Hacker News Reader

Comment by Turing_Machine | Hacker News Reader

"Anybody who thinks that a 300–400 dpi 4–5 inch smartphone isn’t a first class reading device hasn’t laid their hands on one."

I have an iPhone with Retina display.

I still read on my eInk Kindle.

View on HN

Same here. High-resolution tablets are great for reading comics and web pages (and for reading code in Vim!), but for real long-form reading, e-ink is unbeatable.

I have a Kindle Paperwhite 3G for this purpose that always travels with me. I even get my Instapaper articles on it: http://david-smith.org/blog/2012/10/11/instapaper-on-the-kin...

I've got a Kobo e-ink device, an iPad 1, a Nexus 7, a Nexus 4, and a Nexus Galaxy.

The best device for reading novels IMO is the Nexus Galaxy. Most of my reading is done in bed, lying down, and for that the OLED screen and one-handedness of the small device wins by far. OLED is a lot better than LCD in the dark because there's no backlight glow.

In bright light the eInk is obviously a better screen, but I still believe that a 4.5" screen is a better size for reading novels than a 6" one.

All the Androids I've bought have been OLED for exactly this reason.

One advantage of a dedicated e-ink device is the lack of distraction. I go to bed with my iPad and end up checking email, browsing the web, playing a game. I go to bed with my kindle, and I actually get some reading done. The Paperwhite also works great in the dark.

Yeah, that line made no sense. If my smartphone is a "first class reading device" and my 3rd gen Kindle is a better reading device, then what class is the Kindle in?

If your 3rd gen Kindle is a first class reading device then what class is a paperback/hardback book in?

I wouldn't call a book a 'device'

Delivery mechanism? Sure. Device? Eh.

Good point

I'm the opposite. I have two Kindles (eInk and Fire) and I always read on my smartphone. I mostly read in bed before sleeping so having a back-lit screen (black background, green text) allows me to read in the dark and not bother my wife. It is also very comfortable to hold in one hand and turn pages with the flick of my thumb. If I had time to read during the day I would definitely choose my eInk Kindle though.

I'm a longtime iPhone user/fan, but I'd have to say that it's actually the worst hi-res phone for long form reading. Its relatively narrow screen is great for one-handed usability, but not ideal for extended reading. And 4" is on the low end for what you'd want in a reader.

Not sure I would have called it "first class", but I've read several books on my iPhone and have no complaints. Unlike a tablet, I also have my iPhone with me pretty much constantly, so I can read while microwaving lunch or standing in line at the store.

I still enjoy reading on my Palm Z22. I'm probably an outlier though.

Yeah I bought and read tons of books on my Palm OS devices. I didn't bother downloading any of them from Peanut Press.

I got most of mine through Project Gutenberg.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com