Asus DR-900 eReader Priced and Tested, Gets Video Overview
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If you have been keeping a close eye on the electronics industry then you have surely noticed that eTablets are among the hottest things available out there, Asus DR-900 offering, that was announced quite some time ago, starting to make its appearance in some parts of the world, a pre-production sample being tested by the Hispazone website.
Featuring quite a stylish exterior, this all black eReader comes with a 9 inch e-Ink screen that packs a pretty impressive 1024x768 resolution, its compact, 10mm thick chassis holding either 2GB or 4GB of storage space, expandable through a microSD card clot, a micro USB port being also present.
Connectivity wise, the DR-900 comes with 802.11 b/g wireless as well as an optional 3G module, Asus estimating the battery life at about 10,000 page turns, if the device is used for nothing other than reading.
According to the same website, the DR-900 requires about 2 hours for the battery to be fully charged, the eReader coming with an accelerometer so it can work in either portrait or landscape mode.
Reading the review, it becomes apparent the build quality is quite impressive, the integrated web browser also working pretty good for such a device, the DR-900 allowing users to select text from the documents or books being read, copy it and then paste it inside the browser, a pretty nice feature for a eReader.
Judging by the enclosed video, the user interface seems to be really simple to use, although there is some lag present when most functions are selected.
However, this is a pre-production sample and many things can still be changed until Asus releases the DR-900, as I think a simple firmware update can do the trick.
Finally, the DR-900 eReader will be available sometime in February or March 2011 for an estimated retail price of about 300 Euros (around $426), a pretty hefty price tag if you ask me.
Share your thoughts on this story...Kindle and Ipad SUCK. The biggest appeal of an ereader, besides its small size, is that you can read pirated books that you downloaded for free from Thepiratebay.org or Picktorrent.com among others. You can get really awesome new releases for free if you have an ereader.....Kindle has no slot for SD cards and wont let you read other formats, so Kindle is strictly for spending money on Amazon books....its not as good for people who want to take advantage of all the free books out there.....I could probably hack the kindle, maybe even hotwire the 3g internet which might be worth it, but its easier to do that with the nook and I already have an Android phone. No SD card slot is a weak point for the kindle, and its not good unless you have money to burn.....Its worth it to pay more (or less) and avoid Amazon market place. A good reader should appeal to the hacker market who wants their books for free and wont use some crumby market place anyway......we get our media from torrents, so dont spend money on the market place spend it on features that allow easy uploading of media from your PC.
The Ipad SUCKS....I mean, it has a quality touch screen....better than some of the cheaper Android alternatives, but the new galaxy and some Archos and other higher quality Android tablets beat the Ipad hands down.
The Ipad has no USB slots or SD card slots....That SUCKS. They lock you into apple which is extra money, and you cant use cheap SDHC cards for memory expansion up to 64gb, but have to use expensive apple hard drives....REALLY expensive. Out the door, Ipad costs you $1500 for 32gb, a keyboard, ect.
The Ipad will murder your vision, crippling you. It might be ok for web surfing and videos (oh, but no flash support), but E-ink is the way to go for reading novels. The Ipad will never be an alternative to E-ink. Its not in the same category....and while light weight is nice, Android tablets are comparable and have better features, and an Asus EEPC or Toshiba Protege or any computer with a fold back keyboard and multi-touch is going to offer way more functionality than a crappy Ipad.......and while the initial price of a tablet PC might be higher, apple locks you in with hardware meaning that to get equal storage and hardware it will cost about as much for less functionality and no SD cards or flash support or USB slots, and its not easy on the eyes like E-ink.
I would buy this device since the bigger size is better for textbooks. I was considering the Onyx Boox, but the size is 6 inches. I would like this device instead if it was available now.
Personally, I think the Kobo is better than the Kindle and its $120. The 3g is no use for somebody who pirates their books for free, unless you hack it to pirate the 3g, but there is no point if you already have a 4g phone like I do.
I bought the DR-900 e-book reader on 16th of December, on the 18th a crack appeared on the screen so I went back to the store where I bought it and was told that I must have dropped it or knocked it and that wasn’t covered by the guarantee. I did no such thing but, obviously, there’s no way prove it. So I decided to call the ASUS Italy helpdesk and, after sending them the picture, they told me to mail them the device via the store where I bought it and that they would repair it. After a month had passed and I hadn’t heard from ASUS I called them and was told that this kind o problem wasn’t covered by the guarantee and that their technical office would email me an estimate of the costs of repair. We’re in April now, and I still don’t know anything, since the ASUS never called me back or emailed me. I’ve been calling them regularly for the last two months and they always say they would let me know during the course of the day, or the next day, but I never heard from them. So, to sum it up, I paid 300 euro for the device, used it for two days and never seen it again; therefore I’ll never buy anything from ASUS ever again and I strongly recommend avoiding their products and their customer service since they’re unable to resolve any problem. Their products, this reader at any rate, are of very poor quality. GOODBYE ASUS!
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