If the screen resolution is high enough, there should be no difference between a tablet and an e-ink ebook reader (I read in several reviews).

However, when I use my Android table (2560x1600) for reading by Adobe Acrobat, my eyes get tired soon comparing with Amazon Kindle.

I tried several bluelight filter, but it makes the color unnatural.

What are the best apps/ways to use an Android table for reading colorful PDF documents for long time without eye strain?


I think you misunderstand what e-ink is. It is nothing like LED or LCD pixels. Resolution has nothing to do with it.

  • Typical displays emit light. You can use them in the dark and they will light up your face.
  • E-ink displays reflect light, like standard paper. This is why they strain your eyes less.

As far as reducing eye strain with a non-e-ink device, try the following:

  1. Use bright text on a dark background. Dark text on a bright background (such as this website) is typical however many find it to cause more strain. There are apps that will invert colors of a PDF for you. Depending on the app, images may or may not be inverted. (APV PDF Viewer is an example, although I haven't tried it personally).

  2. Reduce the color temperature of your display. This means making the display's colors more "warm" (the colors are more red-ish), although after a minute your eyes will adjust and you won't notice. This can be done with an app (try Lux) which has the ability to automatically change the color temperature with the time of day.

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  • Good suggestions! I did not mean resolution of e-ink. It is said what causes eye strain with LED/LCD is low resolution and number of pixels. If the resolution of LED/LCD is high enough, it should be like e-ink or even paper. If adjusting the light, emitting or reflecting are almost the same from the optics points of view, as eyes can receive the same amount of light. However, as LCD/LED is designed for eye-catching brightness, the light adjustment is not in favor of long reading like e-ink. My question was about the ways for this adjustment. – Googlebot Dec 21 '14 at 20:48
  • Good answer. But the OP question is off-topic, being primarily opinion based. But excellent answer +1 – HasH_BrowN Dec 21 '14 at 23:27
