is not the case.

Look at the little fellow on the left who’s been reading on his netbook for an hour – and that’s what it will  do to you too!

But on a serious note, while a netbook makes a great computer, when it comes to reading for a couple of hours on end, there is no substitute for a dedicated ebook reader.

The reason is simple: it’s the fact that there’s no backlight.

Try it out for yourself and see. Put a PDF file on your netbook and however good the screen, if you read it for more than half an hour, it will feel as though your eyes have been sandpapered. Now turn on your ebook reader, start reading, and before you know where you are, you’ll be as relaxed and immersed in the book as if you were reading a real paper book. For real reading, e-ink wins over TFT every time.

What’s that? You don’t have a dedicated ebook reader? Well you’ve come to the right place. Just go to our home page and you’ll quickly find the perfect ebook reader for you. Trust me, you won’t regret it.

Travels with my cheap ebook reader

While eink is a wonderful invention, one problem it has is that low temperatures slow it down.
When I took my Cybook Gen3 reader, the cheapest and the best in my view, up the Eiger on a recent climbing holiday, it was noticeable how when reading at sub-zero temperatures, the page turns slowed remarkably.
The ebook reader still worked fine, it was just slower.

There have been reports of ebook readers, whether cheap or not, ceasing to function altogether in the cold weather, but I’ve never had this experience on any of my ebook readers and suspect that the ebook readers concerned must have been faulty.

Cybook Gen3 ebook reader

This is a stylish lightweight black ebook reader. It has a crystal clear 6 inch e-ink screen and holds several hundred ebooks in its memory.

You can add several thousand books using a standard SD card in the card slot provided, so you can carry a whole library with you.

You can download thousands of free ebooks  from the internet, and it’s a breeze to drag and drop them onto this great little ebook reader. You can take it everywhere with you, and you’ll never again have to think which books to take on holiday and which to leave at home. Just take them all!!

Charging is by USB connection to your PC or netbook via the lead provided, or you can get a cheap mains/USB charger for a few pounds to recharge it when travelling.

A full charge will last some 7,000 page turns, or several weeks of normal reading. Try and get that kind of performance from a laptop battery.

Once you’ve started reading ebooks on your Cybook Gen3 ebook reader, you’ll never want to put it down.

And we  make it easy to find today’s low price for this ebook reader with our price checker page:

You might also wish to check out our Leisure reader recommended ebook reader, the Elonex exclusive to Borders. It’s the same size and weight as the Cybook, shares the clean black lines, and is cheaper.