What's the point of the frontlight?

readingbunny · 05-22-2019, 06:07 AM

Well, apart from reading in the dark with brightness set to 1%, for which it's great.

But I really don't see why you'd ever want to turn up the brightness to anything higher than max 10-15%.

Personally I read without the frontlight during the day/in well-lit rooms.

If you want read from a glowing screen you might as well use a smartphone or tablet. (I understand the technology is different, but still.)

Genuinely curious to hear from some people reading with the frontlight on at all times!

John F · 05-22-2019, 06:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by readingbunny

Well, apart from reading in the dark with brightness set to 1%, for which it's great.

But I really don't see why you'd ever want to turn up the brightness to anything higher than max 10-15%.

Personally I read without the frontlight during the day/in well-lit rooms.

If you want read from a glowing screen you might as well use a smartphone or tablet. (I understand the technology is different, but still.)

Genuinely curious to hear from some people reading with the frontlight on at all times!

I don't have a Clara HD (I have a Glo HD), and I always have the light on: 30% with ambient light available, 10% (and inverted screen) in the dark.

jkrzok · 05-22-2019, 07:54 AM

I too leave the light on, at about 15% with just a touch of natural light, even in a well lit environment. It makes the screen whiter and more like paper.

NiLuJe · 05-22-2019, 08:23 AM

The recommendation has always been that the frontlight should be set brighter *the more ambient light there is*, which can feel pretty counter-intuitive, but does indeed make things look more even.

Although in practice, I usually keep to the low-end of the scale, at around 20%. Then again, I often read in fairly crappy lighting situations (i.e., by night).

mathil · 05-22-2019, 08:33 AM

I keep it at around 15% while reading at home during the day and even higher, 30-40%, while reading outside or during my commute, because of the increased contrast. I've certainly never gone above 50% though, so I do understand where you're coming from to a certain extent. Different people have different sensibilities, so having it is still better than not having it IMO.

kacir · 05-22-2019, 09:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by readingbunny

Well, apart from reading in the dark with brightness set to 1%, for which it's great.

But I really don't see why you'd ever want to turn up the brightness to anything higher than max 10-15%.

I am reading with frontlight on all the time.
The Frontlight is at 1% ;-).

Even in a well lit room, the difference in contrast is still noticeable.

Funny thing is, when I had Kindle Paperwhite - the very first one, it drove me nuts that I can't switch off the front-light completely. Now I can (and I could on my previous reader as well) and I do not bother. Go figure. ;-).

I can see how the screen looks without front-light, because when I am switching off the reader it switches off the light first and I can see the the screen briefly unlit.

Deskisamess · 05-22-2019, 09:42 AM

I use the front-light on my Oasis all the time. My eyes need a lot of light for reading, and always have, even when I was young. I've always struggled with chair-side lights and their placement, to give me a good reading experience. With the dawn of the first Paperwhite in 2012, I was able to stop trying to figure out a good comfortable place to read.

Finally, I could sit anywhere I wanted, and read for hours. I keep my Oasis light all the way up, unless I'm in a dark room, or in bright sunlight. I adjust the light as needed.

Front-lit devices are wonderful. Being able to read no matter my ambient light situation is one of the best part of my days.

Dr. Drib · 05-22-2019, 11:37 AM

The front-light invention on an ebook reader equals the invention of the wheel, as far as I'm concerned.

Of course, we are all have opinions, at least that's what my Drill Sergeant once told me.

lumpynose · 05-22-2019, 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

Of course, we are all have opinions, at least that's what my Drill Sergeant once told me.

You forgot the other part, but this is a family friendly forum.

Tarana · 05-22-2019, 12:39 PM

As someone with eye damage, I can assure you that the lighting from an ereader is much kinder to the eyes than any smartphone or tablet. They are not comparable.

People have different needs and different lighting conditions. Do you really have such difficulty putting yourself into other people's shoes?

Dr. Drib · 05-22-2019, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lumpynose

You forgot the other part, but this is a family friendly forum.

Ripplinger · 05-22-2019, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by readingbunny

But I really don't see why you'd ever want to turn up the brightness to anything higher than max 10-15%.

Personally I read without the frontlight during the day/in well-lit rooms.

If you want read from a glowing screen you might as well use a smartphone or tablet. (I understand the technology is different, but still.)

Genuinely curious to hear from some people reading with the frontlight on at all times!

It depends entirely on your eyesight. I usually leave my Glo HD around 70% and it's comfortable for me, but I don't think the Glo HDs are near as bright as what others have described on newer readers. In daylight I could put it lower, but I usually don't want to bother changing the light back and forth constantly. It adds more contrast to the text for me and my crappy eyesight even in daylight. Eink screens have a grayish background to me without the light on.

As already said, the backlight from phones and tablets is entirely different and much worse for your eyes than the comfortable front light on eink screens.

We all have different wants from a reader and different eyesight and different preferences.