There a few questions that get asked over and over again whenever a new ebook reader gets released.
Some questions make me cringe whenever I see them. If one ereader does something different then the same question will come up with every new model released after that.
All questions are valid but once you’ve seen the same questions asked fifty times it gets tiresome so here’s a list of answers to some common questions.
1. Can the backlight be turned off completely?
Answer: First off, ebook readers don’t have backlights, they have frontlights. And yes, the frontlight can be turned off on all current Kindles and every frontlit ebook reader ever released not called Kindle. The first few frontlit Kindles were the only models where the light was still faintly on at the lowest setting, the Paperwhite 3 being the last.
2. Does the frontlight use PWM?
Answer: Unless it’s the Kobo Forma, the answer is always no. The Forma is the only known ereader to ever use PWM for the frontlight, and even then it’s supposed to be at a frequency that isn’t a problem, but now the question comes up with every new model ever released. Some are complaining Onyx’s ereaders use PWM now, but I’ve seen no evidence of this so I don’t know what they’re talking about.
3. Does it have blue light?
Answer: Who knows. Frontlight colors vary from one to the next. The bottom line is there is zero evidence to show that ebook reader frontlights have any negative effect on sleeping patterns. Mostly the blue light hysteria has gotten out of hand with no real proof of anything, especially when it comes to dim frontlights.
4. Does it have good battery life?
Answer: Short answer, yes. Long answer, it’s complicated. Battery life greatly depends on how you’re using a reading device. As noted with the Kindle Oasis battery life test, it can get anywhere from 9 to 40 hours depending on how you use the device. With such a wide variance, how is this an answerable question? The answer can always be both yes and no.
5. Does it have a memory card slot?
Answer: No, most likely not. There are only a few E Ink ebook readers left with memory card slots, the current ones being Likebooks with half-finished, buggy software. Onyx’s newer Max3 and Note2 devices can use a memory card adapter if you don’t mind a dongle sticking out of the USB port, but otherwise expandable storage has been phased out of most models.
I bought a Kindle Fire ereader/tablet and it has a port for a micro sd card. I got my Fire in the last four months, and I use it like a regular tablet which may be why it has the port. My Fire has 32 gig onboard memory and the sd card has 128 gig.
Generally speaking, an ebook reader is a device with an E Ink screen, not LCD.
Why does this site not have a search function?
And what is PWM?
In short it makes the light flicker but at a frequency you can’t see. See Wikipedia for more info. There’s a search box in the upper right corner of every page. It might not appear if you’re using an ad blocker.
The tone of this is quite snarky.
The light questions are reasonable and necessary considering eReaders have long been sold on the (correct) premise that they provide a fundamentally more comfortable reading experience than tablets.
If all of a sudden the flagship model appears with a light that you can’t turn off, with no clarification on how that fits into the idea it’s easier on your eyes, people should be be sceptical about that.
As pointed out in your blue light “hysteria” blog article by commenters, the study is unrepresentative of the overall scientific view, and yet you are still linking to it here as a done deal.
This FAQ does serve a useful purpose in providing information that should have been included in marketing but as presented here it’s partially flawed and wholly condescending.
You’re right, the tone is a little snarky but you should have seen it before the final edit when it was really snarky. I’m sorry but I just can’t stand the unproven blue light is evil propaganda anymore, especially when it comes to the minuscule amount of light frontlights put out, and the PWM thing has gotten blown out of proportion too. It certainly bothers a very small percentage of people, and now that the Kobo Forma uses PWM, it’s the leading concern with every new model that comes out, it seems. After 8 years the frontlight being turned off question gets annoying too. The first 3 Paperwhites and Kindle Voyage were the only models to have the frontlight on at the lowest setting, and it was so dim you could barely see it in a completely dark room, so what difference does it really make? Now every ebook reader that gets released has to come with a declaration of “yes, the light can be turned off completely”.
Read many articles. Come to the conclusion that my Kindle Paperwhite 6″ is ideal and covers most requirements except for warm light. The main advantage for me is to use my Kindle in full brightness especially when abroad. Unless it is designed for bright sunlight then like the Kindle Fire the screen becomes mirror like making reading almost impossible.
These are questions that people that already know alot about ereaders and are maybe looking at a replacement ask.
But for people new to ereaders they’re not asking any of those questions. In fact I bet the most common questions they ask are “should I buy a Kindle Fire, Kindle or Paperwhite?”, “why should I buy an ereader if I have a phone?”, “why are ereaders so expensive?”, “why are ebooks so expensive?”, “how do I check out library books on a Kindle?”, “how do I get free books on a Kindle?”
As far as I know, e-readers do emit blue light, but the more recent models have better filters, so there is minimal strain on the eyes.