The BeBook was released in late 2007. Since then it has been rebranded and sold as different names in countries around the world – lBook, DigiBook Reader, Apollo-Hanlin, Walkbook, Papyre, HanLin eBook, Astak EZ Reader, and Eco Reader.
But the company who created this portable ebook reader, HanLin, has been in the game since the year 2000, so they definitely aren’t a fly-by-night startup.
The BeBook is of average size and weight for an electronic reading device. It use eInk technology for its screen display and has buttons on the bottom and side to navigate and control the display.
Specs
- Weight - 7 oz
- Thickness - 0.4″
- Size – 7.25″ x 4.75″
- Screen Size - 6″
- Battery Life - 9000 page turns
- Storage – 512 MB internal + SD external slot
- Price - $280
The BeBook comes stock with a leather case, which is a welcome change from many other portable ebook readers that require you to pay extra for this accessory. Upon turning on the BeBook, the first thing I decide to play with is the interface. There’s a Menu button, “return” button, and 10 number keys. In order to choose a menu item or select a book it’s as simple as pushing the corresonding button. Not very difficult!
You can also move through pages by pressing the appropriate button on the left side of the device.
Where the BeBook really shines it with all the different file formats it can handle. A heck of a lot more than most competitors, that’s for sure! The list includes: PDF, TXT, RTF, EPUB, LIT, PPT, WOLF, DOC, CHM, FB2, PRC/MOBI, HTML, DJVU, MP3, TIFF, JPG, GIF, BMP, PNG, RAR, ZIP. Wow.
It has a decent battery life, and with the external SD slot it’s doubtful you’ll ever fill it up completely with books.
Summary
The BeBook is a pretty darn good device. It’s simple to use, works exactly as advertised, and it’s obvious from its evolution that HanLin is willing to continue its improvement in future versions. Also, it has excellent support for many different ebook formats. It you want a decently priced ebook reader that doesn’t force you to use a proprietary format (like Sony and Amazon), you’d likely be satisfied with the BeBook.
If you’d like to read more or buy a BeBook, you can here.
Rating:
(8.00 out of 10)
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BeBook Review | Portable Ebook Reader…
The BeBook is an inexpensive, easy-to-use, ebook reader that doesn’t force you to use proprietary formats like Amazon or Sony do. …
I’m not buying what the BeBook is selling. It just doesn’t seem that great compared to everything else on the market.
Amazing! Not clear for me, how offen you updating your portable-ebook-reader.net.
Please correct the misinformation in your review.
The BeBook is a rebranded HanLin V3, one of several rebranded HanLin V3 for the European market.
The ECO Reader is a rebranded HanLin V3. The ECO Reader is NOT a BeBook.
The ECO Reader is distributed by Central Book Services, which has the distribution rights for Jinke readers in Australia and New Zealand. http://www.jinke.com.cn/Compagesql/English/company/partner.asp