First of all. Shortcovers is completely a web based service. This right off the bat is a deal breaker for me. I do not want to have to scroll down to read a page, click next and wait for the next one to load. This can turn a 60 minute reading session into 45 minutes of actual reading. On my laptop at home the speeds would certainly be better, however, on my Blackberry, where I do most of my reading, this is not acceptable.

Also, I tried to do a little price comparison. After all, I can handle a little less as far as quality of service if the price is right. However, I found that I could not confirm this due to not being able to purchase any titles directly through Shortcovers. I could read the sample chapters but could not find a link anywhere to buy any of the titles I tested. Without getting prices, there was simply no way to compare.

Mobipocket has thousands of books ready for immediate purchase. I can download over the air with my phone and be reading in seconds. I can also preview sample chapters to determine if I want to buy a title. Not to mention, I can also purchase eBooks from numerous other online merchants and even access thousands of legally free titles. All of this on my phone. With the Mobireader desktop application, I can store all of my titles on my laptop and only transfer a few titles to my phone as needed. The desktop app also can auto sync to my device, grab RSS feeds and blogs, and transfer all to my phone when I plug in the USB cable.

I was hoping for a similar service with better pricing. Currently, I have to buy my titles in USD and that means a 6.99 title would cost me 8.71 at today’s exchange rate. If I could buy the same title for 6.99 CAD I would be able to swallow a somewhat less flexible service.

I really enjoy the flexibility of Mobireader on my Blackberry and feel that Shortcovers falls well short of the mark set by the Mobipocket team. Unfortunately, the shortcomings of Shortcovers ensures that it will not be replacing, or even living alongside my current Mobireader setup any time soon.

Shortcovers appears to work like a web browser not an e-reader.

I can find no way of advancing through the text one screen page at a time by tapping on the left or right side of the screen like other e-readers. Manual scrolling is tedious and inaccurate.

There is no auto scroll option.

There no list of chapters/bookmarks (this may not be a fair comment as I have not been able to test a complete book). If I am correct, and there is no provision for selecting specific chapters in a book, this is a serious omission.

Font sizes cannot be made large enough for people with visual imairment and there are no page/text colour options (white text on black background for example).

The developers of Shortcovers should look at other iPhone e-readers such as Stanza and eReader and incorporate the best features of these readers into their product.

Thanks. I was trying to figure it out from the main site, but the info seems to be more PR than practical…