Request for Recommendations on Cyrillic-capable eReaders

[B. Shir]

I ordered on0line The Sharper Image Literati - still didn't receive it, and here is what  I found: you download (how?)Ccalibre - and it reads Russian (BTW I heard that NOOK is the best...)

Wait...Before You Return It, January 27, 2011 
By 
ReaderX - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Sharper Image Literati Wireless Reader (Electronics) 
For those of you who got this as a gift at Christmas and are confounded 
by it, try the following before you return it, you might be happy: 

1. Connect it to a wifi hotspot. You will find this option in the Settings menu. 
2. It will tell you you need an update. Update it over wifi. This 
may take two downloads (one for the update installer, one for the 
update). Then hard reset with a paperclip in back. 
3. Download on your computer Calibre. Run Calibre 
4. Turn on the Literati. Connect with USB 
5. Calibre will recognize the Literati as an obscure Russian reading device. 
6. You can then manage your books and Calibre feeds through Calibre and transfer and delete them on the device. 

I am using this as my primary commute reader now, after doing the above. 

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3.0 out of 5 stars  A very basic e-reader, with a few surprisingly great features, April 8, 2011 
By 
Terry "TCinSATX" (San Antonio)  - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    
This review is from: The Sharper Image Literati Wireless Reader (Electronics) 
I bought this Literati from woot.com for a little less than $50. I 
already own a Kindle 3, but I had read a number of reviews before buying this one and wasn't expecting it to compare favorably to my Kindle. I 
purchased the Literati mainly for my kids to use since I am loathe to 
let my Kindle out of my hands. 

My initial reaction upon receiving the Literati was that it is a 
nicer package than I expected. It comes with a well-designed, protective
 case - a big plus since a case is essential. The Literati feels 
flimsier than my Kindle and I suspect it wouldn't survive being dropped 
very often. The keyboard at the bottom is adequate, but the navigation 
wheel is woefully small. Since you use the nav wheel heavily, this is a 
big issue. I began using the eraser end of a pencil almost immediately 
for this. 

The wifi setup was easy, and it picked up all the wireless networks 
in my neighborhood immediately. Please note: your wireless router must 
be set to broadcast your SSID. If not, there is no way to manually set 
up a network it cannot "see". Also note, depending upon the unit you 
get, your firmware will automatically upgrade as soon as you set up your
 wifi. Apparently there is no way to upgrade your firmware other than 
via wifi. 

To use your Literati, go to kobobooks dot com to download and 
install the desktop application on your computer. You can also install 
it from your Literati via the supplied usb cable, but that is slow and 
not the latest version. Once you have installed the app and set up a 
Kobo account, you can purchase books from Kobo. There is also a limited 
selection of free books at Kobo, although certainly not the number or 
wide selection available on Amazon. If you are used to a Kindle, you 
will see that downloading or updating or just booting up is a sloooow 
process. There are no indicators that it is "working", so you just have 
to take it on faith that is will eventually finish. 

Unless you plan to buy all of your books from Kobo, you will need to
 download a file converter such as Calibre in order to take advantage of
 all the free e-books available on the internet. The Literati has an SD card slot, which makes adding converted books and .pdfs to your device 
much quicker and easier. Just load them onto your SD card and then pop 
the card in your Literati. The SD card slot is one of the surprisingly 
great features that I wish my Kindle had. 

The screen is much, much better than I expected. It is back-lit, so 
there is no need for a book light for night time reading. Page turns are
 quick, and the turn "buttons" on each side are super sensitive. You can
 easily change font size and there is even a night time setting which 
reverses the page to black and the text to white! I really have no 
complaints about the display - and it's color to boot. 

Battery life is no where near as good as my Kindle, but it is 
adequate. You will need to recharge every day or two, depending upon 
your usage. 

My final thoughts are that if you get a Literati for $50 or less, 
you will have a basic e-reader with some really nice features and a few 
quirks. It meets my expectations at less than $50. At the list price, 
you will be much happier with a Kindle, although it lacks a color 
display. If you really want color and you want more than a basic device,
 you'll need to spend a good deal more for a Nook.


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