Alfa BBT

Not only did Foxit quit the ereader business during the summer season. But this morning I also discovered that my eSlick ereader has a broken screen since it landed on the floor the hard way this weekend.

Invest in an iPad, a Kindle 3 or stick with my netbook for my ereading needs. Choices…

Apart from a NAS, there was one other device on my wish list for some time already; an eReader. Originally I was looking into devices with a relatively big (8+ inch) screen. However I settled for a 6 inch unit as the larger ones are either too expensive or being delayed.

Anyway I defined my needs as:

• PDF support. PDF is, in theorie, more a standard for print then a true ebook format but a lot of technical books come in this format.
• Not tied to a specific reseller; meaning Kindle, Nook and the likes are “No Go”.
• Ability to sideload most of the content. I don’t intent to buy a lot of novels online. I want to read technical documents or use services like Instapaper to generate ebooks from online content.
• Don’t cost an arm and a leg. I’ve never actually used such a gadget so there’s always a risk that I end end up not liking the technology.
• I consider WIFI,  Touchscreen and other features as nice to haves. I don’t absolutely need them.

I ended up buying a Foxit Eslick. It’s not the latest and greatest but it does what I want it to do (without a lot of bells and whistles) and is one of the cheapest ereaders on the market.

Here are some unboxing photos:

Next step is loading some content on the unit.

CU