Seiko ER8100 Britannica and Oxford Reference Library

As a learning tool and handy crossword helper, this is great! People say using these machines is cheating..truth is, I would not do crosswords or the like if I did not have such a useful tool. Of course, you can look up on internet now, but there are many occasions when on train or I am away on holiday that I do not have access, so this is the tool to use. It gives you daily facts each time you start it up, and there are some good games, including a Britannica quiz. It solves anagrams and there are different ways of obtaining facts and answers. It is very compact so slips in the handbag or pocket very easily, and it has a nice feel to it - quite solid. I know it is a lot of money but I am very very pleased with it.

I wish I had another

This product contains the Encyclopedia Britannica, the Concise Oxford Dictionary and Thesaurus, a dictionary of idioms and crossword resources. I bought this particular model because it has a folding lid which doubles up as a screen on the inside, as well as having a dictionary of idioms which I require for my work. This is the second SEIKO electronic dictionary that I have ever owned - I bought my first in Japan some ten years ago which was stolen a few years later in China. This one is lighter, somewhat smaller and not as well-built or -designed as my previous model although both had similar display screens. The Japanese model had better contrast than this one and the font size was larger. This model enables the user to change the contrast, but the best contrast is set as the default in any case. You can also choose between three font sizes : small, medium and large. However, the large size is still somewhat on the small size due primarily to inadequate contrast. This is why some other reviewers have mentioned that the screen is of poor quality. However, size and contrast are the issues. My Japanese model did not have these problems. The design has such rounded edges on this model that I managed to drop it once and nearly dropped it a second time since it easily slips out of your hand. I didn't drop my Japanese model even once despite using it for several years and only using this one a few times so far. As a summary, I would say the model is adequate as long as you have fairly good eyesight and you take care not to drop it.

I never thought I would ever be able to replace my marvellous Seiko Er8000 that failed to turn off two days ago. This ER8100 is more complicated but has a wonderful collection of information and challenges containing all that I enjoyed before. It takes me longer to get the answer but worth the wait. Well pleased.

On the whole I'm very pleased with the capabilities of the ER8100 although mine looks a bit different to the one pictured here. My one gripe is that it is so small. The buttons are really tiny but do have space between them so hitting two together is less likely than on some machines where the buttons adjoin one another. The small screen is crying out for a backlight but with careful adjustment of the contrast an acceptable visibility can be achieved. This is a well made item, pleasant to the touch but oh so small. Please somebody make a desktop version.

Bought this for my Father in law as a helper for his crossword obsession and he absolutely loves it, Has everything he needs but as others have said the screen could be clearer but is still going strong 6 months later and has well and truly been well used...

This is a very shoddy replacement for the previous version - the N681 - which lasted for years and worked perfectly until it was knocked off the table ( a few too many times) onto a tiled floor! This model, the ER8100, lasted almost a year before the keys began sticking and some stopped working. It's smaller, lighter and, at £108.00, is not worth buying.

For many years I used an ER8000, but then some of the buttons didn't respond unless given a really hard push; just worn out I suppose. So it was time to replace it after the many years of good service. Although I thought another ER8000 was all I needed, I decided to try the ER8100. I'm glad I did. It does all that the ER8000 does and more. Well worth the extra £10. You just have to get used to some of the keys being in different places!