MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Does the 505 hurts your eyes after a long reading?

DixieGal · 04-06-2009, 12:59 PM

I've got poor vision and haven't been able to read from a pbook for a few years now. My retinas are rotten, keep having hemorrhages, etc. 10 surgeries so far.

I've found pros and cons of reading LCD, eInk, and PC. My absolutely preferred way of reading is on the PC in eReader format, "denim" theme. It has a blue jeans background with purple letters. Sounds garish, but the dark background with lighter letters is very restful to my eyes.

My first dedicated ebook device was the eBookwise 1150. I loved it and read the heck out of it. It is very comfortable to hold, very easy to operate and manage, and has the backlight. If it allowed me to enlarge fonts beyond what even mobi2imp allowed, I would still be using it.

Now I have a Sony PRS-505, and it's great also. I changed the default font to very large Ariel sans serif. Also, I read mostly in landscape mode because that seems most comfortable to me. Lots of page turns, but not a prob - my thumb is right there anyway, so why not use it?

I've experienced eye strain with all 3 modes of reading. It comes along with struggling to focus, and is part and parcel of my life. No biggie. But there are things you can do to help you avoid eye strain.

One helpful thing for reading on the PC is to lower the screen slightly below eye level. This is recommended for computer users in general, but ebook readers in particular should pay attention because of the long stretches of staring at the screen. Also, keeping my "reading pane" at half the width of the screen or less helps me. I quickly found out that reading the whole width of the screen, then jumping back to the beginning, gave me some really bad eyestrain.

With the backlit LCD screen, my eyestrain was purely my own fault. I was reading at "large" setting but it was too small for my eyes. So I either had to pull the screen closer or strain to focus. That particular episode that I'm remembering took a couple of weeks to go away - I would pick up the ebook reader and my eyes would start to water and burn almost immediately. But it helps to hold the small device lower than eye level also. When lying down to read, I invariably end up with my hand above my head, with my eyes looking up at it. It's a hard habit to break!

With the 505, my problem was focusing. The words ran together for me, no matter how large the font was. Somebody, I think YvanLeTerrible, posted to use PRSCustomizer to change the default. Also, I try to pre-format my books, if possible, because that overrides the defaults. I use Ariel, 22 pt, and increase the line spacing to 1.25. This allows more of the background to show through and better contrast with the text. And it looks very pretty also, nice and very crisp.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that there are pluses and minuses for whatever you decide to go with. Just be sure to use common sense and protect your eyes. The book will still be there when you come back after resting them.

04-06-2009, 12:59 PM	#28
DixieGal Hi There! Posts: 7,473 Karma: 2930523 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ft Lauderdale Device: iPad	I've got poor vision and haven't been able to read from a pbook for a few years now. My retinas are rotten, keep having hemorrhages, etc. 10 surgeries so far. I've found pros and cons of reading LCD, eInk, and PC. My absolutely preferred way of reading is on the PC in eReader format, "denim" theme. It has a blue jeans background with purple letters. Sounds garish, but the dark background with lighter letters is very restful to my eyes. My first dedicated ebook device was the eBookwise 1150. I loved it and read the heck out of it. It is very comfortable to hold, very easy to operate and manage, and has the backlight. If it allowed me to enlarge fonts beyond what even mobi2imp allowed, I would still be using it. Now I have a Sony PRS-505, and it's great also. I changed the default font to very large Ariel sans serif. Also, I read mostly in landscape mode because that seems most comfortable to me. Lots of page turns, but not a prob - my thumb is right there anyway, so why not use it? I've experienced eye strain with all 3 modes of reading. It comes along with struggling to focus, and is part and parcel of my life. No biggie. But there are things you can do to help you avoid eye strain. One helpful thing for reading on the PC is to lower the screen slightly below eye level. This is recommended for computer users in general, but ebook readers in particular should pay attention because of the long stretches of staring at the screen. Also, keeping my "reading pane" at half the width of the screen or less helps me. I quickly found out that reading the whole width of the screen, then jumping back to the beginning, gave me some really bad eyestrain. With the backlit LCD screen, my eyestrain was purely my own fault. I was reading at "large" setting but it was too small for my eyes. So I either had to pull the screen closer or strain to focus. That particular episode that I'm remembering took a couple of weeks to go away - I would pick up the ebook reader and my eyes would start to water and burn almost immediately. But it helps to hold the small device lower than eye level also. When lying down to read, I invariably end up with my hand above my head, with my eyes looking up at it. It's a hard habit to break! With the 505, my problem was focusing. The words ran together for me, no matter how large the font was. Somebody, I think YvanLeTerrible, posted to use PRSCustomizer to change the default. Also, I try to pre-format my books, if possible, because that overrides the defaults. I use Ariel, 22 pt, and increase the line spacing to 1.25. This allows more of the background to show through and better contrast with the text. And it looks very pretty also, nice and very crisp. I guess what I'm trying to say is that there are pluses and minuses for whatever you decide to go with. Just be sure to use common sense and protect your eyes. The book will still be there when you come back after resting them.