Sony PRS-T1 - Specifications. How to flash Sony PRS-T1. Detailed instructions Sony prs t1 which formats it supports

Also published is the latest version (20121208) of the popular package "Absolutely minimal root" from rupor. The package is intended for installation on a Sony PRS-T1 device with firmware version 1.0.05.11130. The updated package has support for a full set of dictionaries, the functionality of the previous stable release (20120517) is fully implemented, the Ebook Downloader has been removed. The package includes the following components: SuperSU 0.98, Timezone with information from 2012, Term 1.0.49, Total Commander 2.01, Busybox 1.20.2r2, Fix permissions 2.06, Capturescr 1.2, Dexopt-wrapper, SQLite3. A package for integrating the backup/restore procedure (20121208) has also been published, which allows you to install the backup/restore mode and the terminal without a specially prepared micro SD card. Also published is a link to a utility that installs a complete set of dictionaries (20121208) that work in conjunction with the built-in reader. This utility changes the partitioning of the built-in memory, so you need to install it with caution: you must first do a full backup, which will be your only opportunity to roll back the device to a previous state. ADB (20121208) and Apps2SD (20121208) installation packages and their uninstallation utility have been published. All rupor packages listed are for installation on devices with firmware version 1.0.05.11130. You can download all the mentioned packages, as well as instructions for installing them, from this page. This link additionally contains recommendations for installing the Android market (Google Play), as well as for choosing the version of the ColorDict and Cool Reader applications that work optimally on the Sony PRS-T2.

Don't be lazy, do more backup from your backup. I already know several cases when the owner of the device created a full image of the memory, then flashed something incorrectly, the book stopped working, and he decided to restore from the backup. The process seemed to start correctly, but mixed up the buttons on the screen and, instead of restoring from a backup, overwrote the image file, replacing it with a backup of a non-working device. So make a backup. And it is better to write it to external media. And even better, burn it to a DVD-blank, you won’t be able to accidentally overwrite it later.

Full bakup does not take long. The whole process takes less than 10 minutes. It is only important to do everything carefully, carefully following each step of the instructions. The image file size will be about 2 GB. Spare no space, spare no DVDs. And sign the disc: indicate the date the image was created, the version of the firmware and alternative software, and if you have two or more readers, then for each case write the serial number of the device on the disc. For movies, you do not spare space on your computer. Do not regret for backup. Not enough space? Erase a couple of films. If needed, then download. But you will not download the backup file. By the way, a blank costs 10 rubles. And your reader - 5-6 thousand rubles. They only remember this when the reader, after a series of careless experiments with firmware, comes to a completely inoperative state. ( reading-talking December 2nd, 2012

Following the recent firmware update for Sony PRS-T1 and PRS-T2 e-readers, new versions of the popular amutin application packages have been released for both of these readers.

New PRS-T1 Flasher minimal packages versions 0.31 and 0.70 are designed for Sony PRS-T1 readers (American and European models) with the latest firmware 1.0.05.11130 installed. Both packages - 0.31 and 0.71 contain an updated Cool Reader application specially modified by jotas to take into account the features of Sony readers (version cr3.0.57-15-19-jotas). The new Cool Reader supports hardware buttons when turning pages, as well as when scrolling through the settings menu, lists in the "Open file" menu, etc. In addition, partial refresh mode is supported - a mode in which the screen is filled with black (with transition to negative) does not occur with every scrolling, but depending on the program settings. The version 1.71 package also updated the Total Commander file manager to version 2.0 (you can read about what's new in this version at this link, where you can also download the popular file manager if necessary). In addition to the application package, packages for restoring the reader to its original state have also been released. The first of the packages can be launched from a computer, and the second is designed to restore a frozen reader from a micro SD card (in case the reader is no longer correctly recognized by the computer as an external disk device for some reason). Both recovery packs are for readers with firmware version 1.0.05.11130. You can download the mentioned application packages, recovery packages, as well as Sony firmware updates from here. There are also detailed installation instructions.

New versions of the package PRS-T2 Flasher minimal 0.05 is designed for e-book Sony PRS-T2 (American and European model) with latest firmware 1.0.04.11081. Changes compared to the previous version (0.04): full integration with the "Absolutely minimal root" package from rupor version 20121126, the latest version of the popular AlReader to date. Cool Reader and Total Commander have been updated to versions 3.0.57-15-17-jotas and 2.0, respectively (see the previous paragraph for details). Also posted recovery packages for Sony PRS-T2 with firmware version 1.0.04.11081 (the first is run from a computer, the second - from a Micro SD card). You can download the PRS-T2 Flasher minimal 0.05 package from amutin, the recovery packages corresponding to it, as well as the latest proprietary firmware from Sony, from here. There are also detailed installation instructions at this link.

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FAQ: General issues based on Sony PRS-T1 and Sony PRS-T2 models

What is the difference between the PRS-T1 and PRS-T2 e-book models?

You can compare these models on the Sony PRS-T1 and Sony PRS-T2 Key Features page. The main differences are the presence or absence of an audio output (and support for audio format files), a set of dictionaries included in the delivery, the presence or absence of the ability to disable full screen refresh with each page flip in the built-in book reader. Shape, size, weight - very close. The devices use the same type of e-ink screen and infrared touch panel. The photo on the right shows both devices placed side by side (see also full size photo, photo by Theonna).

I'm going to buy a Sony PRS-T1 (PRS-T2) e-reader. What is the first thing you should pay attention to when buying, what you need to check? Is there any way to find out if the device has been used before or not?

When buying, check the integrity of the package, completeness, appearance of the device (no scratches, cracks). The frame of the new device must be covered with a transparent protective film. Turn on the device. The battery level of the new book should be about half. There should not be any stripes on the screen of the included book (gray stripes are typical for a damaged screen). Check if the screen responds to taps, check if the hardware buttons work. You can also turn on Wi-Fi and check if your device sees any wireless networks.

There is no one hundred percent way to find out if the book was used before the sale. Try to buy from trusted sellers: read reviews in forums, on Yandex.Market, etc. On the "Where to buy" page, we also post links to reputable sellers.

Is the Sony e-reader compatible with MacOS computers?

Yes. Both Sony models can be connected to a Mac (Apple) to download and delete books and other compatible file formats. You can use the system file manager or install Reader for Mac. The PRS-T1 reader will need to be connected to a PC to update the firmware. Firmware update of the PRS-T2 model is available from under Windows, MacOS X, as well as using a wireless Wi-Fi interface (in the latter case, a connection to a computer is not required). All existing programs that install alternative firmware (currently - only for PRS-T1) work only under Microsoft Windows.

Do I need to install Reader for PC (Reader for Mac) on my computer?

You can do fine without this program, but it provides some additional conveniences and features, for example, creating collections directly on your computer, buying books from the Sony store, exporting notes to a file, checking for software and firmware updates (branded firmware).

How to download books from a computer to an e-book?

This can be done by directly copying the files to a USB connected device. Create any convenient folders on the READER disk and copy the books there using the file manager. You can also use Reader for PC (only for epub, pdf, txt formats).

How to delete previously downloaded books?

There are several ways to delete books previously stored in the Sony PRS-T1 and PRS-T2 e-reader memory. Here is some of them.

If the books you are interested in are displayed in the "Books" submenu (books in a format supported by the "native" reader), open "Books", make a long tap on the book to be deleted and select "Delete".

Connect your device to your computer and tap on "Data Transfer Mode". Using the file manager of your computer ("Windows Explorer" or any other file manager), open the READER disk and find the books sentenced to deletion, mark them and delete them in the usual way.

If you have Cool Reader installed (currently the ability to install additional programs implemented only in the PRS-T1 model), go to the "Open file" section and make a long tap on the book to be deleted. The Properties window opens and a keyboard appears. Press the "Return" key to hide the keyboard from the screen. Tap on the top right button ("Delete book").

If you have a file manager installed on your device - Root Explorer, Total Commander, etc. (Currently, the option to install additional programs is implemented only in the PRS-T1 model), run it. Find the books that need to be deleted (from the point of view of these programs, the internal memory of your device allocated for placing books is called "sdcard", the Micro SD card is called "extsd"), make a long tap and select "Delete".

How to translate the screen of the built-in browser to landscape orientation?

Go to browser. Press the button. Tap on the "Orientation" icon at the bottom left.

How to convert the screen to landscape orientation for reading e-books with the built-in program?

Open the book in the built-in reader (Sony Reader). Press the button. Tap on the "More" icon and select "Orientation"

Can I install additional Android apps?

Currently, the ability to install programs for Android is implemented only for the PRS-T1 model. Before installing additional applications, you need to flash your reader with an alternative package. For firmware versions 1.0.00.09010, 1.0.00.09270, 1.0.02.10280, 1.0.03.11140 or 1.0.04.12210, take the description of installing alternative packages, for versions 1.0.00.11041 or 2.0.00.14070 read this manual.

Tell me a converter for translating books from fb2 format to ePub format.

The most common converter is Fb2ePub. Runs from the command line, has many options, in particular, allowing you to embed the font. If there are few books, then it is convenient to use this online converter. You can also convert files with the well-known Caliber program.

Please note: reader models designed for the Russian consumer can read fb2 files, so you can do without a converter.

The e-book does not include a charger. Will any device with a micro USB output be suitable for charging?

Problem solved

Advantages: . Stylish. . Good quality assembly - nothing backlash, but there is one backlash, I'll talk about it later. . Clear control - I didn’t even read the instructions, I understood everything right away. . Good sensor - reacts to fingers, stylus, even to a thread =). Support for a memory card, also built-in memory of about 1.5 gigabytes. . The buttons are well made, there is a context menu. . All connectors are located at the bottom. . There is a 3.5 mm jack for standard headphones. . Possibility to add a bookmark in the book. . You can draw - or play tic-tac-toe =). Nice back cover - does not slip in the hands. . Good browser. . The screen does not glare - a lot is important. . Two built-in dictionaries in English - not translators, but a dictionary of the word of compatibility, something like that. . Holds the battery for a long time - it was charged only from the computer when the books were downloaded. . If you pay extra and buy the cover of the book, you can't take your eyes off it. . Oh yes - the stylus is included =). A trifle, but nice. Cons: Yes, but minor and insignificant. . Markaya. Very branded. Everything gets dirty with your fingers - both front and back cover. Cleaning fluid must be with you. . The cover is terribly expensive - about 2 thousand (I was bought for 1.5 thousand) can cost a cover without a flashlight, with it - even more expensive. . Sometimes there is "garbage" on the screen. But the book quickly sweeps him away on the next page. A little annoying. . Scratches quickly. that the back, that the front side - we hide in the case. By the way, do not wear a stylus in the cover - I have it all covered with small scratches. Not very nice. . Charges only from the computer. If there is no network adapter. . If you often take the book out of the case and vice versa, then you get a small backlash with right side. It is imperceptible if the reader is in a case, without it the backlash catches the eye and infuriates. . Doesn't read fb2. After the official firmware should read. Comment: I am satisfied with the purchase of the reader. I advise how good thing.

Capabilities

It is unlikely that a Russian person will be able to appreciate the "breadth" of Sony's soul - the reader supports as many as three book formats. These are regular text files, as well as ePub and PDF. The last two can be with DRM. The reader itself is not officially sold with us, and therefore they did not begin to localize the interface and a number of features. Well at least, books in Russian, as a rule, are displayed without problems. It is even better if the desired font is sewn into the book. Books can be thrown directly into the device's memory - it will recognize them and pull out the necessary information, such as the title, author, and cover. On a PC, the reader is defined as a regular removable drive.

On the title screen, the last open book is displayed large, just below the three most recently added books are displayed, and at the very bottom there are four buttons for accessing the list of books, collections, periodicals and the store. The store is sad. On the one hand, Sony explicitly hints at exactly where the reader should shop and subscribe to periodicals. On the other hand, the average Russian is somehow not very happy about the fact that all this wealth, albeit paid and corny fenced (aka with DRM), is not presented in a great and powerful way.

A similar story is with the service of free access to electronic versions of books from public libraries. It is unlikely that many people have an annual subscription in one of the libraries in Great Britain, Ireland, Canada or the USA that has been lying around. And a solid set of built-in dictionaries, too, unfortunately, entirely in English.

Please note that the keyboard only supports input in Latin characters, so in some cases it will not be of much use. For example, in the same search.

For other possibilities, there are no localization restrictions. Books are displayed either as cover thumbnails or simply as a list. Both search and sorting by the date of addition or opening, author's name or title, as well as simply by file name are available. Books can be organized into collections. The reader does not perceive the folder structure in memory and adds everything in a row. Collections just serve to replace folders. You can create and fill them directly in the reader by checking the boxes next to the selected books.

Both ePub and PDF open quickly, there are no problems with turning over either. There are, of course, especially "heavy" PDFs with very complex formatting - PRS-T1 can think about them for a while. There are no particular problems with text formatting, footnotes and other attributes work as they should. In general, there are no complaints about this device.

All the main features in the reading mode are called from the menu. There are quite a few of these possibilities - rewinding to the desired page, viewing the table of contents, adding notes (by hand or using the virtual keyboard), font and image settings, search, screen rotation and text display settings. Bookmarks are added by long pressing on the upper right corner of the screen, along the way it is proposed to create another note. True, without a stylus it is difficult to get into the very corner.

A long press on any other part of the screen highlights the word closest to the touch point, with the ability to expand this selection even to the entire page. By default, the word is looked up in the dictionary, and if a definition is found, it is shown at the bottom. You can also search for the highlighted word throughout the text of the book, in the English Wikipedia and in Google. Well, again, we are invited to either simply highlight this word, or add a note.

A separate paragraph made the addition of notes by hand. All the "add-ons" that you have added to the book are displayed in a separate list with the ability to filter by type. Also in the settings you can disable the display of all this goodness on the screen.

The view settings offer eight font sizes and seven typefaces. By the way, some Cyrillic ePub files start displaying normally only when you change the typeface.

Among the useful options is the ability to manually adjust the brightness and contrast, or choose from six preset values. In fact, and with the default settings, reading from the screen is comfortable.

The most interesting and useful of all, of course, are the various modes of displaying the book on the screen. There are two options here - splitting into parts and cropping around the edges. In the first case, the page is divided into four or six parts, and only one of them is displayed on the screen. In this mode, the flipping goes in a different order - first down, and then right up and down again. This feature will come in handy when viewing materials laid out in two or three columns. Well, do not forget that we can easily scale the image with a “pinch” and move around it as we please. The last item on the menu actually changes the orientation to landscape and fits the text to the width.

In cropping mode, the reader will either try to cut off empty fields itself, or offer to do it manually. Cropping is applied to all pages of the document. For some PDF files, this feature is very useful.

These are all the functions of the Sony PRS-T1 related to the direct purpose of the device, that is, reading books. There seem to be not so many of them, but at the same time they are all quite useful. In addition, you can take handwritten notes on the reader or simply draw in a separate application.

The reader also has a good browser. True, due to electronic ink, working with it is obviously inconvenient.

There is also a traditional image viewer with a music player. Also good, by the way.

Finally, let's go over the main settings, which are also not very many. Most operations are still carried out in individual applications(reader, player, and so on), in which you can quickly call up a menu with settings.

Together with the reader, the Sony Reader for PC application is also supplied, the installer of which is uploaded to the device's memory. I just want to play pranks that this is almost the only bundled software from Sony that is both useful and pleasant to use. If you still have not created an account in the Sony bookstore, then the first time you start you will be prompted to do so. In principle, registration there does not oblige you to anything, but you will have access to free books from the store or Google Books.

After authorization in the reader itself, if Wi-Fi is available, it will be possible to download books, newspapers and magazines directly in it. Well, the Reader for PC program itself makes it easy to manage your books (add, delete, create collections), music, pictures, notes and newspaper subscriptions. And, of course, to synchronize all this in both directions.

Finally, it remains to say about the battery life of the Sony Reader PRS-T1. On average, you can count on a couple of weeks of active reading of books with periodic connection to Wi-Fi and browsing sites or working in the Sony online store. By default, the battery saver turns off the wireless connection if it is not used for 5 minutes. If you suddenly set out to continuously surf the web, then the battery will last less than a day. Fully charging the battery takes about 2-2.5 hours.

For dessert we have a pleasant surprise. The Sony Reader PRS-T1 actually runs a stripped down version of Android. In the sense that the developers cut out everything that is not required for the reader. But after all, no one bothers to install everything you need yourself. For example, a reader that understands more book formats, email and RSS clients, a different browser, and so on. Of course, the power of the device is not enough to run games like Angry Birds, but with an E-Ink screen it would be a dubious pleasure to play something other than leisurely logic toys or something like that. Interested in this opportunity, please follow here and here.

⇡ Conclusion

So, let's sum up. Sony Reader PRS-T1, in the opinion of the author of this review, is an almost perfect reader. Lightweight, cute, with an optimal set of features, which is further expanded by modifying the firmware, good time battery life, excellent screen and other amenities. Even the software turned out to be surprisingly pleasant. A conditional drawback is the lack of localization and access to some services, but here we must make allowances for the fact that this product is not yet sold in Russia.

The rival of the Sony Reader PRS-T1 is in some way the Kindle Touch (in the version without ads) - it is cheaper by $ 10, but it only supports its own book format and does not "hack". By and large, Sony is just trying to follow the path of Amazon - to offer a potential buyer an inexpensive and high-quality reader, and earn money by selling content. Of course, the Amazon empire is still far away, but the first steps in this direction seem to be the right ones. Now as for the price. In the US, the recommended price is $150. Naturally, after crossing the border of the Russian Federation, it almost doubles for gray sellers. But even in this case, this is not the worst offer compared to the mass of other rootless readers. In general, if you want to buy yourself a good reader with a 6-inch screen, then be sure to take a closer look at the Sony Reader PRS-T1.

We thank the Reader-Sony.ru store for providing the device for testing.