Reading the latest novel on an e-reader is much kinder on your peepers than doing so on a smartphone or tablet. Chinese hardware company Dasung is looking to bring the same kind of eye-friendly user experience to desktop computing with the launch of its Paperlike 253 E Ink monitor.

Dasung has been making displays aimed at reducing eye strain and fatigue for a number of years, but so far its largest E- Ink monitor has topped out at 13.3 inches. Its new 25.3-inch monitor looks to be already available on the company’s home turf, but to get it on the computer desks of users in the US, Dasung has launched on Indiegogo.

Dasung

Offered as an alternative to the often harsh LED backlit displays sat on the desks in many home offices, bedrooms and living rooms, the Paperlike 253 boasts a screen resolution of 3,200 x 1,800 at 16:9 aspect, has an adjustable refresh rate, and an anti-glare coating, and comes with a bunch of connection interfaces. These include HDMI, DisplayPort, USB-C, and a 3.5-mm headphone jack.

There no front light employed here, so users won’t be able to digest the latest newsfeeds before daybreak or hunker down for after-dark movie watching without getting some help from the household lights. There are three modes to choose from, one for text, another for graphics and another for watching videos.

Watching video content on an E Ink reader can generally be a painful lesson in frustration, but the refresh rate produced by the company’s Turbo chip appears to make the experience at least watchable, but not the sharpest or smoothest – as you can see in the demo video below.

Those looking for a supersized color E Ink display won’t find one here, it’s grayscale all the way. And unlike smaller E Ink displays from Dasung, the Paperlike 253 isn’t powered by the device it’s connected to but via a mains outlet. It rocks stylish aluminum housing, and comes with a height-adjustable VESA stand, and can be mounted to a wall too.

There’s about a month left to run on the Indiegogo campaign clock, and the company has already blown past its funding target. Pledges start at a whopping US$2,000 – which is 21 percent off the expected retail price – and if all goes to plan, shipping is estimated to start in August.

Source: Dasung