Quote:
Originally Posted by BenLee
I agree that the reading tech is not the only factor that determines who comes out on top. There's a slew of factors.
But I think whoever thinks that LCD is superior to e-ink for the purpose of reading (and reading alone) will find it very hard to make a compelling argument. E-ink is simply better to the mechanics of reading, not for games, or apps, or anything else....for just reading. And I think that most people would agree with this. Your eyes feel more comfortable reading e-ink for a sustained period of hours than it does an LCD screen. I work on a computer all day and I can't wait to stare at something with no glare like a Kindle. Aside from wanting color, I see very little reason why LCD would be superior for reading purposes. Can someone explain?
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E-Ink is too slow to read effectively for some people. Better driving will improve speed, but I have not seen any devices with adequate speed for book navigation yet.
E-Ink's contrast is too low (hopefully will be remedied somewhat in the near future), and the pixel grid is not supplemented by subpixels, so the ultimate resolution is not exceptionally high either.
Backlighting is a blessing in many situations just as a reflective backplane is in some others.
You make statements about E-Ink being "simply better" for mechanics of reading, but those are not statements of fact. You may feel that way, and you may want to justify your Kindle by saying that "most" people agree on the matter, but you're in a niche forum with a bunch of people who seem to spend an impressive proportion of their time here high-fiving each other for supporting E-Ink or related niche products. I, for one, would prefer to read for several hours on a good backlit desktop LCD than on an EPD, unless I'm outside. Your viewing habits are much more likely at fault for your bias against LCDs. That or past experience with poor LCDs and poor font rendering, which could very well be discouraging to almost anyone. I'm not terribly fond of reading for long periods of time on a lower-resolution Mac, for instance, largely due to Quartz or whatever their font rendering was called.
There are areas of superiority that both technologies have, and neither can claim to be wholly superior to the other for "reading", outside of marketing.
There are many LCDs I would not read on, but the difference at the moment is that there are at least
a few LCDs I'm happy reading on, while I do not like
any E-Ink screen.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DJHARKAVY
And it is the backlit display that tires your eyes.
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It does not tire your eyes unless it is seriously imbalanced with the ambient lighting. The light bouncing off a screen is not somehow more soft or gentle--light doesn't work like that.