Older adults read faster on a backlit tablet

[slex]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

It's an interesting study, but I think its biggest weakness is that it was limited to passages of about 200 words. Meaning that even if the study is otherwise flawless, it may not be applicable for 200 pages.

I agree.

[drofgnal]

I can see how this may be possible. I know from my own 56 year old eyes. My near field vision during reading is better when in better light. I can reach a point where I need reading glasses with poor light, but with adequate light I don't need them.

[paulak39]

My favorite reading device now is the iPad, but I have to keep the brightness down at least two-thirds. It's set up in my lap so I don't have to hold it, which helps also. I definitely think it helps me read a bit faster. I'm 73.

[icallaci]

Many older adults are developing cataracts, even if they don't yet notice them, so it makes sense that a device with more contrast makes it easier for them to see the text. I didn't read the entire study, but a simple eye exam could explain the results (and probably for a lot less money than the original study).

[cfrizz]

Yes I think a lot depends on good eyesight. Mine has ALWAYS been bad (been wearing glasses since I was 2 yrs old). As I've gotten older, the worse my eyes have gotten (now 52). I always have needed lots of light to be able to see clearly whether by lamps or by backlit screens the more the better.

The only time I will have eyestrain is if I'm trying to read in too little light, not the other way around.

You simply cannot shoe horn everyone into the same catagory because there are too many variables to count.

[ucfgrad93]

I'm fine with either one. But I enjoy reading books on my eink Kindle more than LCD. It is lighter, charge lasts longer, etc.

[Suzanna]

Originally Posted by Ripplinger

It's a choice on my Sony where you adjust contrast and brightness. Those adjustments make the text thicker and darker. I just assumed all readers would have some way of doing it, but no idea how on the Kindle or Kobo.

You can adjust the font on the Kobo Glo/Touch/Mini under advanced font options, where you can make the weight of a font heavier. You can also adjust the font's sharpness.

[UnderControl]

I'm not older and I still prefer reading on a kindle. go technology.

[graycyn]

Originally Posted by Apache

Maybe we read faster because we have had more practice.
Apache

It occurred to me today that I have had nearly 50 years of practice!

[graycyn]

Originally Posted by Ankh

Quoted to show that eInk was compared to:



Last time I've checked, all eInk displays were (way) bellow 288ppi.

E-ink isn't a backlit tablet though. It's the backlighting that makes low resolution impossible for me to read, the letters break into individual pixels and seem fuzzy to my eyes. I start to see yellow halos around words.

That said, the one thing I'd like most for a new Sony reader is a higher resolution screen. I absolutely do see the difference between my 350 vs. the 950 or T-1.

[Namekuseijin]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

This study seems already dated, as the move among manufacturers of devices that use eInk screens seems to be toward front-lit screens, which apparently weren't considered in the study.

so you're saying that all that preaching about reading e-ink under the sun was all balloney and that the way to go is reading at night on bed with a lit device?

how times change...

[WT Sharpe]

Front-lit eInk devices have an advantage over non-front-lit eInk readers in that they don't need external light sources. That's all I'm saying. You can read an front-lit eInk reader under every lighting condition from full sunlight or complete darkness. Try doing that with a tablet. Any tablet.

When the weather's right and the sun is shining, the gazebo is still my favorite place to read. But my iPad remains housebound because its screen doesn't look so good outside in the sunlight.

[crich70]

I have to wonder about the bias factor when someone does a study. Are they impartial about things or do they support one of the items more than the other? For example in this one it seems to be Ipad vs. Kindle.

[derangedhermit]

The dominant cause of difficulty in reading as one ages is loss of accommodation, the eye's ability to focus on nearby objects. Adding light is the traditional way to extend the time before reading glasses are needed, since enough light makes the pupil contract, which makes the field of focus deeper. I didn't RTA, so I don't know if they tested in direct sunlight, where I imagine there should be little difference in that regard, since the pupil will already be stopped down.

Someone said there was a "contrast" control that made the fonts thicker and darker. I believe the first, but not the second. I don't think the darkness of the e-ink globule things can be adjusted; I think the contrast, given a set lighting condition, is fixed.

I think two failures of current e-paper screens are much too low contrast, and too low in resolution. A magnified view (like at wikipedia) shows the sizes of the globes vary a lot. I suspect if they make the screens with only very small globes, contrast suffers. I'm not sure they will ever be able to do much better than today. Add in color, and things just get much worse.

My next reader will not be based on e-paper technology (I think "e-ink" is a trade name).

[tdmsu]

I am nearing the "older" category, and I've found that I read much faster on any ereader than I did with paper. Maybe it's just the accumulation of faster page flips... That would not apply to the 200 word study, however.
I prefer reading on my iPad, but I got hooked on ebooks using my wife's kindle2. The screen does not bother my eyes at all.