[OnanSalad]

I've had the m001 for about a week now - got it for $99 from deal extreme. The fact that I haven't even turned it on in the last two days should give you some idea of how useful I've found it.I had originally intended it as an ebook reader upgrade to my Nokia n800 (maemo), but that isn't going to happen. I've been using ebook readers for about a decade now - starting with the Toshiba e330, then to the Dell Axim with wifi, then to the Nokia N800 and now the Kindle 2. As an eReader - the m001 is not even as effective as the ancient Toshiba e330 for several reasons:1) m001 has 256 colors; e330 had 65,5362) m001 can hardly dim the screen for nighttime reading; the e330 can decrement at 1% levels all the way down to 0% (pure reflective).3) relative to its screen size, the m001 is bulky, heavy, and runs hot - so I've found it awkward for reading in bed; the e330 fits in your hand, has curved sides and a perfectly placed side button for turning pages.4) battery life / power management is nonexistent in the m001I realize that the m001 was only $99 - but considering you can get the old e330 on ebay for around $30, I don't think the m001 is even worth that low price. And if you're not going to use it as an ereader, the only other purpose I could see for it is web-browsing/checking email while traveling - but the horrible wifi functionality and battery life rules that out too. With it's current software - I don't see any use for this device at all. When all is said and done - I don't think this device is even worth $50 unless you're just wanting to buy a toy to fiddle with. The bottom line for me is that the m001 can kinda do several things poorly, but it can do no single thing well or for very long.I'll hold onto my m001 to see if a software update (or winCE build) can solve any of the current issues, but I suspect I'll end up selling it in a month or so when I get tired of this $99 paperweight. Note: of all my ebook readers the kindle 2 is superior in every way but one: nighttime reading, which is unfortunately the one time I read. For the price, you think Amazon would have at least built in a couple of LED lights...

 

[VirtualAaron]

Dealing with the e-book issue. I use FBReader, this has a "night time" mode with white text on a black background. The screen brightness can be set in "Settings.Sound and Display" using a slider. Or you can have a widget on the desktop that toggles "low, Medium, High" brightness in sequence. Heat seems (on mine at least) to be related to Wi-Fi activity, so if I am reading a book I turn the wi-fi off. This also helps considerably with the battery life. I now get nearly 4 hours of reading time. The M001 has a 7" screen, so it's going to be bigger than something with a smaller screen. In terms of size it's very similar to the Kindle - which you can't read in the dark.For me the Eken M001 is one of the best gadgets I have purchased in years. For the price it performs very well. The price is the key point. It's designed to sell for $99 or less. Was the Nokia N800 $99 when it was new? No.So, I don't think that your criticisms are really fair.

 

[h8isgr8]

I don't e-read, so I can't comment on that aspect of this device. I do agree that it doesn't do anything very well and is pretty much useless after the novelty factor wears off; which is why I sold mine.If EKEN would have put the money/effort into adding hardware video processing, it would have made this thing 100x better.

 

[OnanSalad]

[quote name='VirtualAaron;7515] Was the Nokia N800 $99 when it was new? No.So' date=' I don't think that your criticisms are really fair.[/QUOTE']I wasn't comparing based on release price - but on function vs price right now. If you were shopping for an ebook reader - your dollar would go further elsewhere. As an ebook reader - I compared this $99 device with the almost decade-old e330 which you can get for around $30 right now. You can actually get the Nokia n800 for around $100 right now. I have one - and can tell you that it blows the doors off of the m001 in all respects except possibly browsing due to the resize factor (but its wifi is much better). Maybe your dollar always goes further buying the proven models of yesterday instead of unproven cutting edge devices.Comparing the m001 to the kindle 2, the one thing that stands out is that while they are both around the same size, the kindle is feather light and incredibly slim. If they'd just built some led lights into the kindle it would be the perfect ebook reader for my purposes. Maybe the key here is that you say "gadget" and I say "device." In my mind, a gadget is something you play with but ultimately fulfills no requirement; a device is something that meets a predefined need. I needed a successor to my ebook reading device, but what I got was a $99 gadget that will ultimately be a paper weight unless someone is able to build vastly improve on the software.As far as brightness - your brightness control actually dims the backlight? Mine only dims a barely discernable amount. For nighttime reading, I need to dim the backlight down to a level that you actually cannot see it at all in a lit room (ie - a level of light that will not disturb someone sleeping beside you). All of my ebook devices have allowed this except the m001 and kindle2.

 

[lawman]

Now ladies, douche and move on. Opinions are like a-holes: everyone has one and they all stink.The promise of these devices is their possibilities, none of which have been fully reached or even explored. I can see why some may not see them as worth it. I have resisted buying one for that very reason.