AmericanAcademyOfOphthalmology
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Backlit e-readers such as iPad help those with vision loss
A study presented on Sunday at the 116th annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology says that tablets with backlit screens, such as the iPad and Kindle Paperwhite, help patients with vision problems due to eye diseases to read quickly and comfortably. In particular, the study points out that the millions suffering from conditions like macular degeneration or diabetic retinopathy can read faster and with more accuracy thanks to the ability to change the text size and increase the contrast between page and text. At present, many people with low vision need to use lighted magnifiers or reading machines to assist them, and those assistive devices slow down reading speed considerably. Patients in the study with the poorest vision who used an iPad set at 18 point font saw an increase in reading speed of 42 percent. The study notes that just about any backlit reader can help low-vision patients achieve similar results. [via MacNN]
