Is anybody else spoiled for eInk displays?

[Frenzie]

Originally Posted by kandwo

I do get your other points, but the contrast and definition should be objectively higher on a paper book. Not that it necessarily would make it more pleasant to read - that's just a question of taste.

I'm not sure if the contrast is better on some of my more yellowed books, though I do find the background more pleasant to look at than the grayish color on the ereader.

[Ripplinger]

At default settings I'd probably agree that most ereaders could stand improvement in contrast, I found the Kindle absolutely the worst with light gray text.

But between being able to add and select your own font, a thicker one if needed, and able to increase the weight of the font on most ereaders, in reality the contrast is far better than paperbacks. Even Amazon finally gave in and added the ability to use your own fonts and increase font weight, so it also is now better than a paperback.

[rcentros]

I still like to read paper books, but an eInk eReader is much, much more convenient. LCD screens on tablets and phones don't work well for an eReader (at least not for me). I probably would read very little if an LCD screen was my only choice. I guess I am spoiled by eReaders.

[Tarana]

I realize that I have vision problems, but I so prefer an audiobook over reading on my iphone in the event that I do not have my ereader. Really obvious this year because I started carrying only my wallet, keys and iphone to minimize possible COVID contamination at home. I so missed my ereader! It's back in my purse again and travels with me (mostly to sit out in the car while bringing a family member to a medical appointment).

[cfrizz]

I haven't read or bought a paper book in more than a decade, and I prefer to read on my pc. I don't worry about breaking my phone, tablet or Kobo because they all have covers to protect them. I can read easily on all my gadgets simply because I have control over the size of the font which is the reason why my paper book reading days are over.

[crossi]

For fiction I prefer ebooks. My reader is lighter than a paperback, less likely to be damaged by greasy finger (I read while eating) and by laying it flat on the table I can read with one finger for turning the page. I do miss the covers of paper books. They were often beautiful, added to my enjoyment of the book and made it easier to remember the book contents. Titles alone don't help me to remember as well as the cover picture.

Non fiction of the kind that you simply read from start to finish like fiction I also prefer as ebooks. If only for the weight issue.

For learning something I still find paper easier. I find it easier to flip back and forth when looking things up. I just sort of remember about where physically something is in the books and flipping through pages is easier for me after opening to the approximate area. Diagrams, charts, pictures and formulas are also pretty hopeless in ebooks.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by cfrizz

I haven't read or bought a paper book in more than a decade, and I prefer to read on my pc. I don't worry about breaking my phone, tablet or Kobo because they all have covers to protect them. I can read easily on all my gadgets simply because I have control over the size of the font which is the reason why my paper book reading days are over.

Same.

Well, I don't like reading on the PC as I prefer to lie down on the couch or in bed, and tend to toss and turn. That's something both tablets and e-ink readers can easily accommodate. I'm fine reading on both LCD and e-ink, though. Unless I have a migraine that is. E-ink only then.

I will say I'm pretty spoiled by instant access to content. Want to read the next book in a series at 3AM? A quick tap on Buy Now and it's ready in a few seconds. No need to wait for shipping or for stores to open.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I started reading eBooks on a laptop. Then I moved to a Sony Reader PRS-500. Since then, I've been reading eBooks mostly on an eInk screen. I have used my iPhone and iPad to read but not nearly as much as my current eInk device.

I never read ebooks until I purchased a Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight (remember when there used to be commercials for ereaders?). The better half was annoyed, figuring it was just another gadget. To be fair, they were likely right. But the first night I lay in bed reading with it, it won us both over and we bought a second that weekend.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

If LCD devices were good in sunlight and had a long enough battery, I might have gotten an iPad Mini for reading.

Hopefully TCL's NXTPAPER will be good. I'd be happy with a transflective display. Not sure how lighting works on it.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Hopefully TCL's NXTPAPER will be good. I'd be happy with a transflective display. Not sure how lighting works on it.

The videos I've seen don't look all that good. One way to look at it is that in an eInk display the light is reflected off the top of the display while the transflective display needs the light to bounce off a mirror behind the display. One video was for Sunul didn't look to bad until the reflections off the screen became too annoying though a decent antiglare would help with that.

The other issue I find is the power use. The numbers that I've seen tossed around range from 50% to 65% more efficient than a backlit LCD. This translates to ~2.5 watts continuous power draw (I averaged the numbers for 6 8" 800x600 LCD displays to get that number). In contrast, an eInk screen will take 750mW to 1800mW while drawing the screen and about 1mW while waiting for you to finish reading the page. The other numbers I used will vary for people's reading speed. The average page on an ereader is approximately 300 words and the average reader reads about 250WPM. The time to redraw a page varies with the screen so I used the longest result of 250ms. Using these numbers, I decided that the screen is active for for about 250ms per minute. So for 250ms, the screen is drawing a maximum of 1800mW and for the remaining 59.75 seconds, it's drawing 1mW. Playing with these damned near imaginary numbers, I come up with ~510mW average power use while using the lower end 750mW gives ~250mW.

I used the term imaginary since I had to make so many assumptions about power use, screen draw times, etc. that any resemblance between my numbers and reality for eInk displays is pretty unlikely.

[b0rsuk]

Yup, in cases like this the only right approach is to measure/profile power usage.

Originally Posted by crossi

For learning something I still find paper easier. I find it easier to flip back and forth when looking things up. I just sort of remember about where physically something is in the books and flipping through pages is easier for me after opening to the approximate area. Diagrams, charts, pictures and formulas are also pretty hopeless in ebooks.

Oh come on, no mention of word search? You made several good points in your post, but many times when reading a paper math textbook I wished I could search for specific words. I only got my first eReader just now, and I use word search all the time for programming textbooks I read on my Linux PC.

[james_]

I think those transreflective displays are like those on Garmin (and other) GPS/outdoor devices are not bad, but they sure seem to be power hungry and need much brighter ambient light to view than e-Ink, as well as having rather low resolution. (I would have thought that you'd need to have low resolution for transreflectives to work well, to allow light into the display to make it easy to read.)

I find the reading experience of eInk actually much better than books. I read fairly fast, and skim a lot of non fiction books, manuals and papers, and it is much quicker and easier to read like this (for me) with an eInk reader, especially if it's a big eInk screen. Wordsearch is really useful and you can throw in multiple bookmarks to navigate. The only reason I have the smaller eInk devices is portability. The other thing that is a massive win with eBooks is the huge availabilty of a virtually unlimited number of books (or magazines) you can borrow at a moment's notice from public libraries, for free, and they haven't got pages missing or been underlined to death. With an Onyx device you can use pretty much any e-library source with no problem, cucurrently. And, you can readilly read several books all at once without losing your place.. something I can enjoy with an eReader but not so easily with a normal stack of paper!

The real question is how to prevent the rest of my household from accumulating large piles of dead wood and get them reading electronically. Any suggestions welcome!?

[ownedbycats]

Originally Posted by b0rsuk

Oh come on, no mention of word search? You made several good points in your post, but many times when reading a paper math textbook I wished I could search for specific words. I only got my first eReader just now, and I use word search all the time for programming textbooks I read on my Linux PC.

I am a little embarrassed by how many times I have to search a character name because I forgot who they are.

[PeterT]

Originally Posted by ownedbycats

I am a little embarrassed by how many times I have to search a character name because I forgot who they are.

I've seen mention of some Kobo users installing series specific dictionaries.....

[b0rsuk]

Judging by how many eReader devices come with front light, not many people actually appreciate the screens. I wonder how many buy one because it's fashionable? A status symbol (pretty expensive in some areas)? Associated with people who can afford to spend time on leisure?