I hope you have noticed that in GMail you can swtich between different "density" modes. In your Inbox, click on the cogwheel on the right-hand top corner and select the second option "Display density". The "Compact" setting is actually rather dense. Although, it mostly affects the density of rows (conversations) in your inbox and does not scale e.g. the search box input field above.
Oh wow that is a stark contrast. yahoo.co.uk, yahoo.co.in, yahoo.co.id, etc. are all incredibly low-density as well. I have always loved the Japanese aesthetic, I wonder if any other cultures have a similar preference for websites.
Sounds like me. On the couch or walking around I'm at 10-12 inches away. I wonder--do people who don't prefer high information density hold their devices farther away?