The display of the iPhone 4 is even better than that of the new iPod touch. My wife far prefers real books and E-ink over back-lit screens, though she does prefer the higher resolution Retina Display to older, lower resolution displays. Since I mostly read in dim areas, the iPod touch works best for me. I’m in this last category, preferring e-ink in well lit areas, and the back-lit iPod in dim areas. Subjectively, some people prefer e-ink, others high quality LCD screens, and for others it depends on lighting conditions. e-ink: The eye strain debate, including comments). With current display technologies, this is hotly debated (i.e. Many E-ink proponents believe that the human eye is designed to read reflected light, and that E-ink technology holds the promise of causing less eye fatigue. But in most other situations it’s been as easy on my eyes as reading a paperback novel. In brightly lit or sunny areas the iPod backlit screen is harder to read, and sometimes the collection of fingerprints and smudges gets distracting enough that I need to stop and wipe. I’ve found that the 326 PPI display of the iPod touch 4G is usually just as easy on my eyes. Fingerprints and smudges are not noticeable. Though less than 300 PPI, it seems to be similar in quality to reading a newspaper (see here for microscopic comparisons). The first truly easy-on-the-eyes display I’ve used is the 167 PPI E-ink Kindle display, when used in well lit areas. But none of these have been as easy on my eyes as the paperback novel. Older generations of the iPod touch (163 PPI) are a little better, likely due to the higher pixel density. LCD displays are better, but typical 80-140 PPI LCD displays cause eye fatigue if I’m reading text for hours, and mild headaches if I spend more than 10 hours on a given day. The CRT displays in the 1990s were so tiring that I had to print out anything more than a couple pages long to avoid bleary eyes and headaches. My eyes are more sensitive than average to fatigue from computer displays, so subtle differences between display types have a big impact. So all else being equal (including the distance from your eyes), higher PPI will be easier on your eyes, until you pass around 300 PPI. Why does this matter so much? It has been observed that the unaided human eye can generally not differentiate detail beyond 300 PPI (see here). The 6″ Kindle display area has 600 x 800 pixels, or 167 PPI. iPod touch 4G and Kindle DisplaysĪ big advantage of the iPod touch 4G over prior models and competing devices is its 3.5 inch Retina Display, which is 640 x 960 pixels, or 326 pixels per inch (PPI). Part of why this post is so long is because the iPod has so much software available for it-but that is a large part of what makes the iPod touch 4G so great for reading. I also describe the experience of reading a variety of different materials, including novels, collections of short stories, mixed text/graphics, PDFs, web content, and Google Reader.Īs with my Kindle-only post, this is part evaluation and part reference guide, organized by sections so that you can read what is relevant for your and skip the rest. Read on for details, including many tips along the way for using an iPod for reading.įor both the iPod touch 4G and the Kindle, I describe below various aspects of the hardware. It works so well for me that I stopped using my Kindle and sold it. The iPod touch 4G works well for reading. Reading with the “Retina Display” is easy on my eyes and the software makes reading a breeze for a surprisingly wide range of reading material. An iPod touch and a KindleĮnter the iPod touch, 4th generation (or iPhone 4), with double the screen resolution of prior models. I devoted considerable effort to making my Kindle overcome these shortcomings, but in the end decided to try a more flexible device lacking an E-ink display. But the software has many shortcomings for reading other material such as PDFs or long articles on the web. The e-ink screen is easy on my eyes and Kindles are great for reading novels. I tried reading anything on a second generation Kindle. simple and free to get reading material onto the device.as portable and convenient as a paperback book. So I’m on a mission to find a device on which I can read anything. Do you spend hours reading computer displays each day? Does this tire your eyes? Me too.
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