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What do Seniors Need in E-readers. The Bells and Whistles Review.
Seniors are making up an increasing fraction of most western nations these years so someone better wake up to the potential market. They also have pension money to buy reasonable priced e-readers, but they will be more selective, as wisdom increases with years on the job! One senior's e-reader specification now follows and I am definitely in the market for the right product at the right price..
Essential Features
1. Must be able to read full page pdf and doc files without reformatting
- as described previously, this means a diagonal of about 11 to 12" for most seniors
- must be able to read non DRM pdf files so as to access the vast library of books on the web in pdf format
2. USB or Card input.
- essential to be able to load and manage book transfers from web via computer to e-reader.
3. Robust Construction.
- preferably grandchild proof
- plastic screens better than glass
- a good case probably needed, to prevent accidental screen scratches from pets
4. Reasonable Price and modest performance.
- I consider $1000 for a reader to be too much, but a few hundred is not. Cut out the frills and give us a basic reader not a mini computer. To read books, magazines and newspapers would be useful as seniors perhaps have more time than younger people for reading.
Desirable Features but not Essential
- a detachable page turner control/cable for reading in bed, seems desirable
- ability to read while battery-charging is highly desirable
- reasonably long time between battery charges is useful, and larger cases can store larger batteries
Unnecessary Features.
1. Touch Screen
- touch screens reduce display contrast,
- greasy finger marks ruin the screen
- pointer stick writers could scratch or dent plastic display modules.
2. MP3 sound.
- younger people may enjoy having their ears blasted out by listening while they read, but I find it disturbs concentration while reading thought-provoking matter.
- you can always use a dedicated MP3 player if you must ruin your concentration
- one can use a laptop or similar if you need to listen to audio books, because you do not then have to hold the "book" for long times.
3. Page Print Outs
- scan and print on a main computer, or transfer the pdf to a computer and print with Adobe products
4. Wireless Inputs.
- some may want it for downloading books but most can transfer items from a laptop or desktop via USB
- Adobe DE allows for DRM transfers between computers/ereaders, or you can get rid of the DRM using the available Python programs (you paid for the book anyway, and most seniors are not into selling their books to unscrupulous end users).
5. Unnecessary dictionaries.
- most book reading seniors know what most words mean, and only use a dictionary very infrequently, or look things up on "Google" on their laptop computer if they need to. Younger people, and ESL students need this feature more than most seniors.
6. pdf reflow
- avoid the complexity of bad pdf reflow of text, by providing a screen to show full page pdf items directly, with scaling and scrolling for those seniors with failing eyesight. Adobe products do this scaling well, so use a similar method perhaps.
It looks likely that there may be e-readers available in 2009/2010 that will satisfy our needs, and I encourage all manufacturers such as Astak, IRex, Hearst, Plastic Logic and others to continue their valiant efforts. There is a market out there. We need a simple reader not one full of too many bells and whistles, and costing $1000 because of that. Please comment if you think anything is incorrect above. I too am in the learning phase about e-readers.
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