[Dtb-talk] Book Player Review

[Tina Hansen]

I'm pleased to read the discussion on this list about the differences among the various book players. I wish to contribute my thoughts, since I have most of the big ones.

I've used the Victor Reader Stream extensively over the past 4 years, and I like it best as an all-around unit. I usually don't use it for text files, since the synthesizer is problematic, but I'll use it for everything else. I like its well organized folder structure, and I also like its silent movement between files in the Other Books and Music bookshelves.

If you do a lot of Audible stuff, the Stream can do enhanced Audible with the optional Soft Pack. You can also get that if you want to record notes in mp3 directly. To me, that's worth every dollar for the Soft Pack.

I also have the Book Port Plus, and it's especially good as an accessible voice recorder. My main problem with it is the organization and content management. On the plus side, I like the quick keys for navigation, and that it's always on.

Unfortunately, the synthesizer is problematic. I also wish I could tell it to shut up when moving through music; the voice slows me down.

As for the Plextalk Pocket, well, I'm steering clear of it for now. Much of its firmware is so similar to the Book Port Plus, but the real problem for me is their use of TTS for voice guidance. I, for one, don't understand why they recorded a TTS for the voice guidance; it just doesn't sound right to me. So until they drop that voice, I'm not buying it.

Neither of these units do Audible's enhanced format, and I wish they'd add that feature.

The Book Sense is the smallest of the units I have, and I find it to be the best if you're reading text documents. There are some pronunciation issues they need to address, but overall, it's much better in this department.

Unfortunately, the audio quality is not as good in my view. It sounds flat to my ears, and there is no true tone control. I also find that anyone with manual dexterity problems will have trouble, but I hope the voice recognition feature will address that.

Thanks for hearing my thoughts.