New BeBook Mini - 5" Eink Reader

[kyliedork]

page refresh will depend on the chip & motherboard i guess.

It may be ugly but for sub $200 i would sleep with it

[oddity]

Originally Posted by tompe

but who is using serif fonts on a computer monitor?

I only use serif fonts. I have made my browser (epiphany) to apply my custom CSS on all webpages so that I only read the Web with serif fonts. I also use only serif in openoffice documents or other stuff, and I have changed the font settings of my OS (Debian/GNOME) to use serif fonts for the menus and button text etc...

I have also changed the font on my BeBook to a serif font. I really hate sans-serif fonts and can't read them easily since the serifs help me to distinguish the letters (eg l from I).

My biggest problem with PDFs is that if the author has chosen sans-serif I cannot change it (easily).

Also on Wikipedia, sometimes I want to read Wikipedia on another computer where I have not applied my custom CSS for serif fonts, so I have a user account there that uses my own stylesheet that replaces Wikipedia's sans-serif font with a serif one, so when I want to read the wiki from another computer I just log in with that account.

Sometimes I wonder why some people prefer sans-serif fonts since to me they look very difficult to read and distinguish the letters from one another.

Furthermore, when I say that I like serifs, I mean long real strong serifs. Not the short pseudo-serifs that come with the DjVu fonts, but the real long serifs that come with FreeFont or Liberation fonts (or Times New Roman).

Note, though, that I like reading with large font size on big monitors. I have a 24" monitor at 1440x900 and my serif font size is 16pt. The reason, though, is not the serifs but the condition of my tired eyes, albeit I will admit that serifs are better seen in large fonts rather than the usual small fonts that most people use for their monitors.

[tompe]

Originally Posted by oddity

Sometimes I wonder why some people prefer sans-serif fonts since to me they look very difficult to read and distinguish the letters from one another.

Readability studies show very litte if any difference in readability when comparing serif and san-serif fonts. On a computer monitor the resolution is so low that it is hard to make a serif font work. But I assume it depends on the size of the letters you normally use.

[Jadon]

Originally Posted by oddity

Note, though, that I like reading with large font size on big monitors. I have a 24" monitor at 1440x900 and my serif font size is 16pt.

You think 16pt is large? My browser enforces 20 points as the minimum, and I read pretty much everything on my 1200×1920 24-inch zoomed. (Mobileread only gets +40% fit-to-width because it's a weirdly hardwired site that doesn't even let my turn off the scrollbar; most sites +100% minimum, so useful content expands to full portrait width. The books I read onscreen I do +300% or +400%.) Since portability isn't much an issue for me, I could use a large reader, say 9×16" clipboard sized.

[Ankh]

Originally Posted by tompe

Readability studies show very litte if any difference in readability when comparing serif and san-serif fonts.

True, empirical studies show us that there should be no difference.

Yet, there is one. Serifed fonts were used, practically forever, almost exclusively for printed books. For most of us, there is a strong association between printed book and serifed fonts. The larger body of text simply does not "feel right" if it is set in sans-serif typeface. There is not a single (p)book on my bookshelf where predominant font is from any sans-serif family.

[Ankh]

duplicate post

[tompe]

Originally Posted by Ankh

True, empirical studies show us that there should be no difference.

Yet, there is one. Serifed fonts were used, practically forever, almost exclusively for printed books. For most of us, there is a strong association between printed book and serifed fonts. The larger body of text simply does not "feel right" if it is set in sans-serif typeface. There is not a single (p)book on my bookshelf where predominant font is from any sans-serif family.

Yes, but that it does not feel right does not necessarily influence readability. I think it is the case that people report that it is less readable but when you actually measure it there is not difference.

I got used to reading a san-serif font on my Cybook very fast.

[Ankh]

Originally Posted by tompe

Yes, but that it does not feel right does not necessarily influence readability. I think it is the case that people report that it is less readable but when you actually measure it there is not difference.

I am not complaining about the readability. I am, boldly, comparing e-ink to paper. It is almost there, Caecilia looks gorgeous on my 505.

A wee-bit better resolution will go a long way towards ebook reader acceptance. On first sight.

[ProDigit]

Originally Posted by David Munch

Man its ugly. But you can't beat that price!

Hopefully OIP will run on it from scratch..

I'd say it looks neat enough for me to buy it!
the only issue is that it already has an even smaller screensize than current ebook reader devices.
Also the resolution will be smaller.
Very unfortunate, but I'll stay with my $200 PRS-505!

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by ProDigit

I'd say it looks neat enough for me to buy it!
the only issue is that it already has an even smaller screensize than current ebook reader devices.
Also the resolution will be smaller.
Very unfortunate, but I'll stay with my $200 PRS-505!

No, it's not. The 5" screen has a resolution of 600 by 800.