Ebook readers vs Real Book : I think we need a discussion

Hi,
Ebook readers always fascinated me, since I'm an avid reader. Here in India these devices came in to existence with a pocketbook clone 'INFIBEAM PI'.
But when I bought one, I realized that this technology is still in its infancy.
The background of E-ink Screen was grey not white , reading became difficult even in a normally lit room.
It was new thing in India and was very costly .
It's firmware was buggy, hanged a lot (Thankfully I managed to flash it with pocketbook 101 's firmware).
Then a new problem , While reading in sun text started fading , reading indoors was fine. It still happens.

Then 2012-13 excited me a lot as Kindle Paperwhite made headlines.
I managed to get one through my uncle in Canada.
But my disappointment took the center stage again.
It's touch response was awesome.
but the problem.......was ...... its most talked about feature it's inbuilt layer of light.......
This feature when used Indoors or in poorly Lit rooms .......was not good on eyes
I don't know but this light was not soft on eyes ......yes it was better than reading on LCD screen .... but still it strained my eyes.

so, I turned the light level to lowest. but after minimizing the lights the same grey background screen disturbed me .

so i sold it off .......

I'm still waiting for the technology to grow .....

I feel that if e-ink technology totally replicates the real book in terms of the contrast (i.e. present grey background) . we won't need this inbuilt lighting.

[Lemurion]

As soon as you separate out print books as "real" you're missing the point.

No, the screen isn't as good as the best paper, but my Kindle 4 is at least as good as the Pan paperbacks I read as kid in the 70's, and when you add in the fact it's as much a bookshelf as a book, it's easy to understand why some people prefer the tradeoffs of digital.

Besides, I'll take a gray cast to the page over print that's too small to read, or paperback gutters, any day.

[hardcastle]

I don't know what books you're reading that have perfect contrast, but aside from some top quality hardcovers, almost every paper book I've owned has comparable contrast to an eReader.

I'm sorry it's a dealbreaker for you, but your specific tastes in reading devices don't match my experience.

I don't really know what you expect to "discuss" about the topic. It's not like we can change your taste or you can change ours, and none of us are in control of eInk development.

[faithbw]

I don't really know what to say. Try reading an e-book on a tablet? You can tinker with the text and background color more on a tablet but they're backlit. Maybe the problem is external lighting as opposed to the e-book reader. Also, not all print book have the same contrast. Some print books have rather gray pages while others have very white pages. I guess ultimately, if you prefer print books, then you should stick to that. My husband only reads print books. He doesn't like e-books.

The main problem with the Kindle Paperwhite , which I faced was that the inbuilt light strained my eyes in poorly lit or dark rooms.

[Barbara1955]

There are 1,000s of ereaders out there so far you had 2.... hummmm Except to say Everyone has their Fav ereader & will tell you theirs is best. BUT Only you can decide what you like. Go check them out in stores IF you cant afford to buy them new where your at Check out the Flea Market here on MR

[pidgeon92]

Originally Posted by arsingh1

The main problem with the Kindle Paperwhite , which I faced was that the inbuilt light strained my eyes in poorly lit or dark rooms.

How high did you have the brightness settings? I generally keep mine between a 3 and 7 in a dark room. The less light, the better. I have not experienced any eyestrain, and my eyes aren't particularly young anymore.

[xstitchfan]

I have an unlit Nook Touch. My solution for dark rooms is a clipped on book light that has 2 light strengths and a very adjustable neck which avoids glare on the screen. Most days, I just adjust the ebook text to suit my damaged corneas. I may never read a printed book again!!! Happy Reading! Joan

[theducks]

My Astak (vizplex) with the tint, you mention beats/meats most NEW paperbacks (which never have WHITE paper)

My K4NT (e-ink pearl) exceeds those.

Digging into my Dead Tree paperback library and many pages have Yellowed, making scanning difficult due to loss of contrast.

I can read e-ink in the brightest sun. I can turn on the Light when needed, just like I would for reading a paper book.

Forget seeing anything on the screen of my phone or tablet in any lighting OVER basic office/stoe levels. Totally washed out.

[DiapDealer]

You mean we didn't already have all the discussions on physical vs ereader already? I'm fairly certain we did.

[Endelyn]

My eyes are troubled by ereaders with lighted screens, too, arsingh1. I'm sure that for the majority of people, they look and feel excellent, but for folks like you and I, they're just not compatible. I find them only slightly more comfortable than reading from a tablet, regardless of ambient light sources.

I think that you should try a newer ereader that isn't lighted. I use one of the non-lit Kindles myself, and with a booklight it's very easy to read from. I also think that the Infibeam PI must be using older technology -- to the best of my knowledge, ereader screens don't fade in the sunlight any more, and have excellent clarity indoors in natural light.

If you've caught the e-reading bug, you should keep looking. It took me a while to find a good-enough paper replacement, too.

Originally Posted by Endelyn

I'm sure that for the majority of people, they look and feel excellent, but for folks like you and I, they're just not compatible.

Thanks Endelyn, For a genuine assessment of my problem.Now I can say that I'm not crazy or not alone .
Now I'll try to get a non lighted ereader,
but how much is the difference between the 1st gen E-ink and today's e-ink screens. I mean, Does the grey background troubles you ? or Is it better than screens in the 1st gen reader

[Endelyn]

Originally Posted by arsingh1

but how much is the difference between the 1st gen E-ink and today's e-ink screens. I mean, Does the grey background troubles you ? or Is it better than screens in the 1st gen reader

I think that the difference is extremely noticeable. The words are very crisp and clear on newer models, and the background is much less grey. To me, the difference between first-gen eink and current eink is the difference between a video tape on a standard definition TV, and a blu-ray on a HD TV.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by arsingh1

The main problem with the Kindle Paperwhite , which I faced was that the inbuilt light strained my eyes in poorly lit or dark rooms.

The darker the room becomes, the more the Kindle will start looking like an LCD-screen. In a completely dark room, there's no difference.

If you can see the Kindle glow, then you have set your front-light too bright. Start from 0. Then slide upward. The screen will become brighter. As soon as you start to see it glow back off a notch or two. There's your perfect setting. You won't even see the light, and the screen will be very white and clear.

Yes, the Kindle can be used to read in poor light, but if the light is so bad that the Kindle is the only light source, it will not be better than a tablet. In fact, you probably wouldn't be able to read a book either.

[usuallee]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

You mean we didn't already have all the discussions on physical vs ereader already? I'm fairly certain we did.

+1. topic has been discussed to death.