Poll: Touchscreen or Buttons (E-ink)

[ApK]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

How many people here who voted hands-off have actually seen an x50 Sony in use and seen how fingerprints effect the screen?

Ooh! Ooh! Me! Me!

And while I was tempted to vote "keep your hands off" I did in fact vote touch plus page buttons.
The Sony style touch is darn good for games and such, and would be great with the browser on the Kindle.
I'd prefer keeping hands off for most reading and book navigating though.
(edit: And I can't stand stand virtual keyboards, touch or otherwise. The Kindle keyboard isn't great, but it's better than any virtual one I've tried.)

One note, as has been mentioned, just 'page turn buttons' is not enough. I find the PRS350 page turn buttons to be rather ill-conceived.
I want big page turn buttons on either side, where I hold the reader, like on Kindle or nook.

[DiapDealer]

I want big page turn buttons on either side, where I hold the reader, like on Kindle or nook.

[Aladyleyna]

I prefer touch screens. It's more interactive, like you're really interacting with the stuff you're reading, and as a result, I find it more fun. Fingerprints aren't an issue for me because normally after a reading session, I would just swipe the screen with a cloth. It doesn't really get rid of the stains, true, but I'm not really that fussy to be bothered by it.

And yes, I agree, some ereaders do not require a swipe; just a tap would do to turn a page, and I find it easier to highlight stuff and do research on a touchscreen, as opposed to scrolling buttons.

But I do prefer e-ink readers. Less glare in sunlight, which gets annoying on an LCD screen. I saw a woman using an e-ink reader on a train today and I spazzed with envy.

But it's not like I have a choice anyway. The iPad is pretty much the only e-reader I can use anyway.

[RainingLemur]

If it's e-ink....no touchy-touchy.

[Sydney's Mom]

Cannot stand fingerprints! Digital displays have it all over regular books because they are pristene!

[astra]

Originally Posted by CWatkinsNash

My reasoning for not wanting a touch screen isn't about fingerprints, per se, it's broader than that. I am fastidious when it comes to keeping my Kindle clean. I cannot stand to have a single speck or (nearly microscopic) hair on the screen. I have a special brush (a super-soft child's toothbrush, actually) for getting little bits of dust and stuff from the corners and around the keys. I have a bottle of non-alcohol screen cleaner, a special applicator and a microfiber cloth. Putting my fingers on the screen on purpose seems so wrong to me.

Yes, I realize that most people don't share my obsession with keeping my ereader clean, but that is my reason for not wanting a touch screen.

Well it explains a lot
To each its own.

[carpetmojo]

I reckon, reading the posts, that if you've already got a kindle
(stuck with one ? ) - you aren't going to say you want a touchscreen, & if you've a Sony. Nook, Kobo etc... ( yes, you deserve one ) you aint going to say you would rather have a keyboard !

And incidentally, I've never yet actually spotted a finger blodge on my screen, which means I'm either a mucky slut, or I'm doing something right.




( Course, it is possible I might just have eyesight as of Superman, and just see through the deposited murk and muck )

[carpetmojo]

Ummm - that title should say "Your course, your horse" as the more keen-eyed readers of truisms amongst you probably guessed.........................

[Poppaea]

Touch for me all the way. I wanted to physically turn pages with my first button only reader and tapped and swiped the screen all the time. This is why I bought the Sony. It is reading bliss. No fingerprints, you can choose in which direction you wanna swipe and it is ultra responsive. Double tap opens your preferred dictionary... I read one handed all the time, even though not all my books are of the one-handed kind

Never ever would I go back to any button operated reader. If there were no IR-touchscreens any more, I'd rather go back to pbooks.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by OtterBooks

I find that assertion rather curious, since e-ink screens don't have an "off" or "on." iirc.

When I put my 650 into sleep mode or turn it off, the screen shows no content. That to me is (the screen) off. When the screen shows content, that to me is on.

[Sweetpea]

Originally Posted by ApK

One note, as has been mentioned, just 'page turn buttons' is not enough. I find the PRS350 page turn buttons to be rather ill-conceived.
I want big page turn buttons on either side, where I hold the reader, like on Kindle or nook.

Yes, the one advantage of the K3 over the Sony...

Originally Posted by carpetmojo

I reckon, reading the posts, that if you've already got a kindle
(stuck with one ? ) - you aren't going to say you want a touchscreen, & if you've a Sony. Nook, Kobo etc... ( yes, you deserve one ) you aint going to say you would rather have a keyboard !

Actually, no. When the K3 came out, I thought it looked better than the other Kindles, (which I still find ugly beyond believe). But that keyboard put me off. If the Sony hadn't had any paging buttons, I would not have bought it. If the Kindle had had a touchscreen, I might have ignored the keyboard and gotten me a Kindle (now the Kindle is my husband's). And my Mini doesn't have a touchscreen either. I mostly got that because I really liked how it looked and wanted an e-ink reader. And the only touch-enabled at that time was the Sony, which had those glare issues (at least, that's what I read, never seen a Sony 600 before).

[Giggleton]

Touchscreens are the future of course, but I would consider sending an email to
kindle-feedback@amazon.com and asking them to just make the sides of the Kindle touchy and leave the screen free of fingerprints. I thought the ipad had an oil resistant coating on it though??

[OtterBooks]

Originally Posted by carpetmojo

I reckon, reading the posts, that if you've already got a kindle
(stuck with one ? ) - you aren't going to say you want a touchscreen, & if you've a Sony. Nook, Kobo etc... ( yes, you deserve one ) you aint going to say you would rather have a keyboard !

I've seen some Kindle owners around here stating that they hope the next gen has touchscreen to some degree. The issue does not seem too divided by brand loyalty.

[anamardoll]

I'm torn.

On the one hand, I do see the value of a well-executed touch screen. Touch is almost essential for making highlights and looking up words quickly.

On the other hand, there are times that I want my touch screen OFF. If I'm just reading a pleasure book, the touch screen has no use for me (physical page turn buttons FTW) and it's potentially detrimental if my finger slips. (My husband is ALWAYS accidentally turning the pages on his Nook Color because he has huge thumbs and the flesh of his thumb hangs over the edge of the device and onto the screen. It's very frustrating for him.) And I can't count how many times my cats have walked on my eReader screen.

So, really, I like the "touch is ok, but physical buttons please" option, but it would make a BIG difference for me if there was, say, a physical switch that turned the touch interface on and off. That would be awesome. If someone came out with that, I would so be there.

[Piper_]

Originally Posted by ApK

Ooh! Ooh! Me! Me!

And while I was tempted to vote "keep your hands off" I did in fact vote touch plus page buttons.
The Sony style touch is darn good for games and such, and would be great with the browser on the Kindle.
I'd prefer keeping hands off for most reading and book navigating though.
(edit: And I can't stand stand virtual keyboards, touch or otherwise. The Kindle keyboard isn't great, but it's better than any virtual one I've tried.)

One note, as has been mentioned, just 'page turn buttons' is not enough. I find the PRS350 page turn buttons to be rather ill-conceived.

I want big page turn buttons on either side, where I hold the reader, like on Kindle or nook.

Ditto. Especially to the bolded points.

There are times -- like when using the browser, or want to select something lower on a list -- when I wish my Kindle had touch.

But when I'm using my Sony 350, I desperately miss my Kindle's page-turn buttons (a slight pressure on a spot where I'm already touching is less disruptive a lift-reach-swipe action, and i don't like the placement or feel of the Sony's buttons).

I somewhat miss the other Kindle buttons, and the keyboard is easier to type on.

Originally Posted by anamardoll

[...]Touch is almost essential for making highlights and looking up words quickly.

Actually, I expected that to be the case before I bought the Sony -- that selecting/highlighting would be more efficient than it is on the Kindle -- but it turned out to be the opposite.

At least on the 350, selecting a starting/lookup word with the touch is hit and miss (less so, if you take the time to get out and return the stylus, but...meh.), and it takes both hands.

With the Kindle, I can get to the word by D-padding up from the bottom or down from the top in about the same time, without repositioning my hand, and without miscues.

Highlighting more than one line on the Sony is so frustrating, I actually *threw it one time, after about the 10th failed attempt.

(*very gently, onto my fluffy down comforter. )

Originally Posted by anamardoll

On the other hand, there are times that I want my touch screen OFF. If I'm just reading a pleasure book, the touch screen has no use for me (physical page turn buttons FTW) and it's potentially detrimental if my finger slips.
[...]

So, really, I like the "touch is ok, but physical buttons please" option, but it would make a BIG difference for me if there was, say, a physical switch that turned the touch interface on and off. That would be awesome. If someone came out with that, I would so be there.

Completely agree.

Another consideration is that Amazon is really wanting to make the Kindle accessible for people with disabilities, and the keyboard might make that easier.

Who knows, they might come out with a K4 Touch and a K4 Button versions, the latter being more accessible and cheaper.