MS Courier

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

The main advantage I see of a dual screen reader is that it can be folded to present a smaller form factor to carry around. As far as usability everything done on two screens can be done on one.

Of course, the eDGe is an exception since it has different types of screens each dedicated to the tasks that they do well.

BOb

Don't underestimate the value of cutting in half the physical size. An A4 sized Academic reader is easier to carry around and manage than an 11 by 17 display. For personal reading at home a single pane is fine but for an academic or corporate environment where carrying the gadget around all day is an issue, the ability to fold the screen in half is worth the added cost.

Even more interesting, I've seen some design exercises that make a case (of sorts) for *four* screens. With all those folds, the thing is, of course, code named origami.

[Ankh]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

The main advantage I see of a dual screen reader is that it can be folded to present a smaller form factor to carry around. As far as usability everything done on two screens can be done on one.

Of course, the eDGe is an exception since it has different types of screens each dedicated to the tasks that they do well.

I hope that we will see (and soon) devices where two screens are really treated as two halves of the uniform display area. Only the "bottom" part needs to be touch sensitive.

[ChrisC333]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Don't underestimate the value of cutting in half the physical size. An A4 sized Academic reader is easier to carry around and manage than an 11 by 17 display.

What would you see as an ideal size?


If a device is truly 'pocket portable' then it can still do some reading tasks surprisingly well. Yet there are other tasks that simply must have a bigger screen. How big though?

Once you get out of the pocket format there's really quite a big range of sizes that can be carried around the home or office relatively easily - either in the hand(s) or in a carry case or briefcase. If the weight and general bulkiness isn't too great then I find that I can carry surprisingly large folders around without any great inconvenience. However, ease of carrying can also be affected by what else you might be carrying at the same time. You can even add to the mix a certain satisfaction in folding something into a smaller size that can just feel 'right' even though it doesn't necessarily always make carrying it that much easier. Sometimes things can be sold on the perception that a feature is more useful than it necessarily is.

A4 seems an ideal size to me. It's a good fit all round with so many aspects already in common use. It's not just a good general match with the existing folders, briefcases etc that we're used to handling, but it suits the enormous amount of archived material that was designed to be viewed at that size and shape.

Until wide screen movie formats came along and literally distorted the computing picture, the ratios seemed much more work and reader friendly. I can read text perfectly comfortably on a 10" 16:9 netbook, but for some other tasks it still feels poky and out of shape.

What do others feel are the minimum and maximum comfortable sizes for their own usage?

Cheers,

Chris

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by ChrisC333

What would you see as an ideal size?

That is something I've been wondering about with respect to eink readers; I'm unconvinced that 6" is an optimum size.

I'm starting to feel, though, that 5" is *one* sweet spot; the Pocketbook 360 and Jetbook lite simpy feel *right* in a way none of the 6" readers I've used/tested do. It might be a function of the size of my hands or all the paperbacks I've read in my life but 5" readers are really comfortable to hold.

On tablets, I generally like my HP TC1000 which is roughly 8.5x11, but I think a 7" 16x10 slate would be better for extended use as a reader.

Basically, I think the optimums are going to turn out to be very similar to the formats that have evolved over the years for paper books and notebooks. (Out of familiarity, if nothing else.) If I'm right, we would end up with 5" 3x4 (maybe 6in 9x16) at the paperback level, 8" 3x4 (maybe 9" 9x16) at the stenopad/journal level, and A4 sized (or 11.5" 9x16) at the notepad level. And the latter is about as big as I think any non-architect will want to deal with regularly as we're talking a 20-21in diagonal display for a dual-pane device.

For now display size determines portable device form factors but that won't last forever. Things should get real interesting when we get flexible displays and designers can start getting creative. Like some of these:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36793684...ce-innovation/

[ChrisC333]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

That is something I've been wondering about with respect to eink readers; I'm unconvinced that 6" is an optimum size.

I can see what you mean. It does work OK, yet it still seems to be something of a compromise. It's not quite big enough to have the advantages of the larger screens, yet not quite small enough to hit the compact sweet spot either.

For now display size determines portable device form factors but that won't last forever. Things should get real interesting when we get flexible displays and designers can start getting creative. Like some of these:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36793684...ce-innovation/

Thanks for that fascinating link. Some intriguing ideas there. I find tube shapes to be a bit awkward to store, stack or carry, but that one was such an eye catching design that it might just become a trendy item to have. The projector idea seems to be cropping up a bit more now. so it will be really interesting to see where that goes too.

Cheers,

Chris