Ereaders and pinpricks

Snow Sciles · 07-13-2014, 12:20 PM

What is it with ereaders and pinpricks? Other devices do not suffer from this issue. Why do ereaders have this defect, what causes it? My Nook STG did not have pinpricks, but the Kobo Aura I recently bought has them. I'm going to get it replaced, but I'm now thinking I was lucky with the Nook. I remember lots of people complaining about pinpricks for theirs. It seems to be such a lottery.

I'm worried that the replacement will also have pinpricks. You'd think by now this issue would've been solved. I think it's poor form for brands and manufacturers to allow this long standing problem to go on.

The Kobo Aura is a fairly recent model, it should not have pinpricks. No recently released ereader should. Pinpricks should have been ironed out of the manufacturing process by now.

It's annoying. No one likes to go through the returns/replacement process, and there's no guarantee the new one won't have the same problem.

HarryT · 07-13-2014, 01:25 PM

It depends on the type of light diffuser used: some seem more prone to it than others. The Kindle PW2 doesn't seem to suffer from the issue, although the PW1 did.

radius · 07-16-2014, 05:53 PM

I think also manufacturers have much, much more engineering experience with LCD panels compared to eink.

the.Mtn.Man · 07-16-2014, 07:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snow Sciles

What is it with ereaders and pinpricks? Other devices do not suffer from this issue.

It's a matter of back-lighting versus front-lighting. Devices like tablets and smartphones shine the light from behind the display surface whereas e-ink readers have a material in front of the display that diffuses and reflects the light onto the surface. The "pinpricks" are flaws in this diffusion material.

It really seems to be luck of the draw whether you're going to get pinpricks or not. I recently bought a Kobo Aura, and I don't have any pinpricks whatsoever.

07-13-2014, 12:20 PM	#1
Snow Sciles Connoisseur Posts: 65 Karma: 400010 Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: London Device: Nook STG, PW2	Ereaders and pinpricks What is it with ereaders and pinpricks? Other devices do not suffer from this issue. Why do ereaders have this defect, what causes it? My Nook STG did not have pinpricks, but the Kobo Aura I recently bought has them. I'm going to get it replaced, but I'm now thinking I was lucky with the Nook. I remember lots of people complaining about pinpricks for theirs. It seems to be such a lottery. I'm worried that the replacement will also have pinpricks. You'd think by now this issue would've been solved. I think it's poor form for brands and manufacturers to allow this long standing problem to go on. The Kobo Aura is a fairly recent model, it should not have pinpricks. No recently released ereader should. Pinpricks should have been ironed out of the manufacturing process by now. It's annoying. No one likes to go through the returns/replacement process, and there's no guarantee the new one won't have the same problem.

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07-13-2014, 01:25 PM	#2
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	It depends on the type of light diffuser used: some seem more prone to it than others. The Kindle PW2 doesn't seem to suffer from the issue, although the PW1 did.

07-16-2014, 05:53 PM	#3
radius Lector minore Posts: 649 Karma: 1738720 Join Date: Jan 2008 Device: Aura One, Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e, Google Pixel Slate	I think also manufacturers have much, much more engineering experience with LCD panels compared to eink.

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