The French manufacturer Bookeen has introduced their fourth generation e-book reader, the Cybook Opus. If you have been in search for a no frills e-book reader, that is like scarily heavier than an iPhone, then you got to check this out. The original 3rd generation Cybook was kind of a plain device and did not feel very tough. Being slimmer, lighter and faster than its competitors, this ebook brings the best of technology to reading. This reader is designed for the readers who are eager to reconcile the freedom and wealth of the digital age with the feel of the printed page. The Opus tries to wrest the e-book reader portability crown from the Sony Reader Pocket Edition, but the cost is a bit high. So, let us find out if it manages to justify its price tag.

Design:

Feather Light:

While the original third generation Cybook was not much of a style icon, this Bookeen Cybook Opus eBook Reader is more of a stylish one with some graceful curves and a two tone colour scheme. Even though it is actually quite light, the device feels very well built with some very firm and responsive buttons. It also has a stiff casing. Its super-skinny profile and lightweight are its only distinguishing features. We loved handling the Opus more than any other eReader, because of its light-weighted nature at just 150 grams which is about 26 grams lighter than the original version, and almost half of the Sony Reader and the Amazon Kindle. In spite of being smaller than the original model, with a 5” display, Bookeen has managed to squeeze in built-in accelerometer, so that you can flip it to horizontal mode and have more width on the page. Being feather-light, it can be held in one hand for long periods and the accelerometer feature means that whether you are right or left-handed, you will be able to find an orientation and button to suite you.

Buttons and Controls:

Though the control system is quite minimal, it is a very practical one. Speaking in the standard portrait mode, the two buttons to the right of the display is used to handle the navigation, and you will also find a four-way navigation wheel with a button at its centre below the display. This navigation pad is used to browse through the menu system and can also be used for the sake of page navigation. The menu can be activated with the help of a dedicated button, and then there is a back button in order to return to the previous page or screen or option. The menus have a fairly simple design, and you can also customise both the menus and your books with the help of any of the twelve gradually increasing font sizes. Simple navigation and an easy to use operating system mean this is one ebook reader that does not need a phd in computing to operate.  One drawback for some is that it is only PC compatible so MAC users will need to look elsewhere.

Features:

Despite having an appealing design, the Cybook Opus 5" Display eRader falls a bit short on features that you will get with a somewhat higher priced Amazon Kindle 2.

E-Ink Technology:

The 5” display of the Opus reader makes use of the popular E-Ink technology that is available in most e-readers. This particular technology has advantages of high contrast that increases in bright light and low power consumption as it does not have backlight and consumes power only when you turn a page. Unlike regular display technologies, which require backlighting, electronic ink screens are purely reflective, using ambient light in the same way as ordinary paper does. The Cybook Opus screen only consumes energy when the reader flips a page. However, it is not the best e-Ink screen available right now as it supports only four shades of gray when compared with the other eight or sixteen shades that is available in some of the other readers. This is fine for text but not so great for clear definition of images. If you intend to only read using the Cybook Opus and not images, the 200 dots per inch resolution should be plenty.

Formats supported:

So, what does this Cybook Opus share with the original Cybook? Well, it shares its inability to scale PDF files, and you will be able to zoom in and out, but the text does not reflow to fit into the screen. Unfortunately, unlike the original device, this Cybook does not have the Mobipocket PRC support, however, it works with some more open ePub format, PDF, HTML and .txt files. The ePub e-book format is used by almost all the major book vendors except Amazon and with the help of this format, you will also be able to read a vast array of commercial content as well as the enormous Google e-book library. As TXT and HTML are also recognised you also get to take advantage of the growth in free e-books available from libraries and out of copyright work that is free across the web.  There are lots of other readers that support more file types, but for reading books these four are more than enough. Even richer: Compatible with all current download platforms, Cybook Opus offers access to over one million contemporary or public-domain digital books over the Internet. It has also lost the ability to play music which is somewhat of a dubious use for an e-book reader anyway.

Memory:

With about twice the memory of the Cybook (1GB), along with an SDHC card slot for up to 32GB more storage space, you should not have to worry about running out of storage space for your e-book collection. Though the internal space itself is more than enough for hundreds of books, having an external storage space is more of a satisfaction and also allows you to share the device with your family and friends and simply swap the card having your libraries for theirs. Note that this Bookeen Opus ships with 75 classics free of charge.

Downloading:

Even though all the gadget and tech news at the moment seems to be hailing the dawn of a new age in electronic reading, with wireless web surfing, instant downloads, touchscreens, bendy technology and more on offer, the Bookeen Cybook Opus Digital Book Reader need not fear for its position within e-reader sales. After all, most of us just want to read, and when you can read an entire library on something that fits in your pocket, but does not cause a headache to read from, why look elsewhere? You do not get the wireless access honours to bookstore as you might expect out of the Kindle. Having said that, note that you will not be tying yourself into the proprietary system of Amazon and in case you decide to upgrade to a better e-book reader in the future, you will always be able to easily transfer your e-books across. Bookeen recommends using BooksOnBoard.com for purchasing your e-books, which also has a dedicated UK site that has detailed instructions for installing the Adobe Digital Editions which is the preferred library software.

Accelerometer:

The accelerometer is certainly a very welcome addition and seems to work well too. Thanks to this feature, you can turn the device anyway you want and the screen will immediately redraw to match your view. What is really clever about this is that, all of the controls too change to match the orientation of your view. They always behave as you might expect, that is, whichever the page button is top or right will go the next page and the bottom or left button will go to the previous page, irrespective of the way in which you hold the Opus.

Battery Life:

As far as the battery life is concerned, Bookeen claims that the rechargeable as well as replaceable lithium polymer battery that is used in the device supports about 8000 page turns between charges. And, in order to charge the device, you can use the same USB cable that is used to transfer content to it, that is, either using the free Adobe Digital Editions software of by just dragging and dropping to the storage.

The Opus Color:

In mid 2010, Bookeen updated the Cybook Opus and named it Bookeen Cybook Opus Color. And well, it got into too much of criticism as The Bookeen Cybook Opus Color is not, as the name suggests, a new colour eReader. Instead, it is the Bookeen Cybook Opus in seven colourful shells including orange, blue, black, yellow, red, pink and silver colour options. It also upgraded its software to a new reader called “Boo” and is said to be faster and feature instant-on capability. The rest of the specs are the same.

Warranty:

Bookeen offers Cybook Opus e-book reader one year warranty for parts and labour.

Verdict:

Though the Bookeen Cybook Opus is a simple device to begin with, it is a pleasant one to look at and use. Not only does its sleek look make it one of today’s most desirable cultural goods, but Cybook Opus has also been designed to address the needs of passionately mobile readers. It has pretty much everything that you will need to read heaps of books, in a small and light weight package. It uses open formats and standards, so the Opus will not lock you into a single company’s products in future. If at all, there is any concern with the Opus, it is its 200 pounds price tag, which is still too much to pay for an e-book reader. And for that price, you also do not get any of the extras like music player, the ability to create notes or even the text to speech support. Though Sony’s Reader Pocket Edition is heavier than Opus and has fewer font options, it is about the same size and even costs lesser. If you are looking for a plain e-book reader with no bells or whistles, Bookeen Cybook Opus is the one for you.

Bookeen Cybook Opus eReader - Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer	Bookeen
Model Name	Bookeen Cybook Gen3
Colour	White, orange, blue, black, yellow, red, pink, silver and Black
Dimensions (H x W x D)	108 x 10 x 151 mm
Weight	150g
Display technology	E Ink® “Electronic Paper”
Screen size	5 inch
Display Features	Daylight readable Portrait and landscape mode
Display resolution	600 x 800 - 200 dpi
Grey scale	Black & White 4 levels grey-scale
Processor	Samsung ARM, 400 MHz
Keys	On/Off Reset 5-way navigation Menu button Back button Next/previous page button
RAM	32MB
NAND Storage	1GB
Storage card	Micro SD
Compatible free eBook and text formats	Multi-format reader HTML, FB2, TXT, JPG, GIF, PNG Adobe® ePUB/PDF Reader
Compatible DRM eBook and text file formats	PalmDoc and Mobipocket PRC
Compatible unsecured audio files	NA
Compatible image files	JPEG,GIF and PNG
OS	Linux 2.6
Compatible Operating systems	Windows® XP (Home Edition / Professional, Media Center Edition, Media Center Edition 2004, Media Center Edition 2005) & Windows Vista® (Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, Ultimate)
Ports	1 x USB
Battery type	Rechargeable and replaceable Internal Battery LI-Polymer (1000mAh)
Battery life	8000 page flips - 2 weeks battery life
Recharging time	Five hours with USB
Package contents	Bookeen Cybook Opus USB cable Quick start guide
Warranty	Limited warranty - one year