by Ray Hendon

The review of four of the most popular eReaders by Switchedon is one of the best I have seen in maintaining an objective attitude throughout the evaluations.   Their conclusions seem reasonable to me. Follow this link to read the full review.

The reviewer ranks them: Kindle 3, with Sony and Nook more or less tied (although he did not rank them).  Kobo brings up the rear, especially at $129.  Kobo is not going to sell at that price to anyone who does the least bit of homework.  Perhaps in a captive environment like Barnes and Noble Stores, some will buy it at that price.  They are prime candidates for buyers remorse down the road.

I thought the model of Sony Reader they evaluated was not the best choice.  They should have tested the Touch Edition since it is closer to the specs of the Nook and Kindle.  Rather, they chose the PRS-900 which has a huge 7.1” screen, is thick, out of date, and not really comparable to the other units.

Nevertheless, the conclusion about the screen contrast being poor has been mentioned by virtually every reviewer of Sony Readers.  It appears to me that the large, 7+ inch E-Ink screens are headed for extinction before too many cycles of the seasons are counted.  They are too clumsy, too heavy and inconvenient to hold for long periods, and they are too expensive.  They have had their day in the sun.