Why are dedicated ebooks readers still popular?

[rantanplan]

Originally Posted by supermighty

I like that my kobo does one thing; it displays books. It won't distract me with notifications or offer quick access to streams of distractions.

That. I have set several timers for apps in the Digital Wellbeing app on my smartphone so hat I don't spend so much time on reddit, Solitair or other games all day and my e-Reader is just distracion free. Perfect.

However, audiobooks on my smartphone all the way. I never used the option on my Pocketbook or Kindle.

[rantanplan]

Originally Posted by maddz

Wait until you develop arthritis in your hands.

I have to ask this:
Who is using swipe gestures on their e-Reader? Every e-Reader I own either has buttons and/or supports touch to turn pages.

[maddz]

Originally Posted by rantanplan

I have to ask this:
Who is using swipe gestures on their e-Reader? Every e-Reader I own either has buttons and/or supports touch to turn pages.

As it happens, it was when I was using my Palm m500 for reading that I first became aware of arthritis in my thumb joints (buttons! lots of buttons!). At about that same time, I developed tendonitis in both wrists, and as part of the investigations, the arthritis was noticed.

So I have to be careful of anything requiring me to make repetitive gestures (aka swiping) or making me hold anything in a cramped position. I can't use a mouse, I use a trackball, but I have to be careful which type of trackball. Something like a Logitech MarbleMouse is out (that was what triggered the tendonitis), I use a Kensington Orbit which is a finger-controlled ball not a thumb-controlled ball.

I can and do switch between e-reader, iPad and iPhone for reading. As others have noted, a phone is great when you're waiting in a queue (or strap-hanging on the Tube), but when I'm sitting down I want a bigger screen.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by rantanplan

I have to ask this:
Who is using swipe gestures on their e-Reader? Every e-Reader I own either has buttons and/or supports touch to turn pages.

Swipe is 'touch' dependent.
Swipe is a Gesture. Tap (zones) is a Gesture
I can't swipe on my desktop monitors or TV (I do give those THE Gesture from time to time. )
I have never had fine motor skills. I was a failure at Touch Typing when I was 14 and it has gotten worse with age and poorer vision. Ever hear the term Fat Fingered? That is me on touch. (My fingers cover the entire Key Cap on a REGULAR keyboard. forget those phone screens, where light, precision. finger pad placement is needed. Cover 1 eye, now keyboard your touch phone

[4691mls]

Originally Posted by rantanplan

I have to ask this:
Who is using swipe gestures on their e-Reader? Every e-Reader I own either has buttons and/or supports touch to turn pages.

I have my Kobe set to swipe only for turning pages. When I had it set for tap-to-turn I would accidentally turn a page when intending to do something else (like open a menu or adjust the light.) Swipe-only reduces errors for me. Yes, I am a klutz

[Ripplinger]

I also use swipe only, it's a natural instinctive move to flip the page. The way I hold the reader, I just make the slightest swipe with my thumb that's already there, there's really no movement, and no accidental page turns if I'm trying to highlight or bring up a menu that happens if I rely on a tap for page turns.

Reading on an ereader vs a tiny phone screen... my phone battery would never last through the day is one major reason why it's not even feasible. I like to read outdoors a lot, and that makes the phone screen unreadable. And the tiny size of reading on a phone would drive me (and my crappy eyesight) nuts to the point I'd quit reading. There are many more advantages to an ereader, but those 3 alone make reading on a phone impossible.

If you never read outdoors, are in locations with chargers all around during the day, and you have decent eyesight, by all means use your phone if that's what you prefer. But realize that there are others in different situations that you that just about require an ereader to read comfortably, especially for long periods.

[Victoria]

I also strongly prefer the reading experience of an ereader, and take my kindle with me whenever waiting somewhere. I find reading on a tablet unpleasant and very hard on the eyes. But my sister-in-law, who is 10 years older, is a voracious reader and only uses her iPad. She hasn’t turned on her kobo in months, so the issue with backlit screens seems to be quite variable.

I tap to change pages. I find swiping difficult to get right.

[JSWolf]

I was swiping to turn pages ever since the days of my Sony Readers. So it's only natural to keep wiping on my H2O.

[twowheels]

I don't know what it is about reading on my phone screen -- I can do it for ages if it's stuff that I'm just skimming -- news, blogs, forums, etc, but if it's a long-form text I just cannot concentrate on it, my mind starts to wander, and it just bugs me. I can't explain why, it just is. And it's something specific to how the newer phone screens work because I used to love reading long form on my monochrome Palm III with electroluminescent backlight too, especially with the reading apps that could auto-scroll and you could easily adjust the scroll rate using the arrow buttons on the front -- I read many long novels that way.

Compared to phone screens, eInk is a joy -- I can get just as engrossed as I used to on paper books in the old days, and I don't need to hide under the sheets with a flashlight anymore! My first Kindle was great for reading indoors or out, and had a book-light built into the cover that you could just pull out of the corner at night. The modern ones are even better, with adjustable warm lighting, making them "just work" in any lighting situation. Unlike a lot of the previous posters, I don't find size to be the advantage at all, and actually wish for a 5" version of the Clara HD as I value portability (I carry it everywhere! -- well, used to... haha, hopefully will again soon!) and actually like the feeling of making progress by turning the pages more.

A lot of my work involves text on screen that isn't changing too fast. I hope for a day where I can get a decent sized eInk monitor to put next to my LCD monitor for working on source code and documentation.

[bookaho!ic]

Originally Posted by Apache

My eReader goes everywhere with me. My wife would think I was sick, or getting dementia, if I did not have my book with me.
Apache

Same here my OH asked if i was ill one day (pre covid) left ereader on pillow and went to work was rushing and forgot was so lost without it

[Mikou]

It would be easier to carry one device, but carrying an additional device is worth it because I disgree that a smart phone performs as well as my eink reader which...
1. Has no screen glare, even in sunlight
2. Has a very long lasting battery (I recharge every 1 to 2 weeks)
3. Has a large enough screen for me to pick a comfortable font size without having to flip pages so often and helping me to avoid the tension headaches I get from long reading sessions on computer, phone and tablet screens
4. Only weighs 30 grams more than my smart phone (And I have a 2nd eink reader that only weighs 5g more than my phone)

If I were forced to carry only one device, I could get by with a smart phone, but I wouldn't like it.

[ottischwenk]

Originally Posted by twowheels

A lot of my work involves text on screen that isn't changing too fast. I hope for a day where I can get a decent sized eInk monitor to put next to my LCD monitor for working on source code and documentation.

I do a lot of my work on my Boox Note Air with Bluetooth keyboard - I only need the workstation for finishing.
I have a completely glare-free screen and can work in the garden and in the sun, which is not possible with an LCD screen (laptop etc.) because I can't see anything.

[kacir]

Originally Posted by kyrilson

I guess I never thought swiping was WAY too much physical activity LOL.

Well, when you do it for several hours, every XY seconds (depending on screen size, font size and speed of reading) even a small difference can add up.

[Tarana]

Originally Posted by PeterT

Simple. Spend your day driving people to appointments and wait for them in parking lots... Today had one client who at the last minute had her doctor's appointment cancelled, waited 45 minutes while she attempted to reschedule for later in the day, then took her grocery shopping and waited about 90 minutes for her to finish. Then another client was getting vaccinated and that was about 30 minutes in that parking lot.

Sent from my Pixel 4a using Tapatalk

I second this and the glare on the phone is horrible. I had to drive and wait for my Mom and Aunt to get their second shots yesterday. Two different times. Fortunately, I had my ereader. When the phone range, I had trouble just selecting the ACCEPT because of the glare from the sun. Also, on an ereader, I only need to charge it once a week, even with lots of use - the phone sometimes doesn't make it until 4:30.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by jbcohen

When smart phones can do that as well?

Because smartphones don't do it as well. And not everyone carries around a small Android tablet or small iPad that happens to have a calling app tacked on so it can be called a phone. When my Sprint Q10 is "end of life'd" I'll probably be using a KaiOS based flip phone with a 2.8" screen (which I'm currently testing). My main requirement for it is that it has a HotSpot so I can get books for my eReader with it (and it works for that). Also it will get email and maps and and can use voice for navigation, entering text etc. Kind of a mix between a smartphone (small tablet) and a dumb phone (I can dial by just hitting the keys). The only problem with KaiOS is that it's tainted with Google.

And it does have an ePub app available that I'll try, but I'm guessing the experience won't be very good.