PocketBook 302 - super reader or monster?
A couple of weeks ago, the PocketBook 302 e-reader came into my hands. This model is interesting first of all with a powerful filling - here you can find a touch screen , and wifi with bluetooth , and built-in applications. Honestly, this is the first reader that I used for more than a few hours, so I gladly described my personal impressions and thoughts about it.
Let's start with the look. On the case there are unusually few buttons, since they are not needed - the main control on the touch screen. In fact, there are only six buttons: on, “central button” (like on the iPhone - returns to the level up or brings up the menu), and two pairs of paging buttons (back and forth) from two sides. The action of the buttons can be overridden in any way.
')
On the upper side there is a power button, a slot for a microSD card (the card comes bundled with a 4Gb card) and a telescopic stylus. Why do I need a stylus in our age of touch-interfaces - I do not understand. The reader is perfectly controlled with your fingers, especially since the screen is large (6 inches, 600 by 800).
On the bottom there is a mini-USB connector (through which the device can be connected to a computer and / or charged), a full USB host connector (into which you can plug in a USB flash drive or whatever), a standard 3.5 mm headphone jack. On the side there is another hole for charging (round), and why it is needed - I also did not understand, the device is perfectly charged via mini-USB.
The body material is pleasant to the touch, it reminded me of the carbon body of my Sony Vaio. It is clear that there is no carbon in here - but it still looks good, doesn’t really get dirty and is easy to clean. The size of the book is quite large, but it lies comfortably in the hand, and the rounded edges of the case contribute to this. I was most pleased that the book exactly fits into my bag for documents, so it is convenient to carry it with you. You can take the book in your palm entirely, clasping your fingers from two sides - it is most convenient to hold it so, but it is inconvenient to press the paging buttons. The buttons themselves are grieved - they are not pressed clearly, sometimes you have to push hard. The case sometimes cracks noticeably in the hands, “crunches” and the screen itself, when you carry a finger over it. By weight, the PocketBook 302 is heavier than many other readers (I intended to be 279 grams) - apparently, the rich stuffing affects. The battery (2050 mAh) is designed for 16,000 pages, but I did not think that I couldn’t plant it in a couple of weeks.
The screen is of course the most important thing in the reader. In this case, it is a touch screen, which, as you know, degrades the quality of the picture. And indeed, at first glance, I was disappointed - the image is not very contrasting, the glossy layer (actually the touch screen) glistens noticeably. True, in the course of using I became accustomed - in almost any situation, you can turn around a little reader to find a position for comfortable reading, without noticeable glare. But still - touch screens are still far from a good paper book.
As for the reading ability of the book itself, everything is in order. A bunch of formats is supported (FB2, FB2.ZIP, TXT, PDF, DJVU, RTF, HTML, PRC, CHM, EPUB, DOC, TCR), you can customize the size and typeface. FB2 format is preferred - it is always displayed perfectly. Some PDFs have problems, but even complex documents are acceptable. Pages are scrolling quickly, redrawing the screen is two-pass (with inverting, rather than simply painting over with black — which in my opinion is good). Here it should be noted that the screen reader menus the default draws in one pass, so they can see "translucent" traces of text. The type of redrawing can be changed in the settings, but in my opinion, fast drawing is acceptable for on-screen menus, because display speed is important here.
To manage the electronic library on your computer, you can install the free Caliber program (it has already been written about on the browser ). It is very powerful, allows you to convert almost anything into anything, and has a bunch of all sorts of settings. In particular, with its help, you can, according to the schedule, tear out materials (not only RSS) from any sites, convert them into a book of a suitable format and upload to the reading room. For a perfect setup, it's better to know python, since you can write scripts for pulling from sites in Caliber on it. When you connect the reader Caliber immediately recognizes it, displays both storage (built-in and MicroSD card) and books filled in them.
Now the most interesting is communication capabilities. The PocketBook 302 has built-in WiFi and Bluetooth interfaces, and with their help it can connect to the network (including via a phone with GPRS). WiFi works confidently, but it's not very convenient to set it up - you have to go far in the menu and guess the type of authorization (WEP or WPA). From the network, the device can for example download RSS feeds. In addition, through the built-in client, you can search and download books from the BookLand electronic library - in my opinion this niche is very promising. Attention, there is even a browser in this device! True, this is more of a joke than a serious feature, since the rendering of the pages is apparently done by the same library that is used to view html books - as a result, many sites look unrecognizable. However, go to Yandex or news site and read something is quite possible.
Individual attention deserve the application. You can install programs on PocketBook, and these programs can be developed by anyone - the SDK is open . For example, there is an application "Clock" - turns your device into a desktop clock. There is a “Photo Album” - which turns the reader into a digital photo frame - of course, monochrome. Many third-party applications (mostly games) developed for 301 models do not work here - because in 302 there are simply no hardware buttons for which the programs are designed. But the traditional "Snake" and Solitaire "Solitaire" are well controlled from the screen.
Plays a device and music, but the sound quality, as one would expect, is below average. The constant background hiss and howls, the sound is compressed, sometimes it clicks stutters, the bass is not enough - in general, it will do for audiobooks and podcasts, but don’t try to use the music player. Video device does not play, no ;)
In general, when I saw all of this, I remembered ... yes, yes, about the iPad :) To crack the firmware, to make more applications - and there will be such a harsh alternative to a fashionable tablet for real geeks ;) By the way, inside the device is Linux (busybox is the same as in many home routers), but I couldn’t access it via ssh (although someone will probably be able to get to the bottom).
Summing up, I will say that quite a few comments have appeared on the device, but most of them relate to the firmware - this gives hope that they will be corrected. As far as I can see, the manufacturer works on the firmware, and updating the firmware is very simple. A serious flaw in the form of a glare screen is still technologically insurmountable - who wants to touch, will have to endure (they say there are special matte films for such screens - but I have not seen). Worth it or not - you decide. Anyone who only reads and does nothing else, I advise you to take a non-touch screen - you can also flip through the pages with buttons. But only touch makes it quite convenient to type, say, a note on the on-screen keyboard. In general, the scope of the PocketBook 302 can be described as “not-only-read-device” - and in my opinion, there is a future for this class of devices.
Let's start with the look. On the case there are unusually few buttons, since they are not needed - the main control on the touch screen. In fact, there are only six buttons: on, “central button” (like on the iPhone - returns to the level up or brings up the menu), and two pairs of paging buttons (back and forth) from two sides. The action of the buttons can be overridden in any way.
')
On the upper side there is a power button, a slot for a microSD card (the card comes bundled with a 4Gb card) and a telescopic stylus. Why do I need a stylus in our age of touch-interfaces - I do not understand. The reader is perfectly controlled with your fingers, especially since the screen is large (6 inches, 600 by 800).
On the bottom there is a mini-USB connector (through which the device can be connected to a computer and / or charged), a full USB host connector (into which you can plug in a USB flash drive or whatever), a standard 3.5 mm headphone jack. On the side there is another hole for charging (round), and why it is needed - I also did not understand, the device is perfectly charged via mini-USB.
The body material is pleasant to the touch, it reminded me of the carbon body of my Sony Vaio. It is clear that there is no carbon in here - but it still looks good, doesn’t really get dirty and is easy to clean. The size of the book is quite large, but it lies comfortably in the hand, and the rounded edges of the case contribute to this. I was most pleased that the book exactly fits into my bag for documents, so it is convenient to carry it with you. You can take the book in your palm entirely, clasping your fingers from two sides - it is most convenient to hold it so, but it is inconvenient to press the paging buttons. The buttons themselves are grieved - they are not pressed clearly, sometimes you have to push hard. The case sometimes cracks noticeably in the hands, “crunches” and the screen itself, when you carry a finger over it. By weight, the PocketBook 302 is heavier than many other readers (I intended to be 279 grams) - apparently, the rich stuffing affects. The battery (2050 mAh) is designed for 16,000 pages, but I did not think that I couldn’t plant it in a couple of weeks.
The screen is of course the most important thing in the reader. In this case, it is a touch screen, which, as you know, degrades the quality of the picture. And indeed, at first glance, I was disappointed - the image is not very contrasting, the glossy layer (actually the touch screen) glistens noticeably. True, in the course of using I became accustomed - in almost any situation, you can turn around a little reader to find a position for comfortable reading, without noticeable glare. But still - touch screens are still far from a good paper book.
As for the reading ability of the book itself, everything is in order. A bunch of formats is supported (FB2, FB2.ZIP, TXT, PDF, DJVU, RTF, HTML, PRC, CHM, EPUB, DOC, TCR), you can customize the size and typeface. FB2 format is preferred - it is always displayed perfectly. Some PDFs have problems, but even complex documents are acceptable. Pages are scrolling quickly, redrawing the screen is two-pass (with inverting, rather than simply painting over with black — which in my opinion is good). Here it should be noted that the screen reader menus the default draws in one pass, so they can see "translucent" traces of text. The type of redrawing can be changed in the settings, but in my opinion, fast drawing is acceptable for on-screen menus, because display speed is important here.
To manage the electronic library on your computer, you can install the free Caliber program (it has already been written about on the browser ). It is very powerful, allows you to convert almost anything into anything, and has a bunch of all sorts of settings. In particular, with its help, you can, according to the schedule, tear out materials (not only RSS) from any sites, convert them into a book of a suitable format and upload to the reading room. For a perfect setup, it's better to know python, since you can write scripts for pulling from sites in Caliber on it. When you connect the reader Caliber immediately recognizes it, displays both storage (built-in and MicroSD card) and books filled in them.
Now the most interesting is communication capabilities. The PocketBook 302 has built-in WiFi and Bluetooth interfaces, and with their help it can connect to the network (including via a phone with GPRS). WiFi works confidently, but it's not very convenient to set it up - you have to go far in the menu and guess the type of authorization (WEP or WPA). From the network, the device can for example download RSS feeds. In addition, through the built-in client, you can search and download books from the BookLand electronic library - in my opinion this niche is very promising. Attention, there is even a browser in this device! True, this is more of a joke than a serious feature, since the rendering of the pages is apparently done by the same library that is used to view html books - as a result, many sites look unrecognizable. However, go to Yandex or news site and read something is quite possible.
Individual attention deserve the application. You can install programs on PocketBook, and these programs can be developed by anyone - the SDK is open . For example, there is an application "Clock" - turns your device into a desktop clock. There is a “Photo Album” - which turns the reader into a digital photo frame - of course, monochrome. Many third-party applications (mostly games) developed for 301 models do not work here - because in 302 there are simply no hardware buttons for which the programs are designed. But the traditional "Snake" and Solitaire "Solitaire" are well controlled from the screen.
Plays a device and music, but the sound quality, as one would expect, is below average. The constant background hiss and howls, the sound is compressed, sometimes it clicks stutters, the bass is not enough - in general, it will do for audiobooks and podcasts, but don’t try to use the music player. Video device does not play, no ;)
In general, when I saw all of this, I remembered ... yes, yes, about the iPad :) To crack the firmware, to make more applications - and there will be such a harsh alternative to a fashionable tablet for real geeks ;) By the way, inside the device is Linux (busybox is the same as in many home routers), but I couldn’t access it via ssh (although someone will probably be able to get to the bottom).
Summing up, I will say that quite a few comments have appeared on the device, but most of them relate to the firmware - this gives hope that they will be corrected. As far as I can see, the manufacturer works on the firmware, and updating the firmware is very simple. A serious flaw in the form of a glare screen is still technologically insurmountable - who wants to touch, will have to endure (they say there are special matte films for such screens - but I have not seen). Worth it or not - you decide. Anyone who only reads and does nothing else, I advise you to take a non-touch screen - you can also flip through the pages with buttons. But only touch makes it quite convenient to type, say, a note on the on-screen keyboard. In general, the scope of the PocketBook 302 can be described as “not-only-read-device” - and in my opinion, there is a future for this class of devices.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/95477/
All Articles