I use a Sony PRS-350 and I'm not hurting too bad in most of these:
Robust: I've had it for almost 2 years, and most of that time didn't even have a cover.
Ability to loan to others: Since I have to strip the DRM anyway to read kindle books, no problem there.
Extended Read Time: Nice to have, but it will charge off of my phone charger (micro USB) so not a big deal.
Random Access: This is the one that hurts. Humans have great spacial access "It's about half way down the page maybe 3/8 of the way through the book" Not a big deal for most novels. I still use dead-tree reference books
Support for Color: Can't remember the last time I read a book with color, other than graphic novels.
Robust: I've had it for almost 2 years, and most of that time didn't even have a cover.
Ability to loan to others: Since I have to strip the DRM anyway to read kindle books, no problem there.
Extended Read Time: Nice to have, but it will charge off of my phone charger (micro USB) so not a big deal.
Random Access: This is the one that hurts. Humans have great spacial access "It's about half way down the page maybe 3/8 of the way through the book" Not a big deal for most novels. I still use dead-tree reference books
Support for Color: Can't remember the last time I read a book with color, other than graphic novels.