9 Tips for Reading Ebooks on Your iPhone or iPad
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Most book lovers who also own iPads and iPhones have read an ebook on their devices at some point. It’s not exactly the same as reading a physical copy, but it’s a great way to save money and avoid the logistics of carrying an actual book around.
Electronic reading will always have certain drawbacks, but they could be well-mitigated if you follow some advice. Here, we’ve listed some of the tips you can use to improve your reading experience on an iPhone or iPad.
1. Read Your Ebook With the Books App
Your reading experience has a lot to do with what kind of reading app you choose. iPads and iPhones come with the Apple Books app, which is good enough to handle all your ebook reading. It supports downloaded ebooks, has its own book store, supports audiobooks, has a variety of settings to choose from, and, best of all; it is an Apple app that comes pre-installed.
And since it’s an Apple app, you can sync your books, audiobooks, notes, bookmarks, and highlights across all your iCloud-enabled devices using the same Apple ID.
2. Navigate With Bookmarks
If you’re using an ebook with no bookmark functionality, you’re doing yourself a disservice. Bookmarks in ebook readers work just like bookmarks do in physical books. Except, in ebooks, you’re able to place an infinite number of bookmarks.
With bookmarks, you’re able to jump to any bookmarked location immediately, making for way easier navigation. While most modern ebooks have an interactactive table of contents, there are some important parts of the book within the chapters that you might need to reference again. For instance, I use bookmarks to mark the pages with maps, so I can occasionally jump back there to check the map.
3. Use Dark Mode or Adjust the Theme
Ebook readers always have a menu you can use to adjust the book’s theme. Some of them even have themes reminiscent of reading on actual paper, while some have themes full of soft earthy colors that are pleasant for long reading sessions.
Most ebook readers, Books included, allow readers to change their theme between Light and Dark depending on what the default is on your iPhone or iPad. you’re able to reduce the light getting into your eyes byactivating Dark Mode. Even though you can always read in Dark Mode, it’s especially ideal for reading in low light.
4. Change the Font and Font Size
Take time to notice if you’re straining muscles near your eyes when you read. If you do, then the font might be too small or too large for you. Look for anAasign on your ebook reader; you should see options to change the font size.
You should also check the ebook reader’s options to see what fonts it contains. Go through them patiently, and you could find one more comfortable to look at than the default font.
If you’re using Books, you could adjust the font and font size fromThemes & Settingsafter tapping the menu button in the bottom-right corner. After you open it, tap the big or smallAto lower or raise the font size. If you want to change the font, tapOptionsin theThemes & Settingsmenu and change theFontsetting to whatever you desire.
5. Lower or Raise the Brightness and Use Night Shift
A good portion of your reading discomfort will come from light. iPhones and iPads automatically regulate your brightness, but you may manually adjust your brightness to find the best level for you.
You should alsoenable Night Shift. It’s an iOS, macOS, and iPadOS feature that reduces blue light in the evenings and nights. It makes the display look warmer and gentler on the eyes. We recommend this, especially for people who prefer to read in Light mode. Too much blue light isn’t good for you, and it can cause sleeplessness in some cases.
6. Adjust the Ambient Light
The last thing we’ll address regarding light is your external or ambient light. Here are a few tips you should consider:
7. Try Landscape Mode
Try tilting your device into landscape mode and reading like that instead. While this might shorten your vertical reading length, you may fit more words into a line. It’s great if you easily get lost while moving to the following line.
If you use an iPad, it’s better to read in landscape mode by default. iPads have enough width to contain an iPhone’s length. This way, it’s possible to get long lines and a decently long page as well.
8. Turn On Focus
Stop distractions on your device and minimize interruptions by turning on Focus. iOS and iPadOS come with their own Reading Focus mode.
Go toSettings>Focus,tap theplus (+)buttonin the top-right corner, selectReading, and customize your settings accordingly. To activate it next time, bring up theControl Center, press and holdFocusuntil a menu appears, and chooseReading.
Focus will also inform people trying to reach you on certain apps like WhatsApp or iMessage that you’re unavailable at the moment. it’s possible to also design your Reading Focus mode to allow notifications and phone calls from certain apps and contacts.
9. Set Up the Dictionary
Did you know your iPhone has a built-in dictionary?When you have it set up, you can use it in your ebook reader app to find the definition of certain words. Highlight the word in the app to open the contextual menu, tap theright arrowto slide through the list, and selectLook Up.
iPhones and iPads Make Reading Ebooks Easy
It may not occur to you at first to try switching to your iPhone or iPad for reading, but you wouldn’t want to stop when you do. It’s convenient, easy, and cheaper than buying and carrying physical books.
Also, iOS and iPadOS have various built-in features to make reading a blissful experience. You only need to know how to get the best out of them.
Though you can’t make any in-app purchases on the Kindle app, you can still buy and download Kindle books on your iPhone or iPad.
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