Is a 6 inch screen a big improvement over a 5 inch screen?

[Hop-frog]

My current ereader has a 5 inch screen, which seems really too small for convenient reading. As it no longer works well, I want to find a replacement. Based on my needs and budget, many reviews recommend a Sony PRS-505, but this is only a 6 inch screen. As that is measured at the diagonal. I think this will only add about 0.5 inches to the width and height. Is this a major improvement over a 5 inch screen?

[Cinisajoy]

Can you go look at one in the store? I mean a 6 inch screen.

[Hop-frog]

I have not found any store in my area selling ereaders.

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by Hop-frog

My current ereader has a 5 inch screen, which seems really too small for convenient reading. As it no longer works well, I want to find a replacement. Based on my needs and budget, many reviews recommend a Sony PRS-505, but this is only a 6 inch screen. As that is measured at the diagonal. I think this will only add about 0.5 inches to the width and height. Is this a major improvement over a 5 inch screen?

You're seeing recommendations for a Sony PRS-505? That hasn't been available since 2009 or 2010. You might want to check on the dates of the reviews you were reading.

For the size, it doesn't seem much when you look at the numbers, but when you compare them, it is noticeable. But, you can go up to 6.8" or 7.8" if you look at a Kobo device.

I don't think there are any 5" devices currently available. You might find them second-hand. 6" is the most common, with Kindle, Kobo and Nook all having them. There are also Android based devices in various sizes. I can't suggest any of these devices for you without knowing what your requirements are (size, types of book you read, where you want to get the books, budget, etc.)

[svenlind]

Originally Posted by Hop-frog

My current ereader has a 5 inch screen, which seems really too small for convenient reading. As it no longer works well, I want to find a replacement. Based on my needs and budget, many reviews recommend a Sony PRS-505, but this is only a 6 inch screen. As that is measured at the diagonal. I think this will only add about 0.5 inches to the width and height. Is this a major improvement over a 5 inch screen?

Assuming equal aspect ratios then the area of the 6" is (6/5)^2 = 1.44 time bigger. That is 44% bigger than the 5" screen. So as mentioned a noticeable difference.

The aspect ratio is height/width 4/3. So you could simply cut 2 pieces of paper to get a visual impression of the difference.

[barryem]

I had a 5" Kobo Mini for a while and except for the lack of a front light I thought it was just fine for reading. Personal preference is one thing but I don't think it makes a lot of sense to say that 5" is too small. You might want a larger screen but that's not the same thing.

I do most of my reading on a 6" Kindle and a 5" phone these days. Probably 60% on the Kindle and 40% on the phone most of the time, although with my current book I'm experimenting by trying to read the entire 500 pages on my phone. That's going pretty well although the LCD prevents me from having very long reading sessions.

Till last year I had a 4.5" phone and I really liked that better for reading. It seemed just the right size, although 5" is good enough.

Think about newspaper columns. They're narrow because early studies showed that people read faster and easier on narrow columns. Newer studies sometimes disagree and I don't think anyone is very sure of any of that anymore, but people do read newspapers happily and reading on a phone or a 5" ereader gives even more line width than a newspaper column.

Barry

[JSWolf]

6" vs 5" depends on what font you want and if you want a newer Reader as the 5" ones are rather old.

[DaleDe]

The area is a good measure of the differences. Check Screen sizes in our wiki to see that the area is 12 for 5 inches and 17.3 for a 6" screen, quite a bit bigger.

Dale

[JSWolf]

After using the Kobo Aura H2O at 6.8", I find 6.8"to be a good minimum screen size. I like it much better than the 6" screen size I used to use.

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by Hop-frog

I have not found any store in my area selling ereaders.

Are there stores in your area selling smartphones? Not that you want to buy one, but you might be able to find a phone with a 6-inch screen and get a better sense of the size.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Hop-frog

I have not found any store in my area selling ereaders.

Where is your area?

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

Are there stores in your area selling smartphones? Not that you want to buy one, but you might be able to find a phone with a 6-inch screen and get a better sense of the size.

Not really, considering phones are rarely in a 4:3 relation. If I put my 5.5" phone next to my 5" BeBook Mini, the phone is smaller.

What I'd do is getting a piece of paper and start drawing (based on the numbers on the page DaleDe linked).

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

Not really, considering phones are rarely in a 4:3 relation. If I put my 5.5" phone next to my 5" BeBook Mini, the phone is smaller.

What I'd do is getting a piece of paper and start drawing (based on the numbers on the page DaleDe linked).

I didn't think about that (I don't have a smartphone myself).

Unless the OP is in an extremely isolated area, maybe there is someone among his/her family, friends, coworkers, etc. who has a 6-inch reader that he/she could look at.

[4691mls]

in case the OP comes back to this thread - here's a link to a page that has a photo of a Kobo Mini next to a Kobo Glo, with both readers showing the same text

http://the-gadgeteer.com/2013/09/04/...eaders-review/
scroll down til you see the photo of both readers open to Chapter 5, page 43 of some book

[Hop-frog]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

scroll down til you see the photo of both readers open to Chapter 5, page 43 of some book

Thanks for the picture! That made the difference really clear. I've ordered a 6 inch e-reader to replace my current 5 inch which has a faded screen.

Where I live is not too rural, but most of the people have little money to spend, so I can't find ebook readers in the shops.