07-05-2025
Sol Straps An E-Reader To Your Face To Perfect The Lazy Reader Trend
Ironically, he can't see that perfectly-placed beam of light. Sol
Updated May 7, 2025 to include beta Kindle integration
If you've been on TikTok (or, more precisely "BookTok") you'll have seen them. People "struggling" with books falling as they lay in bed or holding tomes directly above their faces. They're "suffering" as they try and fail to hold books or e-readers for more than a few seconds. These are people who want only to lay as flat and still as possible while reading. They're the "lazy readers" and they've got hacks galore—from stands to articulated arms to special glasses with down-facing mirrors.
Sol has seen their struggles and they're here to provide the ultimate solution.
The Sol Reader is a pair of "cyberpunk" shades with a built-in E Ink display (technically two displays, but your binocular vision merges them into one). Put them on, open your book and the world fades away, practically no pesky muscle use required.
Sol Reader Sol
At first glance, the Sol Reader looks like a small VR headset or an oversized pair of sunglasses (depending on the finish you've selected—black, silver, gold, or dark blue).
This was the most flattering I could make these in the real world. Anthony Karcz
While I'm sure that Sol would like to call the Sol Reader futuristic-looking, I live in Florida and I've seen exactly this style of eyewear worn by cataract patients at my optometrist's office. The first night I used them to read before going to bed, my wife couldn't stop glancing over and giggling. These are not, by any stretch of the imagination, going to make you look cool.
Sol Reader, back, with remote Anthony Karcz
Flip it to the business side and you'll see a pair of lenses that look like something you'd see your optometrist use to dial in your eyeglasses prescription (Does this look clearer? How about now ?).
This looks way better in binocular vision, a few inches from your face Anthony Karcz
Unfold the arms, and the dual displays light up. Put the reader on (watch out for the surprisingly pokey earpieces at the ends of the arms), and those displays merge into a single 271 ppi E Ink display. While it's only around 30 ppi off your average Kindle, the proximity of the display to your eyeballs makes every missing nit stand out. The resulting output feels lower resolution than I'd expect from the specs. That's even more evident when you look at graphics of any sort (like book covers or comics).
But for reading books, 271 ppi is more than clear enough. You dial in the focal point on the lenses (anywhere from 0 to 5.75 — if you're nearsighted or have 20/20 vision you might not need to adjust them at all) and do a quick walkthrough to set your font size. There's a densely-packed display that has your eyes travelling quite a bit but is more like a standard e-reader page, a larger font size that only takes up the bottom half of the screen to effectively eliminate excessive eye movement, and a default midpoint setting that's comfortable without making you feel like you're reading a board book.
Navigating through a large library can be a bit tiresome, there's no search function (nor would entering things letter by letter via the remote be anything other than frustrating) but generally I could find what I was looking for in a few presses.
Speaking of the remote, it fits comfortably in hand and is refreshingly simple to use. Other than the directional arrows to navigate menus, there's a page turn/enter button in the center and that's it. You largely forget it exists once you start reading. The Software
While Sol has an ebook store, there's not much there (which makes sense, navigating publishing distribution contracts is way different than building reading hardware). They have a larger library available but only if you sign up for their "Beta Book Club" which still only gives you access to one book a month (while giving you credit to buy books once they're in the regular bookstore). As far as business models go, it's an odd one.
The better usage for the app, then, is to upload your DRM-free ePub files (like the ones that you downloaded from your Kindle before Amazon disabled the feature back in February ). If you have a large library, this could take a little bit of time, since you have to upload files individually in the app or 10 at a time on their web interface. Once uploaded to the app, though, I was able to download all 130 of my books to the Sol Reader without any fuss.
A quick aside — Sol is building their own DRM software standard . Why? Because they want you to be able to read the books you buy anywhere, but they also want authors to get paid. Sadly, pirated ebooks are extremely easy to find (which makes no sense to me when digital libraries exist). I'd love to see something like what Sol Reader is working on take root and be used by libraries so that you could easily read books you check out anywhere.
May 7, 2025 Update : Sol reached out to let me know that "Kindle Integration" is currently in beta testing. Once out of beta, this makes Sol Reader much more useful for a lot more readers who are looking to take advantage of the hardware. The Experience
Testimonials on the site praise the "immersion" and "movie-like" quality that Sol Reader brings to their reading experience. Obviously these are people who've never spent time under the covers with a flashlight after they were supposed to be asleep in bed, a book 3 inches from their nose.
While the reading enhancement benefits may be overstated, it is an extremely handy reader for when you want to read late at night when your significant other is sleeping. There's no light leakage and you can be in a comfortable, nearly prone position so you're shifting around less. It's the perfect thing to grab when you wake up at 3 AM, mind racing, and need to read a bit to divert your brain's anxiety hamster from its wheel.
Reading on the Sol Reader is comfortable, though you'll have to get used to moving your eyes around a bit more than if the reader was held in your hand. The First Edition reader is lighter than the original Limited Edition and has a redesigned nose piece for a snugger fit. It took some minor adjustment but once I settled in to a comfortable position (flat on my back like a true lazy reader) I didn't really feel the Sol Reader at all.
The reader does make it easier to block out environmental distraction (like a TV in a dark room). However, it can start to feel a bit claustrophobic after a while, especially if you've turned on the auto page-turn feature. While I appreciate wanting to "lock in" to reading, I don't necessarily want to be locked in. I want to be able to put down the book and think about phrases, take a moment away from the page to absorb what I've just read. Even just answering a quick question while you're reading is inconvenient. Who's Sol Reader For?
Aside from able-bodied 'lazy readers,' there is a very real audience for the Sol Reader.
People with degenerative diseases such as ALS or Parkinsons can have issues when it comes to keeping a book steady enough to read for any length of time. And it doesn't even have to be a major disability, hand tremors can afflict almost anyone at any age for a variety of reasons.
When all you have to have in your hand is a remote to turn the page and the reader itself is mounted on your face, there's no barrier to comfortably reading. Heck, you can set up the auto page-turn feature and you don't even need to use the remote. For those who've been kept from their love of literature by physical constraints, the Sol Reader gives back access to reading. Where to Buy
Overall, the Sol Reader is a compelling experiment. And while it may only serve a niche market, it does what it says it does and it does it well. You can order the Sol Reader First Edition for $249 on the Sol site.
