Paper phone

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11 points·triviatise··5 comments

This looks very promising. However, the one concern I have is that e-ink does not work very fast; browsing the web on a Kindle or Nook leaves a lot to be desired. When you're flipping a page, you can literally watch the ink update. We're used to devices with 300+ DPI displays that scroll smoothly, play games better than specifically game-oriented devices, and have faster processors than high-end desktops of the 90s. I know I wouldn't like a phone with that slow of a screen, and I don't think most other people would tolerate it either. Because no matter how fast the hardware is, if it's not noticeable to an everyday user, it might as well not be there in the first place.

The problem with web browsing on the Kindle is that its processor is amazingly slow and rendering web pages takes a lot of CPU time. The screen update speed is orthogonal -- it's not amazingly fast, but considering how much latency 3G connections have, you're going to notice network latency long before you care about the screen.

In the end, I'll take an Internet-enabled phone with a black-and-white screen and a 1 month battery life over a retina-display phone with 2 hours of battery life.

The Kindle's processor is similar to the G1's, and the G1 doesn't have anywhere near the web browsing issues that the Kindle does.

Also, good luck finding a phone where the screen has more effect on the battery than 3G connections.

Also, good luck finding a phone where the screen has more effect on the battery than 3G connections.

All of them?

Try this: turn your phone's screen to max brightness and measure the battery life. Then do the same experiment with the screen off.

(Case study two: reading books on the Kindle vs. reading books on the iPad.)

More info: http://www.hml.queensu.ca/files/chi2011LaheyGestureFlexDispl...

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