Digital Book Readers: e-readers guide and review

98% of active e-reader users noted that these devices allow them to read more books, at a faster speed, and sometimes can provide a richer and more educational read than traditional print books. According to dbReaders.com survey, e-book readers can save 40-50% of reading time and can also overcome dyslexia problems.

 

For example, it can take 1-2 weeks to read a hardcover book, while reading a digital version usually takes 2-5 days. Around 50 pages per hour can be read in print book, whereas a person can go through 75 pages in the same time with an eReader.

 

dbReaders has initiated a small research project about the speed and quality of the reading process among visitors to Mobileread. Reading fans shared their opinions about eReaders and have defined the basic reasons that influenced these factors.

 

The majority of consumers are of the opinion that e-book readers allow a higher speed of reading.

 

A user named Ekster explains that this is due to e-Reader convenience: “I think that’s because it’s easier, for me at least. I take a fairly long commute to work every day (About 1.5 hours both ways). Reading a book before meant that I’m comfy, got some time, and have both hands free. With my Kobo, I can take it out at any time, even if for 5 minutes, without a hassle, only need one hand and I don’t get annoyed with page flipping, keeping the page, etc. I’m also able to just put it down and read while eating with both hands… and all those little things add up”.

 

Another reader agreed, stating that it was “much easier to skim pages in books where there are subplots in which I’m not interested, author goes off on tangents, gets a bit bogged down etc.” “On paper I probably read around 50 pages per hour, now around 75 if I’m really digging the book”, added Mcrow24.

 

An interesting idea was suggested by a user named David_e. He’s discovered that the actual type of device has a strong impact on the reading speed: “I find that I read much faster on my iPad than I did on my Sony 650. I can’t say if it’s the backlit screen, the pure white background, or perhaps a combo of both, but I can read non-stop for hours and hours. When using the eink display I could go for about an hour before needing a break. I just seemed to be unable to keep a constant and comfortable focus”.

 

The second group of users has differing opinion, finding that they don’t read faster, but they read more.

 

E-reading fan Soldim believes this is because, in his case, he tends to read a couple of books at any time, and switch back and forth between them. He says: “In pbook times, when I was tired with non-fiction and the fiction book would be somewhere in the bedroom (or lost) I’d move on to some other activity. Now that I have all books I am reading in the same device, switching is pushing two buttons and I can continue without having to get up. (I have to admit that, since I got my second eDevice I have stopped reading sometimes because the book I wanted was on the other device that was in the bedroom (neither has been lost  so far!)”.

 

Another user, Ryvyan, adds another simple reason: “Before, my bag would be too heavy to justify adding a book to its mess. Now, I just whip my Nook out whenever, wherever”.

 

According to Mobileread, visitors found that one of the best aspects of having an e-reader was that they could install a dictionary on the device to help them with certain words.

 

For example, DustyDisks has written: “Having the dictionary at close call, will slow one down, especially reading the older classics. The use of language has changed over the years (All languages) so with the dictionary too help clarify the word, and then rereading the passage with the new understanding, does tend to slow one down, but makes for a richer and more educational read”,

 

Reading fan Barkndog supports this idea: “This really caused a slowdown when I read “Red Mars”, which is written with a lot of geological terms (I’m not a geologist). I may not have finished it in paper form because I would have been lost, but the convenience of the dictionary allowed me to understand some of the settings being described. It would have been too much trouble putting the book down and flipping through a dictionary if using paper books. It’s helped my vocabulary, so it doesn’t bother me that it takes longer to read a book. It’s become a game for me, I will even look up words I kind of know, but cannot express, just to clarify the definition”.

 

A visitor named Exscentric has also found some interesting aspects of thephysical and psychological factors of e-reading. “I have never in my 71 years of life read for pleasure. Reading was on a must do basis for school and job, otherwise there was no reading,” he says. “I had noticed that I was reading tons of stuff on my computer with no noticeable problem. I was even enjoying it.

A few years ago I found a test online for dyslexia – took it and found out why I probably had been a poor reader all my life. I later found that colored background can help. Sure enough a light blue or tan makes reading a wonder to me. I also found the kindle is easy to read for some reason even though it is only gray.

I read faster and a lot more than ever before with the electronics. I used to labor with each sentence and stumble along like a grade schooler (Well many high schoolers regrettably). I’ve only the last year or two found out what I had been missing so very long. I now know why so many people like to read ”.