Comparison of reading PDF / DJVU files on PocketBook 301 Plus e-books and Alphabet n516
Almost every second question that I get from customers in our small shop sounds like this: " What about these PDF readers? ". Having explained a lot and a lot, I finally decided to systematize my experience in this post and share it with Habr users. Since we have the two most popular models: the Alphabet n516 and PocketBook 301 , today we will talk about them.
So, under the cut you will find a comparative review of the reading of the following formats with these devices:
Each version will be presented in two page orientations: landscape and portrait, and equipped with large (!) Photos.
Let's start with the firmware version information. In PocketBook 301, this is firmware version 301.12.7. The ABC n516 - firmware OpenInkPot 0.3 rc1.
And here is a comparative photo of our heroes. Sorry for the yellow color, the tripod is short and had to be held. Next will be a photo in more natural colors. :)
')
As you can see at the very first review, the six-inch PocketBook immediately gives odds to the five-inch ABC. However, a detailed comparison of their capabilities seems to us quite appropriate, given the "bezrybe" reader, read PDF, and a significant difference in the price of these devices.
What choice do we have for scaling text in pdf?
Through trial and error, the following modes were found in the ABC, which in any way affect the display of the text:
By the way, clicking on a special button "zoom in" on the body of the ABC, absolutely nothing. To get to the section indicated in the photo, you need to click on the “Menu” button and then on button 4, which is completely intuitive, I think.
Modes in PocketBook 301:
Immediately I would like to say that, unlike human formats for readers of the FB2 type, none of the options listed above, except for the layout option in PocketBook, in any way change the format of the text. All manipulations are reduced to zooming and scrolling modes of the displayed text in front of the reader's eyes. In order not to litter the article with photographs, I will omit the description of the modes completely unsuitable for reading. I apologize if it seems to you that there are still too many photos, I still wanted to give an exhaustive answer to such an urgent question from the audience.
The book orientation is in ABC with the default Fit Text Width mode.
As you can see everything is quite small. It is possible to read, but not for long and with great effort for the eyes. What would be clear: the distance to the camera lens is about 10 cm and even it was difficult to focus. Any other modes give absolutely nothing. The text becomes barely noticeable.
We look PocketBook 301. By default, the mode is on the width of the text.
Almost the same as in the ABC, but you feel an extra inch of handicap. Since this is a regular PDF file, we can experiment with the layout option on PocketBook. This is the only option that changes the formatting in a PDF document.
The font has increased, but readability has not improved. Perhaps for other PDF documents with different formatting, this mode will work better, but in my experiment it turned out to be useless. Any other modes only worsen the reading.
Turn PDF into landscape orientation and look at the ABC.
This is again the default Fit Text Width mode. As you can see, the readability of the text has improved slightly due to the fact that the page is now viewed in several stages. The text on the page has become smaller, but it is larger.
For comparison, I will show the second readability mode of the Alphabet No Fit.
Now you can see the fields and more text, but it is very small. It is very difficult to read.
And here is the Best Fit. Why Best is a mystery. You can only read under a microscope.
Let's go to the PocketBook. Again, landscape orientation mode text width.
You can read quite well. Now for comparison, we will return the scale to its original position.
Fields have appeared, the text has decreased, but still more readable than in the ABC in a similar mode.
Although, of course, in comparison with the capabilities of the same FB2, it is unsatisfactory. Even in the mode of the width of the text I want to increase the text even more, but so that he would continue to fit on the screen. Unfortunately, with PDF it is difficult. In PocketBook 301 there is a layout option, but as you have already noted above and not everything is so rosy with it.
Check how it looks when the landscape orientation of the document.
Little has changed. I think this option PocketBook programmers have yet to work hard.
As for the speed of work, it is almost the same for both devices. The book opens and turns over quickly. We turn to another type of PDF documents, for obvious reasons, especially common in our open spaces.
The whole page is now a graphic image.
Again, portrait orientation. The first is the ABC. The 5 megabyte file opened pretty quickly and this is what it showed.
Subjectively, the picture looks even slightly better than it was with the same mode in regular PDF. Perhaps this is simply due to text formatting features. But turning the page slowed down, but still tolerable. Other modes, except Fit Text Width, give one disappointment. During the mode switch, the reader managed to hang once, so it had to be overloaded.
If the ABC opened this file in a few seconds, then the PocketBook opened it for more than a minute. But he worked with him faster and did not hang. That's what happened in the mode of the width of the text.
But that in the original scale.
And again, with a variety of modes, we do not have much choice. Only one of all possible remains readable. When any attempts to zoom in, the text does not remain within the screen, and you have to move the joystick, then to the right, then to the left on each! line after the look. Given the general slowness in redrawing the page, this reading quickly begins to annoy.
Scanned PDF. Rotate screen to landscape orientation. The first is again the ABC.
Finally, a more or less acceptable reading. Perhaps the most convenient option for the ABC of all that you see today. Most of the text is hidden, but still you need to scroll through less often, about three times per page. No Fit compared to this looks very weak. Just do not make out anything.
Let's move on to the next reader.
As you can see, PocketBook, that in the mode of the width of the text, which is in its original size, reads quite acceptable. That is why extra 2.54 cm are needed.
Now consider a special case.
Thus, they often scan the spread of a book or, for example, university textbooks. The ABC does not have the correct modes for working with such documents, so I did not upload photos.
And here is how it looks on PocketBook.
It seems that nothing is particularly visible, but PocketBook has a very suitable mode for this case - this is a display in two columns.
Readability is very pleasant and good viewing speed. And you don't really think about it when reading. The page itself turns over in the correct order, the upper left half of the page, the lower left, the upper right half of the page, the lower right (see the indicator in the lower left corner in the photo above). Then I was upset that I could not freely move the joystick on the page, pressing right and left does not give anything, the page is turned over in a tight sequence. However, I accidentally found a very cool feature in this mode. If you press and hold the central button on the joystick, then this picture opens where you can see the scope and can freely move it around the page.
After selecting the page area, PocketBook will enlarge it and switch to reading mode in two columns.
It seems that PocketBook programmers have tried their best for the convenience of users and are trying to squeeze everything out of the PDF format. As for the page refresh rate of PocketBook, it is quite satisfactory. But the file could open faster. And now we come to the most difficult part.
At the same time let's see how readers will cope with DJVU. Let's start with the ABC.
If the picture is somehow visible, the text can hardly be distinguished. Here I went through all the possible options, and the ABC hung again. The No Fit mode turned out to be the only one in which the text became possible to read. Easier from this truth is gone. The page refresh rate has become very, very slow .
As for PocketBook, there again came in handy reading mode in two columns, but it turned out that in DJVU, holding the keys on the joystick did not lead to anything, as it was in PDF. So, you have to look through the scheme sequentially from top to bottom and you can’t just move where you want, which is not convenient. You see the signature on the arrow, but to see where it points, do a bunch of clicks at a low update rate. I cite the latest series of photos without comment.
In general, I would like to say that PDF and DJVU are not the most convenient formats for reading on electronic readers. They do not go to any comparison with the same FB2, where you can simply choose the font size that is right for you and enjoy the process, rather than busting through various settings. In this light, owners of devices that are unable to read PDF and DJVU look differently. They voluntarily abandoned this opportunity and thus saved themselves from the inevitable "headache." Perhaps the expected appearance of devices with a 9-inch screen will somehow smooth the problem.
I want to give a couple of tips. First of all, when you are going to buy devices for reading electronic books, in any case, do not focus on the hardware. Electronic books are not the case where it plays a prominent role. Good software is much more important. Better to think what you are going to read, in what format, consider the possible alternatives for the difficult cases described here.
I hope that I opened the topic and will be happy to answer questions in the comments. Ask.
So, under the cut you will find a comparative review of the reading of the following formats with these devices:
- regular PDF files;
- scanned PDF files of 1 page on one A4 sheet;
- scanned PDF files of 2 pages on one A4 sheet;
- scanned DJVU schema files.
Each version will be presented in two page orientations: landscape and portrait, and equipped with large (!) Photos.
Let's start with the firmware version information. In PocketBook 301, this is firmware version 301.12.7. The ABC n516 - firmware OpenInkPot 0.3 rc1.
And here is a comparative photo of our heroes. Sorry for the yellow color, the tripod is short and had to be held. Next will be a photo in more natural colors. :)
')
As you can see at the very first review, the six-inch PocketBook immediately gives odds to the five-inch ABC. However, a detailed comparison of their capabilities seems to us quite appropriate, given the "bezrybe" reader, read PDF, and a significant difference in the price of these devices.
What choice do we have for scaling text in pdf?
Through trial and error, the following modes were found in the ABC, which in any way affect the display of the text:
- Fit Text Width - it looks like the default mode for all PDF files;
- Fit Width - the same as Text Width + page margins;
- Fit Height - the entire page height;
- Best Fit - mysterious mode, behaves in a different situation in different ways. I did not manage to understand the essence of the work;
- Stretch Fit - similar to the previous one;
- No Fit - shows the page "as is" without scaling.
By the way, clicking on a special button "zoom in" on the body of the ABC, absolutely nothing. To get to the section indicated in the photo, you need to click on the “Menu” button and then on button 4, which is completely intuitive, I think.
Modes in PocketBook 301:
- Multi-page view - displays several pages on the screen at once. I could not think of an application to this regime;
- width - it seems, as in the ABC, the default mode for all PDF files;
- normal - similar to No Fit in the ABC in the default value, but you can zoom in / out in an arbitrary manner;
- columns - a special mode when the page is visually divided into columns (the text is not reformatted). Below I will focus on it in more detail;
- layout option - leads to a change in font size and reformatting the page.
Immediately I would like to say that, unlike human formats for readers of the FB2 type, none of the options listed above, except for the layout option in PocketBook, in any way change the format of the text. All manipulations are reduced to zooming and scrolling modes of the displayed text in front of the reader's eyes. In order not to litter the article with photographs, I will omit the description of the modes completely unsuitable for reading. I apologize if it seems to you that there are still too many photos, I still wanted to give an exhaustive answer to such an urgent question from the audience.
Let's start with a regular PDF (This is the one where the text is recognized and can be copied)
The book orientation is in ABC with the default Fit Text Width mode.
As you can see everything is quite small. It is possible to read, but not for long and with great effort for the eyes. What would be clear: the distance to the camera lens is about 10 cm and even it was difficult to focus. Any other modes give absolutely nothing. The text becomes barely noticeable.
We look PocketBook 301. By default, the mode is on the width of the text.
Almost the same as in the ABC, but you feel an extra inch of handicap. Since this is a regular PDF file, we can experiment with the layout option on PocketBook. This is the only option that changes the formatting in a PDF document.
The font has increased, but readability has not improved. Perhaps for other PDF documents with different formatting, this mode will work better, but in my experiment it turned out to be useless. Any other modes only worsen the reading.
Turn PDF into landscape orientation and look at the ABC.
This is again the default Fit Text Width mode. As you can see, the readability of the text has improved slightly due to the fact that the page is now viewed in several stages. The text on the page has become smaller, but it is larger.
For comparison, I will show the second readability mode of the Alphabet No Fit.
Now you can see the fields and more text, but it is very small. It is very difficult to read.
And here is the Best Fit. Why Best is a mystery. You can only read under a microscope.
Let's go to the PocketBook. Again, landscape orientation mode text width.
You can read quite well. Now for comparison, we will return the scale to its original position.
Fields have appeared, the text has decreased, but still more readable than in the ABC in a similar mode.
Although, of course, in comparison with the capabilities of the same FB2, it is unsatisfactory. Even in the mode of the width of the text I want to increase the text even more, but so that he would continue to fit on the screen. Unfortunately, with PDF it is difficult. In PocketBook 301 there is a layout option, but as you have already noted above and not everything is so rosy with it.
Check how it looks when the landscape orientation of the document.
Little has changed. I think this option PocketBook programmers have yet to work hard.
As for the speed of work, it is almost the same for both devices. The book opens and turns over quickly. We turn to another type of PDF documents, for obvious reasons, especially common in our open spaces.
Scanned PDF Document
The whole page is now a graphic image.
Again, portrait orientation. The first is the ABC. The 5 megabyte file opened pretty quickly and this is what it showed.
Subjectively, the picture looks even slightly better than it was with the same mode in regular PDF. Perhaps this is simply due to text formatting features. But turning the page slowed down, but still tolerable. Other modes, except Fit Text Width, give one disappointment. During the mode switch, the reader managed to hang once, so it had to be overloaded.
If the ABC opened this file in a few seconds, then the PocketBook opened it for more than a minute. But he worked with him faster and did not hang. That's what happened in the mode of the width of the text.
But that in the original scale.
And again, with a variety of modes, we do not have much choice. Only one of all possible remains readable. When any attempts to zoom in, the text does not remain within the screen, and you have to move the joystick, then to the right, then to the left on each! line after the look. Given the general slowness in redrawing the page, this reading quickly begins to annoy.
Scanned PDF. Rotate screen to landscape orientation. The first is again the ABC.
Finally, a more or less acceptable reading. Perhaps the most convenient option for the ABC of all that you see today. Most of the text is hidden, but still you need to scroll through less often, about three times per page. No Fit compared to this looks very weak. Just do not make out anything.
Let's move on to the next reader.
As you can see, PocketBook, that in the mode of the width of the text, which is in its original size, reads quite acceptable. That is why extra 2.54 cm are needed.
Now consider a special case.
Scanned on 2 pages on a single sheet of A4 PDF.
Thus, they often scan the spread of a book or, for example, university textbooks. The ABC does not have the correct modes for working with such documents, so I did not upload photos.
And here is how it looks on PocketBook.
It seems that nothing is particularly visible, but PocketBook has a very suitable mode for this case - this is a display in two columns.
Readability is very pleasant and good viewing speed. And you don't really think about it when reading. The page itself turns over in the correct order, the upper left half of the page, the lower left, the upper right half of the page, the lower right (see the indicator in the lower left corner in the photo above). Then I was upset that I could not freely move the joystick on the page, pressing right and left does not give anything, the page is turned over in a tight sequence. However, I accidentally found a very cool feature in this mode. If you press and hold the central button on the joystick, then this picture opens where you can see the scope and can freely move it around the page.
After selecting the page area, PocketBook will enlarge it and switch to reading mode in two columns.
It seems that PocketBook programmers have tried their best for the convenience of users and are trying to squeeze everything out of the PDF format. As for the page refresh rate of PocketBook, it is quite satisfactory. But the file could open faster. And now we come to the most difficult part.
Schemes and pictures on an A4 page.
At the same time let's see how readers will cope with DJVU. Let's start with the ABC.
If the picture is somehow visible, the text can hardly be distinguished. Here I went through all the possible options, and the ABC hung again. The No Fit mode turned out to be the only one in which the text became possible to read. Easier from this truth is gone. The page refresh rate has become very, very slow .
As for PocketBook, there again came in handy reading mode in two columns, but it turned out that in DJVU, holding the keys on the joystick did not lead to anything, as it was in PDF. So, you have to look through the scheme sequentially from top to bottom and you can’t just move where you want, which is not convenient. You see the signature on the arrow, but to see where it points, do a bunch of clicks at a low update rate. I cite the latest series of photos without comment.
In general, I would like to say that PDF and DJVU are not the most convenient formats for reading on electronic readers. They do not go to any comparison with the same FB2, where you can simply choose the font size that is right for you and enjoy the process, rather than busting through various settings. In this light, owners of devices that are unable to read PDF and DJVU look differently. They voluntarily abandoned this opportunity and thus saved themselves from the inevitable "headache." Perhaps the expected appearance of devices with a 9-inch screen will somehow smooth the problem.
I want to give a couple of tips. First of all, when you are going to buy devices for reading electronic books, in any case, do not focus on the hardware. Electronic books are not the case where it plays a prominent role. Good software is much more important. Better to think what you are going to read, in what format, consider the possible alternatives for the difficult cases described here.
I hope that I opened the topic and will be happy to answer questions in the comments. Ask.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/85965/
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