An e ink device for web browsing?

Heba · 03-29-2018, 03:48 AM

By now, is there any device good for web browsing yet? My Kindle voyage is fast but the font is too small with no way to enlarge it. My Sony DPT-S1 is large, but insanely slow for browsing. Is any of the e ink devices on the market good enough for browsing? Reading articles from LCDs and OLEDs is killing my eyes

Thanks

HarryT · 03-29-2018, 03:53 AM

Simple answer: no.

Waiting4somethin · 03-29-2018, 05:11 AM

Hello, I share your pain so I understand very well your need. Yes there are good ereaders for browsing, the Boox Max 2, which is a 13.3 inch ereader that can be used as an hdmi monitor, or Onyx Boox Note which is more like a tablet at 10.3 inches.

They both have quad core processors and 2gb of ram, and have an a2 mode, but it seems even in normal mode they are fairly capable of a decent browsing experience.

Here is the best video I could find of the Max 2 internet browsing:

https://youtu.be/pcUzGQQUlJA (In Japanese but the only good video)

Here is the Note (shows browsing at 9:50):

https://youtu.be/mW_tw87-PEc

Both videos are showing a2 mode (which disables the flashing of the screen to refresh it). It’s a recent android, especially on the Note. You can use wireless keyboard and mouse also I suppose.

HarryT · 03-29-2018, 05:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Waiting4somethin

Hello, I share your pain so I understand very well your need. Yes there are good ereaders for browsing, the Boox Max 2, which is a 13.3 inch ereader that can be used as an hdmi monitor, or Onyx Boox Note which is more like a tablet at 10.3 inches.

If the OP is dissatisfied with the speed of the Sony for browsing, I see no reason to suppose he'd be any happier with either of the choices you mention. Both are still extremely slow compared to the typical tablet.

Waiting4somethin · 03-29-2018, 05:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

If the OP is dissatisfied with the speed of the Sony for browsing, I see no reason to suppose he'd be any happier with either of the choices you mention. Both are still extremely slow compared to the typical tablet.

Have you seen the dpt-s1 browsing? The page refresh is incredibly cumbersome:

https://youtu.be/oPT75YLPyWY (10:40)

You can completely disable refresh on the Boox devices. There is no comparison. Furthermore, as I said, the Max 2 can be used as a monitor, which at least takes away the page loading times.

The following quote is from the Good e reader review of the Note:

Quote:

I’ve seen a lot of ereaders that really struggle with web browsing, this, you’re just swiping, and, it’s fast. If you click, say like on a link, loads pretty quickly.

HarryT · 03-29-2018, 05:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Waiting4somethin

Have you seen the dpt-s1 browsing? The page refresh is incredibly cumbersome:

https://youtu.be/oPT75YLPyWY (10:40)

When the newer Sony model (the DPT-RP1) was released which everyone said was so much faster, I looked at it from the perspective of using it as a PDF reader, but the videos I found of it still showed 2-3s page turns, which I couldn't live with. I'd suggest that the OP finds videos of the devices you mention and sees for himself what the performance is like. We all have different tolerances when it comes to these things!

Waiting4somethin · 03-29-2018, 06:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

When the newer Sony model (the DPT-RP1) was released which everyone said was so much faster, I looked at it from the perspective of using it as a PDF reader, but the videos I found of it still showed 2-3s page turns, which I couldn't live with.

Your post demonstrates your experience of the Sony device not living up to other people’s stated opinions, but i posted videos of Sony, and Boox devices, you and anyone else can make a comparison.

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

I'd suggest that the OP finds videos of the devices you mention and sees for himself what the performance is like. We all have different tolerances when it comes to these things!

Absolutely, though I did post videos, it is helpful to watch more, of course. The op may well require the speed of a tablet, but if he has eye strain his tolerance may be more, hence my post.

Waiting4somethin · 03-29-2018, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

When the newer Sony model (the DPT-RP1) was released which everyone said was so much faster, I looked at it from the perspective of using it as a PDF reader, but the videos I found of it still showed 2-3s page turns, which I couldn't live with.

That’s a shame about the Sony. I can’t live with those kind of page turns either.

ZodWallop · 03-29-2018, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Heba

Reading articles from LCDs and OLEDs is killing my eyes

If it's just reading articles, you could save the articles to Pocket and read them on a Kobo. It's not something I use myself, so I don't have a lot of knowledge. But Pocket is built in to Firefox and Kobo.

DaleDe · 03-29-2018, 01:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

When the newer Sony model (the DPT-RP1) was released which everyone said was so much faster, I looked at it from the perspective of using it as a PDF reader, but the videos I found of it still showed 2-3s page turns, which I couldn't live with. I'd suggest that the OP finds videos of the devices you mention and sees for himself what the performance is like. We all have different tolerances when it comes to these things!

The A2 mode is a significant change for E Ink devices. They have always spec'd a pure black and white mode with greater performance potential than gray scale but only recently has anyone tried to take advantage of this mode. Black and white is single bit, no aliasing, but can produce a screen in 120 msec vs 450 in gray scale Carta and 600 msec in Pearl. It is also less prone to need a refresh. I do not believe Sony supports an A2 mode. By the way, A2 mode is horrible for pictures.

Dale

HarryT · 03-29-2018, 01:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaleDe

The A2 mode is a significant change for E Ink devices. They have always spec'd a pure black and white mode with greater performance potential than gray scale but only recently has anyone tried to take advantage of this mode.

It's been around for a few years now. I had an Onyx T68 quite a few years back which supported it, for example. As you rightly note, it's ok for text, but no use whatsoever for pictures, and most modern websites are heavily dependent on images.

Heba · 03-29-2018, 01:48 PM

Thanks everyone. I just want to add that page turn speed is usually fine for me. However, for some reason DPT-S1 usually takes forever to load a webpage. I don't care much about images of a web page but I just wanna be able to read text from a web browser (not just read offline pdfs or so)

Waiting4somethin · 03-29-2018, 05:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Heba

Thanks everyone. I just want to add that page turn speed is usually fine for me. However, for some reason DPT-S1 usually takes forever to load a webpage. I don't care much about images of a web page but I just wanna be able to read text from a web browser (not just read offline pdfs or so)

To be able to read the text on pages with a lot of scripting, video and images, the ereader needs to have a good processor, or those pages will take a long time to load. So I would say the Note or Max2 is probably the best bet. You could try the n96ml+ which has only 1ghz/1gb specs, and reports and videos give the impression that loading is slow, but it does have option to disable refreshing.

danicca · 03-31-2018, 03:19 PM

You could try with pixel qi screens, they don't have issues with refresh

Heba · 03-31-2018, 04:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by danicca

You could try with pixel qi screens, they don't have issues with refresh

I thought they were discontinued? If not, where can I buy one, please?

03-29-2018, 03:48 AM	#1
Heba Connoisseur Posts: 84 Karma: 529938 Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Egypt Device: Kindle Voyage, Kindle DX, Hanvon C18 and Sony Dpt-S1	An e ink device for web browsing? By now, is there any device good for web browsing yet? My Kindle voyage is fast but the font is too small with no way to enlarge it. My Sony DPT-S1 is large, but insanely slow for browsing. Is any of the e ink devices on the market good enough for browsing? Reading articles from LCDs and OLEDs is killing my eyes Thanks

03-29-2018, 05:11 AM	#3
Waiting4somethin Addict Posts: 249 Karma: 7162 Join Date: Dec 2017 Device: Wexler Flex One, NookST, n96ml+	Hello, I share your pain so I understand very well your need. Yes there are good ereaders for browsing, the Boox Max 2, which is a 13.3 inch ereader that can be used as an hdmi monitor, or Onyx Boox Note which is more like a tablet at 10.3 inches. They both have quad core processors and 2gb of ram, and have an a2 mode, but it seems even in normal mode they are fairly capable of a decent browsing experience. Here is the best video I could find of the Max 2 internet browsing: https://youtu.be/pcUzGQQUlJA (In Japanese but the only good video) Here is the Note (shows browsing at 9:50): https://youtu.be/mW_tw87-PEc Both videos are showing a2 mode (which disables the flashing of the screen to refresh it). It’s a recent android, especially on the Note. You can use wireless keyboard and mouse also I suppose. Last edited by Waiting4somethin; 03-29-2018 at 05:25 AM.

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03-29-2018, 03:53 AM	#2
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,560 Karma: 93980341 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Simple answer: no.

03-29-2018, 01:48 PM	#12
Heba Connoisseur Posts: 84 Karma: 529938 Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Egypt Device: Kindle Voyage, Kindle DX, Hanvon C18 and Sony Dpt-S1	Thanks everyone. I just want to add that page turn speed is usually fine for me. However, for some reason DPT-S1 usually takes forever to load a webpage. I don't care much about images of a web page but I just wanna be able to read text from a web browser (not just read offline pdfs or so)

03-31-2018, 03:19 PM	#14
danicca Addict Posts: 283 Karma: 517736 Join Date: Oct 2012 Device: kindle	You could try with pixel qi screens, they don't have issues with refresh