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I generally disdain staring at backlit screens when their light output is incongruous to the surrounding environment. A bright backlight that improves apparent contrast and color saturation often far exceeds what ambient light would otherwise dictate.
However, if the backlight is handled well, I don't find it particularly uncomfortable.
I got an e-ink device for a few reasons:
a) on my EEE PC, I find myself easily drawn to other tasks like email or productivity things. With a dedicated book reader, I can envelop myself more in the reading.
b) EEE PC is too slow to boot up. I have gotten it pretty optimized, but from startup through login is usually 15 seconds. Then I need to navigate to my requisite files or software. My Sony is in standby most of the time with pretty instant switch on, right back to the book I was in. Battery life on my EEE can't guarantee that if I'm reading it periodically over a few days.
c) EEE PC is not really good for ebook interfacing and reading in portrait orientation. It's a bit bulky and navigation isn't wonderful when the book is turned to portrait.
However, I am pretty dissatisfied with e-ink as well, since the text quality is pretty poor overall (in bright conditions, it looks like someone printed on toilet paper with an ink jet printer...feathered edges with poor contrast. I have been looking at UMPC tablets and such that would give me a much better reading experience, with better quality displays. Perhaps not as good as print, but not as pathetic as e-ink.
Pixel Qi looks promising, if a bit low in contrast. It would be interesting to see up close how text shows. If clarity can be had over that of e-ink, I'd abandon the Sony in a heartbeat I think, despite the other inconveniences.
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