5 ms·

I can't understand how anyone would prefer reading a backlit screen. I find e-ink so much easier on the eyes, especially after a day of staring at screens.

I can't understand how anyone would prefer reading a backlit screen. I find e-ink so much easier on the eyes, especially after a day of staring at screens. I hope e-ink doesn't die out.

jakeonthemove 14y ago
Yeah, obviously an e-ink display is easier on the eyes, but having a separate grayscale e-reader is a waste of space and resources. A color e-ink screen would be perfect - I'd say we'll see tablets using them in a couple of years...
randlet 14y ago
I love the e-ink on the Kindle with the only downside being that reading in the dark requires a lamp. Battery life is another huge plus in favour of e-ink.
- bergie 14y ago
  Sometimes I also find it a bonus that you really can't do anything else on the device than read. Focus on the text with zero distractions...
  - jgroome 14y ago
    Absolutely. When I first got mine my friend was shocked that I could be so enthusiastic about a device that doesn't have social apps and integration or notifications. Like what you'd want when you're concentrating on a book is constant reminders of what's happening on Facebook.
- ZeroGravitas 14y ago
  I bought a Galaxy Note since my main reading time is either spent in the dark or grabbed in small gaps of time when I'm on the move. And since it's AMOLED it's not technically back-light and gray on black text works very well for me.
- bookwormAT 14y ago
  I was to cheap for that when I bought my kindle, but try a search on Amazon for "lighted kindle covers" http://amzn.to/Rn9obC http://amzn.to/Rn9obC
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]
demallien 14y ago
At night in bed I read on my iPhone using iBooks. I use the 'night' theme which has a black background and light text. I then turn the brightness down to the minimum. Zero eye-strain, you can read in the dark, without disturbing your partner.
scdc 14y ago
Backlit is great for reading in bed at night. But I prefer the e-ink for all other times. I'm looking forward to getting an e-ink reader with the glow backlight like the new Nook.
- dpark 14y ago
  I just got one. It's quite nice for reading at night or in the evening. It's not actually a backlight, though. It's front-lit by LEDs under the bezel and a diffraction grating that spreads the light.
- klawed 14y ago
  If only there was a soft and comfortable harness that I could drape over my knees upon which to prop my iPad, I'd be very happy with the 9.5 in tablet. I've got a design in my head but no spare cycles at the moment...I'll keep looking on Etsy since I'm sure I'm not the first person with this idea.
ConstantineXVI 14y ago
E-ink readers will likely stick around the same way MP3 players have; at least until e-ink improves (or we get a new e-ink like display tech) that's more competitive with general-purpose LCD/AMOLED. It's likely we'll eventually see something that resembles e-ink replace LCD, just not for a while.
latch 14y ago
And it's more than just the backlight...the battery on my Kindle lasts forever and the form factor, weight included, is much better. I tried to find a post where he mentions how much he reads. I can imagine someone who reads a bit - say 30 minutes every couple days, not really caring. But if you read for hours at a time...I just can't believe that you'd prefer a tablet.
- ericsink 14y ago
  I've read over 80 novels on my iPad. Love it. I haven't tried a Kindle. I don't doubt that it's a better device for just book reading. But my iPad suits me well.
  - GFischer 14y ago
    I've read over 150 books on my Kindle. Before that, I've tried a lot of other devices - CRTs, LCD, LED screens, Android and Symbian cell phones, I even read quite a few books on a secondhand Palm III. The Kindle is light-years better. I used to get my eyes tired from reading on CRTs and LCDs, I did manage to read a lot of books on them but that's because I was too poor to afford them (shipping to Uruguay is incredibly expensive). As other posters said, e-ink is truly better for reading, and the almost eternal battery and form factor and light weight do make for a much better reading experience. While the iPad is very nice, and has a lot of advantages, I think that if you're a book lover, you'd get a lot of mileage out of a Kindle or equivalent e-ink reader. (especially if you've read 80 books on your iPad already!)
  - sliverstorm 14y ago
    But, how much do you read in one sitting? I tend to read half a book to a book in a sitting, which I can't imagine doing with an LCD.
  - bryanlarsen 14y ago
    I'm willing to bet you already have a better device for reading novels. My favourite device for reading novels is my phone. It's really comfortable to hold, its small size completely eliminates eye-scanning, and the small size means that on appropriate settings it doesn't emit enough light to cause eye strain or keep me awake, yet emits enough that you can read in the dark. The other nice thing about the phone is that it's always on me, I don't have to remember to throw it in my bag. There are certainly situations where I prefer my epaper device. In sunlight, for example, or when the battery on my phone is dead or dying. The iPad is great for reading non-fiction (aka PDFs with diagrams), but it's a horrible device for reading novels.
lukejduncan 14y ago
Agreed. Kindle + smartphone/tablet is perfect for comfortable reading plus drill-down asides on a new found topic.
ThomPete 14y ago
I read both on the Kindle and the iPad. The Kindle is great for the day time and the iPad is great for night time. It's really that simple.
- hnalien 14y ago
  That is basically it. I basically limit most of my heavy ready during the daylight and the iPad is great for finishing up a couple of chapters before bedtime...
adamc 14y ago
Some people get motion sickness from the e-ink page transitions -- my daughter has this problem. (I do too, a little, but it's less of a problem for me.) Whereas, reading books on the Kindle Fire doesn't bother her.

I can't understand how anyone would prefer reading a backlit screen. I find e-ink so much easier on the eyes, especially after a day of staring at screens. I hope e-ink doesn't die out.

jakeonthemove 14y ago

Yeah, obviously an e-ink display is easier on the eyes, but having a separate grayscale e-reader is a waste of space and resources. A color e-ink screen would be perfect - I'd say we'll see tablets using them in a couple of years...

randlet 14y ago

I love the e-ink on the Kindle with the only downside being that reading in the dark requires a lamp. Battery life is another huge plus in favour of e-ink.

bergie 14y ago
Sometimes I also find it a bonus that you really can't do anything else on the device than read. Focus on the text with zero distractions...
- jgroome 14y ago
  Absolutely. When I first got mine my friend was shocked that I could be so enthusiastic about a device that doesn't have social apps and integration or notifications. Like what you'd want when you're concentrating on a book is constant reminders of what's happening on Facebook.
ZeroGravitas 14y ago
I bought a Galaxy Note since my main reading time is either spent in the dark or grabbed in small gaps of time when I'm on the move. And since it's AMOLED it's not technically back-light and gray on black text works very well for me.
bookwormAT 14y ago
I was to cheap for that when I bought my kindle, but try a search on Amazon for "lighted kindle covers" http://amzn.to/Rn9obC http://amzn.to/Rn9obC

deleted 14y ago

[deleted]

demallien 14y ago

At night in bed I read on my iPhone using iBooks. I use the 'night' theme which has a black background and light text. I then turn the brightness down to the minimum. Zero eye-strain, you can read in the dark, without disturbing your partner.

scdc 14y ago

Backlit is great for reading in bed at night. But I prefer the e-ink for all other times. I'm looking forward to getting an e-ink reader with the glow backlight like the new Nook.

dpark 14y ago
I just got one. It's quite nice for reading at night or in the evening. It's not actually a backlight, though. It's front-lit by LEDs under the bezel and a diffraction grating that spreads the light.
klawed 14y ago
If only there was a soft and comfortable harness that I could drape over my knees upon which to prop my iPad, I'd be very happy with the 9.5 in tablet. I've got a design in my head but no spare cycles at the moment...I'll keep looking on Etsy since I'm sure I'm not the first person with this idea.

ConstantineXVI 14y ago

E-ink readers will likely stick around the same way MP3 players have; at least until e-ink improves (or we get a new e-ink like display tech) that's more competitive with general-purpose LCD/AMOLED. It's likely we'll eventually see something that resembles e-ink replace LCD, just not for a while.

latch 14y ago

And it's more than just the backlight...the battery on my Kindle lasts forever and the form factor, weight included, is much better. I tried to find a post where he mentions how much he reads. I can imagine someone who reads a bit - say 30 minutes every couple days, not really caring. But if you read for hours at a time...I just can't believe that you'd prefer a tablet.

ericsink 14y ago
I've read over 80 novels on my iPad. Love it. I haven't tried a Kindle. I don't doubt that it's a better device for just book reading. But my iPad suits me well.
- GFischer 14y ago
  I've read over 150 books on my Kindle. Before that, I've tried a lot of other devices - CRTs, LCD, LED screens, Android and Symbian cell phones, I even read quite a few books on a secondhand Palm III. The Kindle is light-years better. I used to get my eyes tired from reading on CRTs and LCDs, I did manage to read a lot of books on them but that's because I was too poor to afford them (shipping to Uruguay is incredibly expensive). As other posters said, e-ink is truly better for reading, and the almost eternal battery and form factor and light weight do make for a much better reading experience. While the iPad is very nice, and has a lot of advantages, I think that if you're a book lover, you'd get a lot of mileage out of a Kindle or equivalent e-ink reader. (especially if you've read 80 books on your iPad already!)
- sliverstorm 14y ago
  But, how much do you read in one sitting? I tend to read half a book to a book in a sitting, which I can't imagine doing with an LCD.
- bryanlarsen 14y ago
  I'm willing to bet you already have a better device for reading novels. My favourite device for reading novels is my phone. It's really comfortable to hold, its small size completely eliminates eye-scanning, and the small size means that on appropriate settings it doesn't emit enough light to cause eye strain or keep me awake, yet emits enough that you can read in the dark. The other nice thing about the phone is that it's always on me, I don't have to remember to throw it in my bag. There are certainly situations where I prefer my epaper device. In sunlight, for example, or when the battery on my phone is dead or dying. The iPad is great for reading non-fiction (aka PDFs with diagrams), but it's a horrible device for reading novels.

lukejduncan 14y ago

Agreed. Kindle + smartphone/tablet is perfect for comfortable reading plus drill-down asides on a new found topic.

ThomPete 14y ago

I read both on the Kindle and the iPad. The Kindle is great for the day time and the iPad is great for night time. It's really that simple.

hnalien 14y ago
That is basically it. I basically limit most of my heavy ready during the daylight and the iPad is great for finishing up a couple of chapters before bedtime...

adamc 14y ago

Some people get motion sickness from the e-ink page transitions -- my daughter has this problem. (I do too, a little, but it's less of a problem for me.) Whereas, reading books on the Kindle Fire doesn't bother her.