Sony Reader Gets an Update
Today, I’m singing the “Early Adopter Blues”. As many people know, I have a 1st generation Sony Reader, the PRS-500. The 2nd generation Reader, the PRS-505, just got an update to the firmware that includes features I’d love to have: automatic reflow for PDF, and support for Adobe Digital Editions and the ePub formats. If you’ve never heard of it, ePub is a new, open standard for ebooks based on XML and designed for interoperability. Adobe Digital Editions (DE) is an ebook organizer and library that works with PDFs and ePub formats.
This is a phenomenal free update. With support for Adobe DE, Sony has approached an open platform for ebooks. I never thought I’d say Sony had an open platform for much of anything, but this is closer than many. Many public libraries have DRM’d ebooks in Adobe DE formats, so now Sony Reader PRS-505 owners will actually be able to check out ebooks from the library. That is cool!
I’m quite envious of this new firmware update. I’m also envious of the new Reader cover that I just found that includes a built-in light wedge. For everyone who wants to read in the dark, now you can with the Sony Reader.
I need a new toy.
More info: Yahoo, MobileRead Forums
