What sort of ebook reader do we really want?

[Timboli]

Personally, I want the following in an ereader.

1. E-ink .... color one day.
2. Screensaver, that is the current or last book read, cover.
3. Decent impact proof cover, with transparent front.
4. Built-in evenly dispersed light.
5. Waterproof, sand proof, etc.
6. Glare proof.
7. Long battery life.
8. Decent storage, supplemented by USB thumbstick.
9. Folders of course, with a use author name option and collections.
10. Folders should be re-nameable and ebook shortcut can appear in any folder.

As for ebooks themselves, they should all come with a summary/blurb. So that they can be read anytime.
11. Summary popup dialog while reading ... you don't leave current page.
12. Shown as screensaver instantly by a button click ... device remains off.

13. Ability to Wifi etc to same brand ereader, if just to update last page read.

And no doubt some more things.

P.S. Font types & sizes etc and background colors/shading/brightness goes without saying. As does bookmarks, notes, highlights, etc.

[HarryT]

I see absolutely no need for a screensaver on a reader, personally. I always use a sleep cover on my reader, so it switches on when I open the cover, and off (or, more accurately, goes to sleep) when I close the cover. A blank screen (to indicate that the device is asleep) is absolutely fine with me.

Equally, I'm a little puzzled by the desire to see a summary of the book you're currently reading. If you're reading it, you don't need a summary, surely?

[spindlegirl]

I agree with Harry about the sleep cover. I have one on my kindle. Even before that I never cared what showed up on my screen when I wasn't using it (It's usually in my knapsack/purse) because I'd not be looking at it.

That said, I had a Sony PRS T2 a few years back that allowed me to have the cover of the book I am currently reading as the sleep screen. I gave that one to my daughter and she loves it.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by spindlegirl

I agree with Harry about the sleep cover. I have one on my kindle. Even before that I never cared what showed up on my screen when I wasn't using it (It's usually in my knapsack/purse) because I'd not be looking at it.

It's useful to have some visual indication that the device is off/asleep, of course, given that an eInk screen retains its image when power is removed, but personally I'm not bothered what that indication is.

[Begemot]

Summary is kind of a cool idea for those bookworms like me who read too many books at once.

Sometimes you return to a book a few months later.

As long as we are brainstorming I was thinking of AI generated custom summary of what you have read.

Sort of combine the percentage read indicator of Kobo with Machine Learning summary robots which have gotten scarily good these days.

These kind of summaries would work better on business type of books than on fiction, but even fiction can be summarized.

[Timboli]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I see absolutely no need for a screensaver on a reader, personally. I always use a sleep cover on my reader, so it switches on when I open the cover, and off (or, more accurately, goes to sleep) when I close the cover. A blank screen (to indicate that the device is asleep) is absolutely fine with me.

Equally, I'm a little puzzled by the desire to see a summary of the book you're currently reading. If you're reading it, you don't need a summary, surely?

Well, for starters, I miss seeing the cover that is always there with a physical book, so that is one aspect of ebooks that has always irked me. Many of them have great covers, and as an ebook you rarely see them, and when you do, mostly just a thumbnail. Of course I am talking e-ink, and hopefully a color version one day, and like you say, it retains the image when asleep. It is also a reminder of what you are currently reading or just finished ... perhaps a while back.

I have on many occasions, wanted to check on something mentioned in the blurb, even if just to tell someone a quick rundown of what I am reading, but also because I have a fleeting memory of something I thought was mentioned ... perhaps a name, etc, etc. There can be many reasons to want to recheck the summary, especially early on, as you don't really know a book until it is mostly finished. Then you have the scenario, where you may have to put the book aside for a while, for whatever reason, perhaps another ebook, maybe on another device, or just something happening in your life ... so you need a refresher when you get back to it ... especially early in the story.

To truly replace a physical book, an ebook needs, in my opinion, to be able to emulate the physical book as much as possible. Looking at a book's cover has often given great pleasure. Propping an ereader on a bookshelf where you can see the book cover due to transparency, would be a really nice feature.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Begemot

Summary is kind of a cool idea for those bookworms like me who read too many books at once.

Sometimes you return to a book a few months later.

OK, if that's what you do, I can see why it might be of interest. Personally I read one book at a time.

When the OP said "summary" I kind of assumed that he meant the information you find on the book jacket, and possibly a blurb, rather than a detailed description of the plot which would spoil the book for the reader.

[JSWolf]

Kobo Readers can have a book summary. Not while reading the book though. But you can get it in the library screen.

[Terisa de morgan]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Kobo Readers can have a book summary. Not while reading the book though. But you can get it in the library screen.

Yes, and you can add a jacket to your book, accesible from index, which includes that summary.

[Timboli]

Another simple way to look at a couple of things, is that with a physical book, the cover, the blurb, can be instantly looked at anytime, without moving from your place in the book.

If an ebook reader could emulate that as simply as possible, then it is only going to make it better and also encourage more people to see it as a worthy replacement for a physical book.

More people buying ebooks, should in theory, make them cheaper and more bountiful ... and save a few trees, plus mean more encouragement to create better ereaders.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Terisa de morgan

Yes, and you can add a jacket to your book, accesible from index, which includes that summary.

I cannot stand a jacket in an eBook. It's as bad as those review quotes we sometimes get.

[Terisa de morgan]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I cannot stand a jacket in an eBook. It's as bad as those review quotes we sometimes get.

Well, if it is at the end of the book and you design its content....

[RZetlin]

My Options:

• Large screen - 8" or larger
• Colour screen
• Durability
• Waterproof
• Good batter life
• Cloud backup

[Timboli]

Originally Posted by RZetlin

My Options:

• Large screen - 8" or larger
• Colour screen
• Durability
• Waterproof
• Good batter life
• Cloud backup

Don't we already have all that ... not e-ink though?

[barryem]

I think the focus of the design of an ereader should mostly be about reading. The only design element I care about when I'm not reading is that it stays safe. That's why I like my reader to have 3G, so when I'm reading and I encounter something in the book I want to know more about I can quickly pull it up on Wikipedia. I almost never used 3G to download books or shop for books but it's an important reading feature.

Barry