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What's the best way to read a book in a dark room?

Hello everyone.

I want to get back into healthy habits. This includes reading books before bed and no screen before bed.

The thing is that (for now) my partner and our child all sleep in the same bedroom. I tend to get to bed after they are already asleep and don’t want to disturb them.

What’s the best option to read in the dark that doesn’t involve blue light screen (smartphone) or high luminosity?

Are there e-readers with very very dim light that still allow comfortable reading?

Thanks for your input.

DeadNinja ,
@DeadNinja@lemmy.world avatar

Are there e-readers with very very dim light that still allow comfortable reading?

I have not used any myself, but I have heard that both Kindle e-reader and Kobo support this.

bionicjoey ,

Seconding Kobo! I have the Clara and it is very comfortable in the dark. Plus, it’s very easy to load books from many sources onto a Kobo, unlike Amazon’s walled garden approach with Kindle.

BlameThePeacock ,

I’ve had kindle devices for over a decade, and my latest (kindle paperwhite) is perfect to read in bed at night while my wife is sleeping, adjust the brightness down to 2-3 and it’s easy on the eyes to read in the dark, and dim enough that you can’t even use it to find your way to the bathroom.

Palewon ,

I second this. It also has a dark mode setting with white text and black background. One of the best purchases I’ve made. I use it every night and the charge lasts weeks.

Tangent5280 ,

inb4 you get ads according to the books you read

BlameThePeacock ,

My ads right now are all for shit I bought my wife for Christmas, so maybe this would be an improvement.

DontTreadOnBigfoot ,
@DontTreadOnBigfoot@lemmy.world avatar

I have a Kobo, and it allows for a very dim backlight and warm backlight temperature. I find it super comfortable for reading in the dark

Twinkletoes ,

I read in the dark on my iPad with white text on a black screen and night mode on. It’s easy on the eyes and I can read in the dark without disturbing anyone.

DharmaCurious ,
@DharmaCurious@startrek.website avatar

I have a cheapish samsung tablet that has blue light filtering, a black and white option, and super low screen brightness options. Low enough that if you’re in a dark room, it’s low enough that i can’t have it all the way down and still read.

rhacer ,

Love my Kindle.

bionicjoey ,

Any e-ink display eReader will work for you, but I personally recommend Kobo. They have a more open approach to loading files compared to Kindle, and they tend to be very affordable for a high quality device.

DirigibleProtein ,

Upvote for Kobo - I have a kobo Clara. The backlight can change colour with time of day and brightness can be changed.

Or what about listening to audiobooks or podcasts?

ominouslemon ,

Agree. Also the new Kobo Libra 2 has a dark mode option (white text on black background).

solrize ,

E-reader is screen time. Wear a headlamp and read a printed book. Or possibly, listen to music or an audiobook through earbuds in the dark. Or even just sit quietly and relax your mind.

dustyData ,

Music listening and audiobooks involve screen time, to set up and control. Namely bright screens made of blue light emitting LEDs. An e-ink reader doesn’t involve any of this, it’s kind of the whole point of an e-reader.

solrize ,

I thought blue light wasn’t considered such an issue any more. Certainly a few seconds to operate an audio player isn’t much. And maybe the player app (if you use an app) can be themed to not give off blue light.

dustyData ,

Depends. Blue light does affect sleep and eye strain. Avoiding it is not the cure for all eye and sleep issues as has been marketed by many products. But it is advisable to avoid it during night time as a habit for long term well being. Whether there’s a strong physiologically effect or if it’s merely a psychological relief is still being debated. But either way it does make people feel and sleep better when they have a habit of avoiding it during night time. So why not try it.

At the same time, reading on e-ink is a million times preferable to even the best amoled night mode screens. And no amount of nostalgia will make me return to paper books. They’re cool and mystic but they are a technological compromise in terms of ergonomics. Any ereader is a massive improvement in the experience of reading.

Then there’s the distraction factor. Avoiding screens is also about avoiding over stimulation of the brain when seeking sleep. And phones, where most people have music now, are the center of modern life distraction. A dedicated ereader does one thing and one thing only, with no internet browser connection it’s easier to avoid the distraction and dopamine traps of internet social media.

DebatableRaccoon ,

People tend to stick to the old rumor even though blue light as a problem is mostly a myth peddled by companies who only care about selling a product.

hedgehog ,

In the same sense that books are screen time (in that books, e-readers, phones, tablets, etc., all cause eye strain because you’re looking at something close to you), sure, but from a blue light perspective and from a psychological perspective, not so much.

ForestOrca ,
@ForestOrca@kbin.social avatar

Braille

perviouslyiner ,

Book of Eli

givesomefucks ,

Everyone is saying e-ink, but if everyone is asleep, a very dim light is something most people easily sleep thu. Give your eyes a minute to adjust and you’ll be able to read tho.

There’s a shit ton of reading lamps with dimmers these days.

And it’s better than moving from physical books to kindle if you already have a bunch of books and re-read often.

NegativeLookBehind ,
@NegativeLookBehind@kbin.social avatar

Turn a light on

VanHalbgott ,

Where I live, I would a Nook GlowLight 3 because the device filters blue light when you read late.

But I usually like to read with the lights on instead though I hope this answers your question better.

DebatableRaccoon ,

I have a Kobo Clara 2E for pretty much this reason. The lit screen has multiple levels of luminosity and adjustable yellow tone. I keep mine at a cool stone white but it can go really yellow if that’s what you want. On top of that, Kobo is much more user friendly for loading ebooks, it’s compatible with a whole range of ebook formats unlike Kindle.

cfi ,

Seconding the Kobo Clara for its dim, warm light.

Also want to mention using the KOReader software instead of the stock software for it’s fantastic feature set

StijnVVL ,

I’m also Kobo Clara for a couple of years now and very happy with it.

Could you maybe elaborate on your experience with KOReader? It’s the first I hear about this. Maybe the only downside to Kobo is its unresponsive software. It’s just so slow. Does this KOReader improve on that?

cfi ,

Its much more responsive in my experience. It supports a wide range of options, has gestures for controlling certain settings (i.e. brightness and warmness) allows position syncing with other KOReader devices (Another reader,Android App for example), browsing and downloading from OPDS catalogs and Calibre instances, Downloading saved articles from Wallabag instances.

Honestly the only thing I use the stock Kobo software for is to launch KOReader. It does everything the stock software does but better.

I should mention, you install KOReader and its dependencies on top of the regular firmware, not over it. You can use them side by side

hedgehog ,

The Kindle Paperwhite is great. I think the Oasis gets even dimmer, but you’ll need to pay a premium for it. Personally, I prefer to stay away from Amazon e-readers now that there are other good options available, though.

If you don’t want to be locked into the Kindle ecosystem, the Kobo Libra 2 is a good option. It lets you set the warmth of the front light, lights the screen very evenly, and even supports dark mode for ebooks.

I really like the Onyx Boox line myself (though my experience is admittedly limited - I’ve only used the Note Air 3C), but their full Google Play store support might be a negative for you, if you don’t trust yourself to not install social media apps. My experience is that having apps for Hoopla, Libby, Kindle, Kobo, Nook, etc., all on the device is a huge improvement to my experience.

The Onyx Boox e-readers are also a bit more expensive than alternatives - the cheapest e-reader by them that I would recommend is the Poke5 at 180 USD and the one I personally want is the Page at $250. (There’s also an in-between model, the Leaf2, at $200, that looks solid.) Of course, if you want a phone-sized e-reader, the Onyx Boox Palma is the only good option that I know of. Unfortunately, it’s also $280.

All that said, is there a comfortable place outside your bedroom (or at least outside your bed) that you can read? It’s technically better if you don’t read in the same place that you sleep (though reading on an e-reader in bed is still gonna be better than being on your phone late at night).

BrerChicken ,

Can’t beat an audiobook in that case!

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