I’ve never used one but it struck me as odd that people would use a seperate device for smth so easily done on your phone.
Is there smth special about the hardware? Is it better somehow?
Wow, this post is 5 months ago.
The whole point of kindle and other ebook readers are its screen. All smartphone/tablets shines bright backlit light to your eye and casuing eye strain (most people do it so long that they don’t tend to notice it anymore). First generation e-link screens doesn’t have light, and it tends to be more paperlike than your screen. Also unlike your smart phone/tablets, it is distraction free. The hardware specs are low and you can’t switch to chatting, surfing the web, turn on music or watch a video. Books and only books. Also, with phones, I always need to watch the battery and ebook readers can last months if not weeks on one charge (depends on how much you use it).
Newer readers (like for the last decade), all have frontlit screens, which is unlike the backlit smart devices. Light shines from the top to the bottom, through layers of screen and reflected back at the bottom, thus diminishing its effect and lessen eye strain. Ebook readers strives to achieve the quality of reading on paper with the ease of taking it everywhere (try log around a doorstopper around for few days.
That’s a cool explanation, thanks!
In essence, ebook reader try to keep reading as close to paper as possible, to avoid/lessen eye strain (front the early lightless ebook readers to newer lighted readers), with the benefit of taking it everywhere (have you tried carrying some doorstoppers around?). Though media tends to portray ebook vs paper as neither / or, while in reality you’ll see many people perfer both. I myselft purchases physical books because I love the smell of paper books, and I devour books on my kindle (I have 3, from kindle keyboard (no light), paperwhite (first gen with light) and voyage).
The main thing is that it has an e-ink screen, which doesn’t hurt your eyes and doesn’t trick your brain into staying awake.
Also, I don’t have a tablet, and my phone is too small to read comfortably on.
At the risk of making it sound like a cult, I didn’t understand either until I got one (although in my case, I didn’t understand why people would want one instead of an actual book, not instead of a phone).
Honestly it’s really handy. Super lightweight so I don’t get a wrist pain from holding it up at an awkward angle. Battery lasts for months so I can just pick it up and throw it in a bag for a holiday and never think about it. All of my books neatly organised. No notifications interrupting like you would end up with on a phone. Much bigger screen than a phone despite being much lighter, so more text on one page. All of that on top of the reduced eye strain, it’s a no-brainer for me.
I have one of the backlit, touchscreen ones these days and the light is useful I keep it on warm light and the dimmest possible for use at night. But I have to admit the older version with the side buttons was better than the touchscreen, I often find myself accidentally skipping pages with the newer one.
so I can just pick it up and throw it in a bag for a holiday and never think about it.
I understand some other arguments, but I never understood this as a ‘pro e-reader’ argument. Unless you’re going on a “no-electricity available for days” kind of vacation, how is this even a factor?
I charge my phone every night while I’m sleeping, and I have my phone with me everywhere I go. So I NEVER have to think about whether I need to throw an e-reader into my bag or decide whether to grab it on my way out the door. Wherever I am, if I have time to read, my phone is already right there, so I just read it on my phone.
And as long as I’m not playing 3D video games on my phone, the battery easily lasts all day, even with the screen on while reading, so that’s never been a factor for me.
