4 ms·

I resisted ebook readers since the day they came out, out of an irrational sense of betraying "real" books which I love. I recently got one (Kobo Libra 2) and m

I resisted ebook readers since the day they came out, out of an irrational sense of betraying "real" books which I love. I recently got one (Kobo Libra 2) and mannn these eink displays are SO nice to look at compared to my LED display. Literally night and day.

NeuNeurosis 4y ago
Thanks for sharing. Do you have one of those that you shared? If you do what is your experience like?
marssaxman 4y ago
I had a similar experience. I love real books and hate locked-down corporate ecosystems. But... at my sweetie's suggestion, I bought a Kobo Libra for a trip where I had no space for books, and I have to admit that it is nice. It weighs nothing, pages turn effortlessly, it remembers my place, the battery lasts forever, and the screen is really sharp. You can resize the text, and the device just magically reworks the layout, as if it came from the press that way. Beyond that, it syncs with my library account - I don't even use the Kobo store! I've actually been using it to read with my ten-year-old. We take turns, alternating chapters. "Snuggling up on the couch with a child and an e-reader" does not have the same romantic ring, but the stories are just as engaging and I think the e-reader with its push-button page-flip is actually better for smaller, less-dextrous hands.
- pjerem 4y ago
  > the battery lasts forever That is true. I recharge my E-ink reader multiple times … per year.
boltzmann-brain 4y ago
as someone who's spent ages reading books before ebooks were a thing and before LCD technology became popular, I'm quite the opposite - I can't be happy enough about LCD technolgy being around, especially if compared to an old yellowed book that's been printed off the same plates for 20 years and which you're reading in an only moderately well lit room. although LED technology again helps here because all that books-before-LCD experience comes from the days of incandescent light bulbs and nascent "energy saving" fluorescent compacts with edison screw.
chrisweekly 4y ago
Yeah. I've been an avid / voracious reader for over 40 years, and will always love "real" books, but I've developed a strong preference for reading on my Kindle Oasis, for several reasons: - portability - dictionary & wikipedia lookup - highlights -> readwise* - continuity (phone, kindle, audiobook via WhisperSync), I can listen while driving, continue reading when home - preview the next book in a series and/or buy it on the spot and keep reading * Readwise in turn syncs to my Obsidian vault where I can do useful things with them like progressive summarization... In contrast, paper books are heavy and fragile, and I've always resisted annotating / highlighting physicap books bc its permament and feels like defacement / vandalism. TLDR, I love my personal library, my house is full of bookshelves, but my reading preferences have evolved, and I get absurdly high value from my Oasis.
- yamtaddle 4y ago
  I think the reading UI per se of paper books is still better overall, but god damn, the space-savings advantage of ereaders is hard to ignore.

NeuNeurosis 4y ago

Thanks for sharing. Do you have one of those that you shared? If you do what is your experience like?

marssaxman 4y ago

I had a similar experience. I love real books and hate locked-down corporate ecosystems. But... at my sweetie's suggestion, I bought a Kobo Libra for a trip where I had no space for books, and I have to admit that it is nice. It weighs nothing, pages turn effortlessly, it remembers my place, the battery lasts forever, and the screen is really sharp. You can resize the text, and the device just magically reworks the layout, as if it came from the press that way. Beyond that, it syncs with my library account - I don't even use the Kobo store! I've actually been using it to read with my ten-year-old. We take turns, alternating chapters. "Snuggling up on the couch with a child and an e-reader" does not have the same romantic ring, but the stories are just as engaging and I think the e-reader with its push-button page-flip is actually better for smaller, less-dextrous hands.

pjerem 4y ago
> the battery lasts forever That is true. I recharge my E-ink reader multiple times … per year.

boltzmann-brain 4y ago

as someone who's spent ages reading books before ebooks were a thing and before LCD technology became popular, I'm quite the opposite - I can't be happy enough about LCD technolgy being around, especially if compared to an old yellowed book that's been printed off the same plates for 20 years and which you're reading in an only moderately well lit room. although LED technology again helps here because all that books-before-LCD experience comes from the days of incandescent light bulbs and nascent "energy saving" fluorescent compacts with edison screw.

chrisweekly 4y ago

Yeah. I've been an avid / voracious reader for over 40 years, and will always love "real" books, but I've developed a strong preference for reading on my Kindle Oasis, for several reasons: - portability - dictionary & wikipedia lookup - highlights -> readwise* - continuity (phone, kindle, audiobook via WhisperSync), I can listen while driving, continue reading when home - preview the next book in a series and/or buy it on the spot and keep reading * Readwise in turn syncs to my Obsidian vault where I can do useful things with them like progressive summarization... In contrast, paper books are heavy and fragile, and I've always resisted annotating / highlighting physicap books bc its permament and feels like defacement / vandalism. TLDR, I love my personal library, my house is full of bookshelves, but my reading preferences have evolved, and I get absurdly high value from my Oasis.

yamtaddle 4y ago
I think the reading UI per se of paper books is still better overall, but god damn, the space-savings advantage of ereaders is hard to ignore.