Hacker News Reader

Comment by sheri | Hacker News Reader

Here are my observations:

- No one reads (books) on buses/trains anymore. Its very rare to see someone reading a book in SF in public transport. - No one looks around anymore. I seem like the only person who is looking out the window, or observing fellow passengers. I would say around 80% of the people have their headphones on, and are engrossed in their smartphone.

One funny incident stands out. I waked into Chipotle (restaurant), and everyone in line was staring into their smartphone. As soon as I walked in, everyone looked up, and in unison went back to their smartphone. It was synchronized enough to be like something from a parody.

I wouldn't say this is necessarily bad, just different than how it used to be. I have a smartphone, but not a data plan, so I don't use it outside of home. However, the maps and transit (to me) is a killer feature.

View on HN

I spend most of my public transport time reading books - on my smartphone. That is one of the features I'd miss most if my phone broke.

People are engrossed in their smartphones, but whether they're looking at cat pics or reading Nietzsche, you won't know until you ask.

> No one reads (books) on buses/trains anymore.

They do here (Tokyo area).

What's interesting is that a few years ago, far fewer people seemed to be reading; everybody was staring at their phone. Lately (within the last couple of years), however, this seems to be changing, and I see many more people reading actual books [this is helped by the fact that Japanese paperbacks [文庫] are almost perfectly suited for train reading, being small, thin, light, and flexible].

My guess is that the bloom has passed to some degree, and highly capable phones have become so normal that people are less fascinated by them, and more likely to see the tradeoffs compared to things like books/newspapers/etc. [and indeed, I seem to see more people reading actual broadsheets on trains lately as well]

That doesn't mean people don't look at their phones, of course; many do. But books are back, baby... :]

[This is all merely my personal observation of course; YMMV...]

I see lots of people with paper novels in NYC as well.

If I had to guess, I'd say that a third of the readers* on the subway are using paper.

*People I can positively identify as reading something, as opposed to playing a game - if they're using something like a Kindle, or if I see them looking at a screen swiping up or down at regular intervals.

... it's almost an art! http://undergroundnewyorkpubliclibrary.com/

I read on bus and train every day. Many other people do, too. I use my phone to do it, though.

Move to Boston, we read here.

I think he or she meant no one reads books printed on paper anymore. I certainly see lots and lots of Kindles and such in the subway in Boston, probably more than printed books now.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com