WaveyGravey

I take a Kindle as well.

tcs

From another thread: Kindle. Route books, owner's manuals, camp recipes and cookbooks, local history and natural history guides, tour route geology and geography notes, birding & wildlife identification guides, cloud encyclopedia, detail pdf maps and find-a-grave info, train, ferry and bus schedules, copies of tickets, IDs, passport, travel insurance, vaccination/booster shots record, etc., the seven novels I've written, the book I'm currently reading, books "I'm going to get around to", out-of-copyright classics from Project Gutenberg, the list goes on... Cool thing is, no matter what-all you put in it, it doesn't get any heavier or bigger.

With the Kindle's illuminated screen, I don't need a reading light.

Duragrouch

I was always inpressed with the Bosch Automotive Handbook and its *very* thin pages to jam a lot of info into a small book that could fit in many blazer side pockets. And that was 30 years ago. Hmm, I looked online now, expecting to find a PDF or realtime reference on their website, nope. I emailed them to see if either exists.

Pratt

I love my Kindle. I can carry something meaty, like Darwin's Origin of Species, and also trashy spy/action type stuff. I like that I can just order another if I finish one, and Kindle never gets any heavier, or bulkier, as I add books. Some books even have hot links to their references. It is not good on pictures or graphics.

phughes

I carry a Kobo reader. I cannot imagine not having something to read. I also listen to audiobooks while I ride.

As for graphics and pictures, Kobo has color e-ink readers now. They will not be as vibrant as an LED screen, but they are better for pictures and graphics than a black and white e-reader. Onyx also has color e-ink readers. Their readers are Android based, which gives you more options, but offer lower battery life, and the reading apps, like the Kindle app are slower inn general than a dedicated Kindle reader. They are a nice option though for people who need something more versatile, enabling the use of a standard PDF viewer, as well as image viewers.

sbrudno

Kindle.

Duragrouch

"E-Ink" always makes me laugh, but I know what you are talking about, lower power consumption than a typical electronic display. But it always reminds me of this:

"Some people think paper faxes are sent through the telephone wires. Idiots. Only the *ink* goes through the wires." - Dave Barry

elcruxio

It's not that bad of a description as the screen is "painted" with every page turn. The page remains "painted" even without power which allows for e-readers to stay powered for weeks at a time.

Duragrouch

Yeah I figured it had to be something along those lines, but didn't know exactly, so looked it up before I posted. Pretty amazing. Until now I had thought that e-paper displays were just more legible in bright light or something. I could see wanting a cheap one for a bike tour for reading, especially if it could double as a map display at the handlebars; I don't want to subject my phone to that vibration, plus constant display bright enough to see outside consumes power quick. I have an old unused phone (found in a used bag purchased at goodwill), charged it back up, was able to unlock it, and tried using that as a map display, but it didn't have enough battery for a long display time, I'd need to hook it up to a battery bank, and then there is the issue of trying to charge those on a tour. E-ink display would be great, only need to refresh display periodically, not that many times per day on a tour. On my old road bike, I had a small zipper compartment attached between my wide-spaced Scott aero bars, with a clear top for paper maps, and I would print out map sections beforehand to put in there. Back in the days of stone knives and bearskins.

Ron Damon

These are largely non-issues with the inky black blacks of AMOLED screens and the fact that Dark Mode on AMOLED is quite economical since black means the pixel is actually turned off. It doesn't require a lot more battery usage, in fact. Plus it displays color.


LP Taiwan, Dark mode AMOLED

phughes

[QUOTE=Ron Damon;23251271]These are largely non-issues with the inky black blacks of AMOLED screens and the fact that Dark Mode on AMOLED is quite economical since black means the pixel is actually turned off. It doesn't require a lot more battery usage, in fact. Plus it displays color.
/QUOTE

The phone with an AMOLED screen still uses a lot more battery than an e-ink reader. The phone will maybe give you a day or two at best, whereas an e-ink reader will give you weeks. I often read for hours every day while traveling for work. I generally work one day, then have days to kill waiting to go home. My e-reader will last two weeks or more, that is even using the light. Your phone won't, even when set to dark mode, which by the way I cannot stand for reading.

Ron Damon

[QUOTE=phughes;23251889]The issue is not whether a phone uses more energy than a standalone Kindle. It does. The question is whether the energy that it uses is acceptable. Who cares is a Kindle lasts two week? I don't. Your eyes can't stand dark mode AMOLED. Mine have no problem with it and the phone serves several purposes, saving weight and bulk. Today smartphone battery life is largely a non issue. Two days is not unheard of. I live in Asia with a vast array of phone options so your local milage might be more limited.

sbrudno

E-ink is one of the best inventions ever. I have been doing Kindle for more than 10 years and I am always happy with the long battery life and easy to read screen.

phughes

[QUOTE=Ron Damon;23252206]Okay... thanks for clearing that up. The question for me though, is that the energy use of a phone for reading is not acceptable for me, so yeah... clearly it is the question... for me, not you. I never even considering making a decision for you. You may like it, and that is great. An AMOLED still uses much more battery power than an e-ink reader, which is what started this conversation in the first place. You in fact started the debate regarding the virtues of AMLOED vs e-ink with regard to battery life. That is the only reason we are discussing this. I live in the US, we have plenty of options for phones. That also isn't an issue. I also carry my phone, so I am not left with only an e-book, that would be ridiculous to carry only the reader. E-inak is also more comfortable on my eyes than am AMOLED screen, or any LED based screen. E-ink is also much easier to read in bright sunlight. There is no glare on my Kobo screen compared to a phone screen. E-ink is more like reading on paper for me.

I can get two days out of my phone. It has a large battery. But battery life is an issue for a smartphone if one plans to read on it, especially if you read for multiple hours in a day as I do often. On tour, not having to recharge my book every other day is a good thing. In fact, on my last two week tour I didn't charge it at all, and still read multiple books. I didn't have to charge my phone very often either, because I wasn't using it all day, because I was riding, and I wasn't reading on it.

So, I can get away with carrying a power pack, and not charging my phone every day, and still read as much as I want, negating the need to find a plug somewhere. My power pack kept me going for four days or so, without needing a plug.

If you don't read a lot, a phone is fine, bur for those of us that do, an e-ink reader is much nicer than trying to read on a phone, no matter how nice the screen is. It just doesn't compare.

sbrudno

Ah, you don't read a lot. That answers the question.

phughes

I read books on the reader an average of two to three hours a day. . I often read for four or five hours a day while traveling for work. Some weeks I read a book a day. Last week I read about five hours a day and haven't charged my e-reader for two weeks. It is only at 35% battery. I think I read enough, 100+ books a year looking back at my library history, not including magazines, and technical books for various hobbies like astronomy and astrophysics, also not including the books I have actually bought for the ereader.

I read the news on my phone around two hours a day. I think I read enough. I use the phone for the news because I have a good news reader for it.

I'm not sure what your issue is, but the point is, the e-reader is nicer to read on for me, since there is no glare, it is easy to see in bright sun, is loaded with hundreds of books, has a bigger screen than a phone, yet mine still fits in my back pocket, and the battery life far surpasses any phone, by far.

Use your phone, no one is stopping you. I have things to read on my phone too, I cannot simply sit waiting somewhere, so I am always prepared with something to read in case I have to wait, but prefer using the e-reader. If I read for two hours on the phone, then read a book 3-4 hours, and use the phone for regular phone activities on tour, I would have to charge the phone every day. As it is, on tour I generally charge the phone every two or three days, using it for the news, am app for finding campgrounds and maps, along with business use for emails and contracts, etc.

So I am not sure what you are trying to accomplish here, except perhaps trying to assert your superiority in the area od reading on a phone, but the fact remains an e-ink device's battery lasts much, much longer than a phone, any phone, period, by weeks, not hours or days, Weeks. And that is what you started to compare, battery life between an AOLED phone and an e-ink reader, and there is no comparison, though I love AOLED screens on phones. They are great, and more efficient as you say, when running dark mode. They are however, no match for e-ink in regards to battery life.

Tourist in MSN

For those of you debating battery life and power consumption for the devices you use for reading books, news, etc., please remember that this is the touring forum. There is a huge range of power sources available depending on how you tour.

Some people that are credit card touring have no problem at all with keeping their devices charged when they have access every day to a place to plug in all night. For those people, the only difficulty may be the number of outlets available to plug into if there are multiple devices (phone, tablet, reader, taillights, headlights, GPS, camera, double that for two people), etc.

On the other extreme are people like me that try to be self sustainable for power with a dynohub for multi-week touring. And it depends on length of tour, a powerbank may be more than adequate for a tour of several days, but you can't bring all of your watt-hours from home for multi-week touring.

My point is that for some of you that see no problem at all with high power consumption devices and can't figure out why others want very low power consumption devices, it all depends on how you bike tour.

I generally do not bring reading materials on a bike tour, but if I did and used electronics for that instead of paper, I would want a reader like Phughes has described. But I can see where some of you might be content with a phone that has a two day battery life that takes a lot of watt hours to recharge.

This especially becomes an issue if you use a phone that is bright enough to read in sunlight and you also use that for navigation while riding.

sbrudno

I am sorry if you took the comment personally, but it seemed that you were suggesting that the phone was somehow superior to a reader. Each has its place and each its strengths and weaknesses. I think those of us who use readers exclusively for reading, of any content, just like the convenience and long battery life of a reader. We all are entitled to our preferences. Good will to you and enjoy your riding!

indyfabz

I was pleasantly surprised by the battery life of my 2017 vintage Kindle Paperwhite, even with the backlight on full. I still bring the charging cord for any trip of a week+ and will top it off if convenient, but it’s usually not necessary even if I read for hours each night. I save the compact 30,000 mAh external battery for the phone.

phughes

Not a problem, though I really cannot see how you came to that conclusion, my entre post was describing the fact I use an ereader and that it has better battery life and is easier on the eyes to read. . As you said, both have their place, but for reading, e-ink wins the battery life battle.

For touring, an ebook is great for me since I can bring a ton of books, or simply borrow more from the library using my phone as a hotspot. Ebooks really have made my travel better, since I don't have to carry multiple books, and I can more easily take library books, so less expense. In the past, I never even considered traveling with a library book, since I was afraid of losing them, even more so for touring, there is a greater chance of damaging or losing one while touring. The ebook takes much less space which is a godsend for touring.

sbrudno

I have a tale regarding library books. I did some touring in the 1960s (when it really did not seem to be a thing). I brought a library book with me. Big mistake. I lost it somehow and the library charged me $8 for it (at the time that was REAL money). So, I get the not bringing library book with you. Many decades later, that is not a problem since you can "rent" library books and then there are e-books. I agree: "a Godsend for touring"!
Thanks phughes

phughes

Yeah, in the 1960s, $8 really was REAL money. That is a hefty fine.

phughes

Yeah, in the 1960s, $8 really was REAL money. That is a hefty fine.

Carbonfiberboy 

My wife and I never carried reading matter. Touring was way too interesting to sit around and read. Being two of us made a difference. There's always conversation!. Besides, we stripped out everything that wasn't absolutely necessary for a successful tour. 6 unnecessary ounces? Nope.