Sony Personal Reading System 505
For today’s “Zscaler Logo on a Weird, Old, or Obsolete Device,” I give you a device that many consider the greatest e-reader ever made: the Sony Personal Reading System 505!
Released way back in 2008, the Sony PRS-505 quickly established itself as the “Cadillac” of e-book reading devices. Clad in a slim aluminum case that honestly feels *really* nice in the hand, this device is a fantastic representation of Sony’s “ultra maximalist” design aesthetic from that era. Despite its age (it’s approaching 20 years old!), the PRS-505 offers a staggering array of options and capabilities - many of which are no longer offered by today’s top-of-the-line e-readers.
Probably the most obvious thing that sets the PRS-505 apart from modern e-readers is the presence of 25(!!) physical buttons. The sheer quantity of buttons on this thing seems bonkers when you first see it, but once you start using it, those buttons suddenly feel normal and natural. You’ve got buttons for menu navigation, buttons for zooming in and out, buttons for selecting onscreen items or chapters, and physical volume control buttons for audio playback.
However, for anyone using a modern Kindle, the buttons on the PRS-505 that will make you immediately jealous are the lovely physical buttons for page-turn - something I badly miss from my old 2nd-gen Kindle. In a nice nod to accessibility for lefties, Sony even put page-turn buttons on both the right and left side of the device.
Along with all those buttons, the PRS-505 just keeps piling on more and more features:
Want a memory card slot for expanding your storage space? How about TWO card slots for SD cards and Sony MemorySticks!
Want to listen to an audiobook? No worries, there’s a headphone jack on the bottom.
Want to view a slideshow of photos? No problem, it has extensive photo-viewing tools built in, so you can see your pics in glorious e-ink grayscale.
On the road but forgot to bring the AC charger with you? Not a problem, it’ll charge over USB.
Want to read books that weren’t purchased from one particular vendor? No biggie, it can read ebooks in a variety of formats ranging from plain text through complex PDF’s.
Of course, this thing is lacking some modern amenities: no touch screen, no bluetooth, no WiFi, and no ability to install new books without first downloading them via a computer.
Nevertheless, it’s genuinely impressive just how well-thought-out the whole experience of using the PRS-505 is. I can understand why it still has a dedicated group of super-fans who have gone so far as to build a completely new OS for it called “PRS+” which adds even more capabilities including more fonts, new layout options, calculator, calendar, a full dictionary, and even a pack of clever games.
Sony’s entire line of e-readers may be dead and buried… but long live the PRS-505!
Until next time, I hope you have a safe and happy Halloween! 👻🎃🍬
