What kind of screen would work best if you have vision problems?

[TeaTotaler]

I posted several months ago that I have been diagnosed with Keratoconus - a degenerative eye disease. The progression is unpredictable and I'm not sure how mine will progress. At this point I have difficulty driving at night but have also noticed difficulty reading books and computer screens.

 

For a couple of years I have considered purchasing a laptop to have more flexibility but now with my eye issues I am wondering if should just forget about it. I have noticed that most of the new laptops have LED screens which to me seem like they would cause more eye strain. Is there something I could do to make reading a screen more manageable short of having corneal transplants!!!

 

Would the screen on the iPad work better - I don't think an iPad would replace a laptop but if the screen would be better I may consider a refurbished one.

 

Any thoughts or suggestions?? Also, do you have recommendations on where one could purchase reliable refurbished laptops, if I decide to go that route.

 

TIA

[TeaTotaler]

:lurk5:

 

I'd love to get a comparison between the screen on the iPad vs Laptop (non Mac) even if you don't have vision problems.

Thanks.

 

 

I posted several months ago that I have been diagnosed with Keratoconus - a degenerative eye disease. The progression is unpredictable and I'm not sure how mine will progress. At this point I have difficulty driving at night but have also noticed difficulty reading books and computer screens.

 

For a couple of years I have considered purchasing a laptop to have more flexibility but now with my eye issues I am wondering if should just forget about it. I have noticed that most of the new laptops have LED screens which to me seem like they would cause more eye strain. Is there something I could do to make reading a screen more manageable short of having corneal transplants!!!

 

Would the screen on the iPad work better - I don't think an iPad would replace a laptop but if the screen would be better I may consider a refurbished one.

 

Any thoughts or suggestions?? Also, do you have recommendations on where one could purchase reliable refurbished laptops, if I decide to go that route.

 

TIA

[Mom-ninja.]

:grouphug: First, I'm sorry about your vision. Is there anything to be done?

 

 

I don't know about the screen differences/similarities between laptop and ipad.

 

I think I remember once seeing a screen cover for computers to cut down on glare. Would something like that help?

[Teachaheart]

I posted several months ago that I have been diagnosed with Keratoconus - a degenerative eye disease. The progression is unpredictable and I'm not sure how mine will progress. At this point I have difficulty driving at night but have also noticed difficulty reading books and computer screens.

 

For a couple of years I have considered purchasing a laptop to have more flexibility but now with my eye issues I am wondering if should just forget about it. I have noticed that most of the new laptops have LED screens which to me seem like they would cause more eye strain. Is there something I could do to make reading a screen more manageable short of having corneal transplants!!!

 

Would the screen on the iPad work better - I don't think an iPad would replace a laptop but if the screen would be better I may consider a refurbished one.

 

Any thoughts or suggestions?? Also, do you have recommendations on where one could purchase reliable refurbished laptops, if I decide to go that route.

 

TIA

 

I have keratoconus. I use my laptop several hours each day for work. I don't have an iPad but have used one a few times. The screen is just like my laptop screen only smaller, so I think that they would be about equal with regard to overall comfort and readability.

 

What kind of lenses does your doctor have you in? I wear sclera RGP lenses, which have given me the best vision I've had in several years and have allowed my nearly chronic keratitis to heal. This in turn has decreased a great deal of the light sensitivity I've dealt with, which means I can spend more time on the computer with less difficulty than before. It also means that my nighttime driving difficulties have lessened somewhat. I still have trouble in snow or rain at night though.

 

Some of the things I do to increase screen time comfort:

1. avoid letting my eyes become dry through frequent use of gel drops

2. make sure the screen's brightness is not at the highest levels

3. increase text size as needed to cut down on some of the ghost images, which is especially necessary when grading student essays

 

For reading books, I love my Kindle. I love books and thought I would never have an e-reader, but my sister read an article about how useful the Kindle was for people with vision conditions like keratoconus. She gave one to me two Christmases ago, and I could not believe the difference it made for me. The e-ink offers the perfect contrast for me, and I have benefited greatly from the ability to change the text size as needed from day to day.

 

I hope this helps you with your decisions. :001_smile:

[Slartibartfast]

There are also eyeglasses that are specific to eye strain due to computer time. They are yellow or orange tinted and really help reduce the glare from a white screen background. I've been thinking about getting them since I've noticed my eyes have been strained. I saw less expensive versions at Office Max, but I think you can get higher quality ones at the eye doctor. They are by Gunnar Optiks.

 

:iagree:

 

You might ask your optometrist, mine always asks if I want them.

[TeaTotaler]

Thanks for the hugs. Right now I just have to continue wearing RGP lenses which I have done for years. I will probably look into the sclera lenses and down the road I could have corneal transplants.

 

:grouphug: First, I'm sorry about your vision. Is there anything to be done?

 

 

I don't know about the screen differences/similarities between laptop and ipad.

 

I think I remember once seeing a screen cover for computers to cut down on glare. Would something like that help?

[TeaTotaler]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience - so very helpful to hear from someone who has BTDT. The doc I saw last July is an optomotrist and he did not suggest sclera lenses. I got new RGP lenses but they are so uncomfortable after a few hours that I end up wearing my glasses. I know that the first line of defense is wearing the RGP lenses but I can't much done when my eyes are red and strained. I am considering seeing an opthomologist for my next appt - preferably somebody who specializes in this condition.

 

I did get an ereader last year after much dragging of feet :001_smile: It turned out to be my Christmas/Birthday/Mother's Day gift because I could not make up my mind and kept telling dh to wait. Finally, when Amazon had a sale for the Kindle 3G last May, I decided to go for it.

 

Thanks again for your response.

 

I have keratoconus. I use my laptop several hours each day for work. I don't have an iPad but have used one a few times. The screen is just like my laptop screen only smaller, so I think that they would be about equal with regard to overall comfort and readability.

 

What kind of lenses does your doctor have you in? I wear sclera RGP lenses, which have given me the best vision I've had in several years and have allowed my nearly chronic keratitis to heal. This in turn has decreased a great deal of the light sensitivity I've dealt with, which means I can spend more time on the computer with less difficulty than before. It also means that my nighttime driving difficulties have lessened somewhat. I still have trouble in snow or rain at night though.

 

Some of the things I do to increase screen time comfort:

1. avoid letting my eyes become dry through frequent use of gel drops

2. make sure the screen's brightness is not at the highest levels

3. increase text size as needed to cut down on some of the ghost images, which is especially necessary when grading student essays

 

For reading books, I love my Kindle. I love books and thought I would never have an e-reader, but my sister read an article about how useful the Kindle was for people with vision conditions like keratoconus. She gave one to me two Christmases ago, and I could not believe the difference it made for me. The e-ink offers the perfect contrast for me, and I have benefited greatly from the ability to change the text size as needed from day to day.

 

I hope this helps you with your decisions. :001_smile:

[TeaTotaler]

I will look into these. I had never heard of them before so thanks for the link.

 

There are also eyeglasses that are specific to eye strain due to computer time. They are yellow or orange tinted and really help reduce the glare from a white screen background. I've been thinking about getting them since I've noticed my eyes have been strained. I saw less expensive versions at Office Max, but I think you can get higher quality ones at the eye doctor. They are by Gunnar Optiks.

[kathkath]

I tend to hold my ipad closer to my face than i do a laptop or desktop. Does that increase strain? I think the ipad is harder on my eyes than my desktop bc that is further away than the other 2.

[TeaTotaler]

Thanks kathkath - I will keep that in mind.

 

BTW, I still remember how you took screen shots of SWB's slides at the Cincy convention :D.

 

Are you going this year?

 

See ya. (I need to log off and fix lunch)

 

I tend to hold my ipad closer to my face than i do a laptop or desktop. Does that increase strain? I think the ipad is harder on my eyes than my desktop bc that is further away than the other 2.

[Allearia]

My Dh has low vision and works on computers all day. He hates laptops, the screen is too small. He likes a large screen, the larger the better. He has tried my iPad and really likes it as you can get closer to the screen, which is harder with a laptop - if you are typing you can't exactly put your face very close to the screen, they are usually lower so you can type so it is farther away and you are looking down at the screen. We are hoping to get him his own iPad soon, it seems it will be really great for more comfortable reading. He has a coworker with even lower vision who loves his iPad and uses it constantly.