iPad mini Is rMini Helping With Poor Vision Any Better?

[AppleRobert]

Any improvement over the 1st gen Mini?

The font is clearer albeit still very small using Safari for websites in portrait mode and to tell the truth that is my preference for browsing over landscape.

Over the counter reading glasses are generally of cheap quality and I doubt any have anti glare included. Maybe using a screen protector would help with reflection as well?

If one goes with a prescription pair, magazine and newspapers for example vary with the print so I would hate to spend the money having a pair made and just use them for the rMini.

Leaving the Air or larger ipads out of the equation, what are your recommendations?

 

[sixrom]

My mini is handy, my retina mini slightly clearer, but I have 20/20 vision. My older brothers eyes aren't, and even with glasses he prefers his iPad 4. A mini is not an easy tablet to use.

 

[AppleRobert]

My mini is handy, my retina mini slightly clearer, but I have 20/20 vision. My older brothers eyes aren't, and even with glasses he prefers his iPad 4. A mini is not an easy tablet to use.

My eye doctor does not really want me to use it. My vision is corrected so much for distance and I prefer that than going with something less strong since I would need readers anyway.

She would obviously sell me better readers than over the counter but ....

 

[RickTaylor]

There's no substitute for going somewhere where you can try out both models and see for yourself. To me the difference is stunningly obvious; others say they can't even see it.

I've been very happy with the original mini, using it to read lots of pdf documents (I have good close-up vision). I'm certainly looking forward to the upgrade, however.

 

[AppleRobert]

There's no substitute for going somewhere where you can try out both models and see for yourself. To me the difference is stunningly obvious; others say they can't even see it.

I've been very happy with the original mini, using it to read lots of pdf documents (I have good close-up vision). I'm certainly looking forward to the upgrade, however.

People with poor vision will need readers regardless. I have tried different tablets sizes. The smaller the tablet is, the more crunched the text is even if clearer evidenced with higher PPI. The reverse with a larger tablet, larger text but not as clear.

I'm looking for opinions/experiences from folks with poor vision. Maybe a screen cover helps perhaps to avoid glare and reflection at least. There must be good solutions (not everyone using tablets has 20/20 vision) to avoid hurting one's eyes, getting headaches, etc. etc.

 

[thelookingglass]

People with poor vision will need readers regardless. I have tried different tablets sizes. The smaller the tablet is, the more crunched the text is even if clearer evidenced with higher PPI. The reverse with a larger tablet, larger text but not as clear.

I'm looking for opinions/experiences from folks with poor vision. Maybe a screen cover helps perhaps to avoid glare and reflection at least. There must be good solutions (not everyone using tablets has 20/20 vision) to avoid hurting one's eyes, getting headaches, etc. etc.

I found the Air much more readable than the Mini. The larger text size definitely makes a difference. And I believe I saw a review somewhere stating that the Air's contrast ratio was much higher than the Mini's. This seemed to bear out in my own experience. My eyes would feel slightly strained after using the Mini a few minutes. No such issue with the Air.

 

[Cyloncat]

Pinch-zoom works for (almost) all web sites to enlarge type. You can also drag the page after zooming to keep both sides in the display. I have to do this sometimes even on the Air (or even on my MBP). And don't forget to curse those young whippersnapper web designers with perfect vision who like 7-point type.

Also check out the accessibility controls for type weight and size, although they may have less effect in web pages than in other apps.

 

[Barhen]

I had the rMini for 3 days before I decided to exchange it for the ipad air. I noticed that my eyes kept straining.. a lot. I am 39 and I have nearly perfect vision. Soon as I picked up the ipad Air, my eyes thanked me.. which says a lot! Its slightly bigger and the extra weight isn't noticeable for me. Its got the same slim factor.. only thing I cant do anymore is put it into my pockets but that's ok with me.

 

[rkuo]

Any improvement over the 1st gen Mini?

The font is clearer albeit still very small using Safari for websites in portrait mode and to tell the truth that is my preference for browsing over landscape.

Over the counter reading glasses are generally of cheap quality and I doubt any have anti glare included. Maybe using a screen protector would help with reflection as well?

If one goes with a prescription pair, magazine and newspapers for example vary with the print so I would hate to spend the money having a pair made and just use them for the rMini.

Leaving the Air or larger ipads out of the equation, what are your recommendations?

It helps some, but honestly some of the text is just small. And I actually have very good eyes for reading at close range. I still strain a bit to read text that is a bit small because it now looks very clear compared to the old Mini, but in reality the text still needs to be bigger to read comfortably and I don't cry uncle as quickly as I should.

I turned on bold text in accessibility and that has been helpful. I don't think it makes the look of iOS worse. There's a dynamic text setting as well, but I don't feel like it's clear where that does and doesn't help.

You can compensate on many web pages by going into landscape. Or get the Air. You'll have to try both to get a feel for it ... everyone's tolerance for this is different.

 

[Cyloncat]

I had the rMini for 3 days before I decided to exchange it for the ipad air. I noticed that my eyes kept straining.. a lot. I am 39 and I have nearly perfect vision. Soon as I picked up the ipad Air, my eyes thanked me.. which says a lot! Its slightly bigger and the extra weight isn't noticeable for me. Its got the same slim factor.. only thing I cant do anymore is put it into my pockets but that's ok with me.

Strongly agree. The Air is so much better for web browsing.

I have "normal" 60-year-old eyes, no cataracts, but no focusing range, either. I wear multifocal contacts, correcting for close-up and medium reading. What is bizarre is that while small text on the mini looks legible, it slows down my reading speed tremendously, probably because my brain has to work harder to integrate what it sees through my contacts. Even though I can pinch-zoom to enlarge text, the mini screen isn't big enough to let me zoom comfortably and also keep enough text on screen that I can spend more time reading than zooming.

The mini works fine as an ereader, because apps like Kindle set type size by physical size, rather than pixels. But for the web, it's more of a fallback, "just in case" web browser, better than a phone, but not as good as a 10-inch tablet.

 

[AppleRobert]

Some very interesting recommendations, thanks much!

I never have gone into "accessibility" before but I cannot see how those options available can hurt trying them.

I cannot wear multifocal contacts, I have tried and I still need readers. Like I said, my vision is highly corrected for distance so much so in the early stages of lenses there aren't any even made yet for the strength I needed.

 

[Tjosansa]

Interesting thread.
I sometimes need glasses when reading. And i am 43.
I was thinking of getting a rmini to replace my ipad2, but now i dont know

 

[Cyloncat]

Interesting thread.
I sometimes need glasses when reading. And i am 43.
I was thinking of getting a rmini to replace my ipad2, but now i dont know

Try mini and Air in a store, but take your glasses, and plan a list of web sites that you want to be able to read.

 

[kazmac]

...

Given my bad reading experience with the first mini (I have high prescription nearsightedness), I would veer toward the Air - if - I get another one (first two were returned for hardware issues.)

To the OP, I would try both, but as others have mentioned make sure you have your glasses and try a variety of sites/reading materials to test out in store. I wish you the best of luck.

 

[AppleRobert]

Interesting thread.
I sometimes need glasses when reading. And i am 43.
I was thinking of getting a rmini to replace my ipad2, but now i dont know

If you get past nytimes.com in portrait mode, you are golden! There is so much text close together on the home page that I would not dare read it for long. I only use it as a test.

The suggestion to try and read different things is wise because nytimes.com is an extreme case. For me, the Air is better, the rMini screen is just too small for me and the text is really crunched on that website using the rMini. Blu-ray.com is another extreme case with so much text on a page in their forums.

Just try things other things you feel you would normally do with an iPad.

 

[ugcop]

70 years old and I use drug store reading glasses. I have iPad mini 1 & 2. Also have two full size iPads 2 and 3. I use the mini for 99 % of what I do. I am a heavy user and have no problems with the mini(s).

 

[twist0105]

Old eyes at 39

So, curious about this as well, ordered on release day (12?13th) and still processing.

I'm 39 (.75) and have spent the last year discovering the joys of old eyes... Maybe fresh visit to eye doc is needed (yes, went last year), but with current glasses can't read anything under /over a foot distance... A lot of "over the glasses" reading at six inches, where, dammit, it just looks better!

Need advice - do bifocals really help here?

Yeah, mini v1 showed its pixels at 6 inches. V2, regardless of color bleed, has to be better there.

 

[Cyloncat]

I'm 39 (.75) and have spent the last year discovering the joys of old eyes... Maybe fresh visit to eye doc is needed (yes, went last year), but with current glasses can't read anything under /over a foot distance... A lot of "over the glasses" reading at six inches, where, dammit, it just looks better!

Need advice - do bifocals really help here?

That's a pretty accurate diagnosis for bifocals, and yes, they do help.

A couple of tips. You'll get a choice between bifocals (with a line) and progressive lenses (no line). If you work with big monitors, or multiple monitors, you'll probably find bifocals are a better choice; your eyes can cover a lot of territory without changing focus, and without moving your head. With progressive lenses, the focal area for reading is pretty small, and you may find yourself moving your head just to keep things in focus.

Also, with bifocals, you can get the line cut where you want it. I always had mine cut high, about where the top of a monitor would fall in my visual range. You don't want the line running through the middle of your screen! I got the idea when I learned that librarians and airline pilots, who have to do a lot of close-focus work above their heads, get an additional close-focus area cut in the top of their lenses. So get your bifocals designed for the way you need them to work.

 

[AppleRobert]

70 years old and I use drug store reading glasses. I have iPad mini 1 & 2. Also have two full size iPads 2 and 3. I use the mini for 99 % of what I do. I am a heavy user and have no problems with the mini(s).

My dad happens to have prescription reading glasses, I forgot about that. I have several pair of reading glasses bought off the shelf from various places and with different levels of magnification.

I tried his reading glasses last night, they are night and day over those I bought. They have anti glare for sure. They do not increase the font size enough in portrait mode using this forum as an example for reading posts, the letters are crystal clear though.

I may decide to get a pair in the future with higher magnification but the Air is way better for me. The 7.9" screen is just to small which causes crunched text on websites with lots of information displayed and I browse ALOT.

 

[twist0105]

Thanks!

That's a pretty accurate diagnosis for bifocals, and yes, they do help...

Thanks! Helpful for me. Hmm, maybe mom was right way back when yelling at me about reading in the dark ruining my eyes. (Certainly can't be from getting old, right? ) Happily, ibooks lights up the room in the dark... Eye exam, here we come.

Sounds like bifocals might be way to go... if I read it right, I'd probably spend less time "hunting" for the sweet spot with the hard delimiter between focal ranges? (Sort of what happens now with current glasses)

Unrelated note - maybe my new mini won't have the deep yellow screen tint when I read iBooks this time around.

Second unrelated note - what's Sepia, and why is it turned on in iBooks my old mini?

 

[Tjosansa]

Try mini and Air in a store, but take your glasses, and plan a list of web sites that you want to be able to read.

We got a mini. Well my daughter has one.. And i like the format..
Zooming in is so easy and smooth on ipad so i don't mind doing it.
It just looks so easy to take it along when leaving the house.. I don't know if i really need to do that myself.

When in store i don't feel comfortable enough to analyze the unit.
I feel like a thief, or at least i imagine that the staff think i am one when playing with the unit to long

 

[Cyloncat]

Unrelated note - maybe my new mini won't have the deep yellow screen tint when I read iBooks this time around.

Second unrelated note - what's Sepia, and why is it turned on in iBooks my old mini?

Sepia is a yellowish, light-brown color, like old paper or old photographs. Some people like it better as a reading background, so iBooks and Kindle offer it as an alternative to white.

No idea how it got turned on in your iPad!

 

[bevsb2]

Sounds like bifocals might be way to go... if I read it right, I'd probably spend less time "hunting" for the sweet spot with the hard delimiter between focal ranges? (Sort of what happens now with current glasses)

When I had to use glasses for the first time I was around 40. I thought bifocals would be easier also but found I didn't like the sharp cut off between close and distance vision with no mid range. The progressive lenses were a little harder to get used to, but once I did I preferred them for the more normal visual range they provide and after awhile your eyes find the sweet spot with no effort on your part.
I read and surf the internet with them all the time with no difficulty, but still can't handle the mini as even with retina the text is just too small to be comfortable. The Air is perfect for reading and surfing for me. I keep looking at the mini as it is definitely appealing, but when I try to use it in the store I realize it just won't work for me.

 

[Cyloncat]

When I had to use glasses for the first time I was around 40. I thought bifocals would be easier also but found I didn't like the sharp cut off between close and distance vision with no mid range. The progressive lenses were a little harder to get used to, but once I did I preferred them for the more normal visual range they provide and after awhile your eyes find the sweet spot with no effort on your part.

Which is why they offer a choice. Different solutions work for different people.

I was fine with bifocals, but when I passed 50 and trifocals became the next option, I balked. Hard. I decided to give multifocal contacts a try, and they work well for me. I really like not wearing glasses, although at home, when my contacts are out, I do use trifocals. I really don't like wearing them outside, though; they drive me batty and they really don't work for distance. (Mine don't, anyway.)

Multifocal contacts are kind of weird; different focusing strengths are concentric, like rings, but you only see those at night, with point light sources. However, your brain has to relearn how to focus and integrate images; it takes a few months. Night vision takes longer. They are also frequently fitted with "mono vision" in which each eye is corrected differently, one for close focus and one for short-to-medium. Not everyone can wear them, and not all eye doctors are good at fitting them.

 

[AppleRobert]

While the resolution is the same on both devices, the PPI is different because of the screen size. From what I am seeing viewing websites, the PPI does't play a factor as much as the screen size as the text on the Air appears nearly as sharp to me as the rMini. The size of the font is so much better on the Air and viewing websites and reading comfortably in portrait mode is what I am after. I did say I browse ALOT.