The Sony Reader Touch Edition PRS-600 is essentially an updated and upgraded version of their PRS-700, though the model numbering seems a little counterintuitive. As impressed as we were with the older version, the new one is even better and certainly finds its place among top rated eBook readers. There were some legitimate, though minor, complaints about the PRS-700 and they have been addressed, though not perfected in the PRS-600.

Design:

The Sony PRS-600 is an excellent eBook reader in every regard but perhaps its most extraordinary feature is its overall quality and feel. Its case is metallic with an elegant, just slightly dulled finish. Side by side, it frankly makes the competition look and feel a bit cheap, despite their outstanding feature set. The back of the eBook reader is even cooler with a slight dusty rose sort of finish that we found very attractive. It seems to attract some finger prints but far fewer than gloss finishes typically do.

The screen measures 6-inches diagonally and is good size for reading. The E-Ink display is generally easy to read though slightly darker letters would be preferable. We would like to have been able to adjust contrast but there’s no way to do that. The device displays eight levels of gray scale which is good for displaying what amounts to black and white photos but that doesn’t imply that gray scale is adjustable.

The touchscreen is responsive though a rather firmer than expected touch is required, particularly when turning pages. Pages can also be turned by using small forward and back buttons located at the lower left of the display and under most circumstances, using these buttons seems to be a tiny bit easier than swiping. Individual pages appear rather quickly though there is the characteristic, but brief, stutter that we’ve come to expect of E-Ink screens.

A feature of swiping that we did find useful, however, is that by holding pressure on the screen following a swipe, pages can be flipped through quickly, either forward or reverse. There’s also a useful search feature that helps find particular words and pages can be accessed by number.

Unlike the predecessor PRS-600, the screen is not backlit. While that may seem like a drawback in that it removes the ability to read in the dark, the benefits are far greater. Backlighting required an additional screen layer which made for a less responsive touchscreen. The new screen is notably easier to use. More importantly, removing the additional layer makes the screen less reflective than its predecessor which was its primary shortcoming. The screen still reflects light under some circumstances but less so than before. It works great in bright sunlight but under indoor conditions, slight changes in the unit’s angle can cause reflections that make reading difficult. Fortunately, a minor shift is usually all that’s necessary to see clearly.

Individual pages can be dog-eared for later reference and notes can be made. Using the touchscreen also allows for notes to be made directly onscreen using either a finger or the included stylus. It’s nice that notes can also be easily erased if no longer desired. That’s a whole lot nicer than permanently marring the pages of a paper book. Notes can also be made using a virtual keyboard, rather than hand writing, if preferred. Notes can also be created independently of books’ pages as desired.

The screens orientation can be changed from portrait to landscape. This feature likely isn’t too practical when reading a book but can be useful when viewing photographs or using some of the several other formats that the eBook reader is capable of displaying.