Ereader for scrolling PDFs

[Dodman]

I currently read PDFs on my 13 inch iPad which is great in most respects but increasingly stressful to my eyes and useless out of doors especially in sunlight.

I’m on the lookout for an ereader that makes reading PDFs a more comfortable experience. Scrolling on my iPad is my preferred method and I am wondering if this is possible on an ereader and whether it works well.

I read PDFs on my iPad in portrait mode so I am assuming this should be possible with a 13 inch ereader but with a 10 inch one it would need to be read in landscape and then of course the full PDF page wouldn’t be showing, but this shouldn’t matter in scroll mode.

10 inches or above seems the minimum realistic size.

I’ve watched a few videos and searched around various threads but I haven’t come across much on e-readers and scrolling PDFs other than hints it is possible.

Does anyone have any experiences they could share?

[salamanderjuice]

It's doable on lots of them with KOReader (e.g. Kobo Elipsa, Boox devices, Boyue) or some other reader. It's not a good experience though. eInk screens really aren't designed for fast motion like scrolling. On Boox/Boyue devices you can use A2/X modes to help with this but it comes at the cost of lots of visual artifacts. I really don't recommend it. Scrolling is best avoided as much as possible on eInk.

If you are just reading half a page in landscape you can with some readers like Neoreader on the Boox devices have it page between the top and bottom halves of the page (they also have options for multi-column documents).

If you have the cash there are 13" eInk devices like the Boox Max Lumi or Fujitsu Quaderno A4. They are not cheap though.

[Quoth]

I use KOReader on the 10.3" Elipsa only for PDFs and only because it can crop off the margins. Then no need on most PDFs for scroll/zoom/pan. Anything that doesn't work on that is read on external 24" 2560 x 1440 BenQ monitor on laptop with low brightness in a dim room (no screen reflections).

[Dodman]

Originally Posted by salamanderjuice

Scrolling is best avoided as much as possible on eInk.

That’s a shame. So that means basic page refreshes only?

When I first got my Kobo Aura one, I was massively disappointed to find each page turn was accompanied by a violent jumbled flashing as one set of words dissolved into another. I remember following some instructions found on this forum which reduced this flashing from every page to only occasionally - but I still find it jarring.

I wouldn’t be willing to pay top dollar for a 13 inch device (which would be ideal for my purposes) if it was going to do something similar every time I ‘turned’ a page. Is this still an issue or has e-Ink technology moved on?

[salamanderjuice]

Originally Posted by Dodman

That’s a shame. So that means basic page refreshes only?

When I first got my Kobo Aura one, I was massively disappointed to find each page turn was accompanied by a violent jumbled flashing as one set of words dissolved into another. I remember following some instructions found on this forum which reduced this flashing from every page to only occasionally - but I still find it jarring.

I wouldn’t be willing to pay top dollar for a 13 inch device (which would be ideal for my purposes) if it was going to do something similar every time I ‘turned’ a page. Is this still an issue or has e-Ink technology moved on?

Full refreshes (the flashing) are still a thing but they are much reduced than past models. By default my Boox Note Air uses "Regal mode" and no full refresh ever for PDF. You may still see them jumping to the home menu or in other apps on occasion.

[Dodman]

Originally Posted by Quoth

I use KOReader on the 10.3" Elipsa only for PDFs and only because it can crop off the margins. .

Do you find a 10 inch screen okay for PDFs in portrait mode or do you use landscape?

I have a 7.8 inch Kobo Aura and it’s too small in portrait and I find too fiddly to work around in landscape.

It seems a bit excessive to double the cost to go all the way to 13 inches if 10 inches will do, but eye comfort is probably something worth paying extra for.

[salamanderjuice]

I'm personally fine reading most PDFs in portrait with 10" but I can also do it with 7.8" haha. Although it is more comfortable on the 10". So it very much depends on your eyesight. I'd try printing a PDF page shrunk to match the dimensions of a 10.3" (6.18"x8.24")
device and see if you can, or if you know somebody with a smaller iPad they're about the same size.

Neoreader does include the ability to autocrop margins out of the box and that does help make the best of smaller screens.

[Dodman]

Originally Posted by salamanderjuice

I'm personally fine reading most PDFs in portrait with 10" but I can also do it with 7.8" haha. Although it is more comfortable on the 10". So it very much depends on your eyesight. I'd try printing a PDF page shrunk to match the dimensions of a 10.3" (6.18"x8.24")
device and see if you can, or if you know somebody with a smaller iPad .

My wife has a standard iPad and it is okay to read in portrait mode but I find it’s much better in landscape. The reason for that is I can hold the device a little further away. Obviously only half a page is visible at a time but that’s okay as I’m in scroll mode. The thought of having only half a page on show and having to page turn twice as often puts me off a bit.

It’s a shame I can’t go into a store and try these devices out. I bought my original 7.8 Aura blind after testing 6 inch devices and finding them hopelessly small.

[Marinolino]

Originally Posted by Dodman

My wife has a standard iPad and it is okay to read in portrait mode but I find it’s much better in landscape. The reason for that is I can hold the device a little further away. Obviously only half a page is visible at a time but that’s okay as I’m in scroll mode. The thought of having only half a page on show and having to page turn twice as often puts me off a bit.

It’s a shame I can’t go into a store and try these devices out. I bought my original 7.8 Aura blind after testing 6 inch devices and finding them hopelessly small.

You can then simply install Koreader app on Aura-One because it is a lot better pdf (djvu, comic) reader than native pdf reader of Kobo-Aura-One or quite a few e-readers there.

Koreader has got a "scroll-mode" but it is not really a scrolling mode (as this reviewer tried to use at 2:40 min), but rather a continuous-view mode meant to be used by way of regular tapping or right/left swiping instead of scrolling.

https://youtu.be/i2oSOeAnD10?t=141

[Dodman]

Originally Posted by Marinolino

You can then simply install Koreader app on Aura-One because it is a lot better pdf (djvu, comic) reader than native pdf reader of Kobo-Aura-One or quite a few e-readers there.

Koreader has got a "scroll-mode" but it is not really a scrolling mode (as this reviewer tried to use at 2:40 min), but rather a continuous-view mode meant to be used by way of regular tapping or right/left swiping instead of scrolling.

https://youtu.be/i2oSOeAnD10?t=141

That’s an excellent idea. Unfortunately, it’s been a while since my computer recognised my Kobo at all. It’s old, running Windows 8, which may explain why.

I’ll definitely try this, though, once I can get access to another computer.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by Dodman

That’s an excellent idea. Unfortunately, it’s been a while since my computer recognised my Kobo at all. It’s old, running Windows 8, which may explain why.

I’ll definitely try this, though, once I can get access to another computer.

Something else is wrong. Certainly only older versions of Calibre on older Windows, but XP, 2003, Vista, Win7 & Win8 can certainly use Explorer's File window to copy to a Kobo. Try a different cable or USB host port.

[Dodman]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Try a different cable or USB host port.

I tried three different cables this morning and none worked in either of my two USB slots. They failed to register the Kobo as even there. The cable I used yesterday at least showed the Kobo as an unnamed storage device but with nothing on it.

Interestingly, on yesterday’s cable, my Avast security popped up asking me if I wanted my “Kobo ereader’ scanned. So it can recognise it while Windows doesn’t. Not on today’s cables, though.

[Quoth]

Disable the AV.

The AV can't see it unless Windows IS recognising it.

[Dodman]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Disable the AV.

The AV can't see it unless Windows IS recognising it.

Before disabling Avast, I thought I would try again with yesterday’s cable. There’s a long thread elsewhere on this forum dedicated to problems with Kobo non connection and the consensus seems to be that cables are often at fault. Anyway, extraordinarily, suddenly my Kobo was recognised!

All files and folders were there. Perfect.

I then ‘safely removed’ it and downloaded the KO reader package.

Then, when I reconnected my Kobo my PC again failed to recognise it.

I fiddled around with the cable a bit until, after a few failures, it suddenly worked.

I’m pretty sure this cable is the one that came with the Kobo and I suspect it’s worn internally as it doesn’t always show up as ‘connecting’ on the Kobo screen. It’s the one I use for charging and it’s quite a loose fit and often needs jiggling.

However, now I am reasonably confident I can get a lasting connection with it, I’m encountering the apparent difficulty of installing KO reader. I downloaded the zip package that needs extracting onto the root directory but it seems there’s an additional complication for firmware 4.17 onwards (mine is 4.3). What is suggested to get around this issue (… you'll need to prevent Nickel from scanning *nix hidden folders) seems way beyond my limited expertise!