I bought my first e-reader a few months ago, a Cool-ER from a company called Interead which went bust the week after I bought my toy *sigh*. It was basically a clone of a Netronix-type of reader, so similar to the Cybook. It died this week; the screen is "cracked" internally and although you can see it's still trying to work, about three quarters is covered by a black blob that makes reading impossible, and it isn't refreshing properly. I feel a bit of a fool; I was carrying it in a soft cover to protect the screen from scratches, but in hindsight I should have used a rigid cover to protect it from physical damage. With the vendors out of business I very much doubt I'll be able to do anything about this.

So I went and replaced it with a Sony PRS-505 from trusty old eBay. It was being sold by an Owd Goff who had covered with skulls and roses. Since I have tendencies that way myself, this made it more appealing to me, but less appealing to the general public, so I managed to get it for £65 (just over $100). I have named it "Wanton Rose", since all my computers are named after G&S references and that seems to fit very well.

( comparison )

For $100, though, I'm very satisfied with my new toy :-)