The hardware buttons for the page turn are the essential feature i love about my Kindle Keyboard (3rd Gen).
The integrated lighting is nice, but not really the kind of innovation that i wish the market leader in e-books would be capable of and nothing i'd buy a new one for.
I'd instantly buy another Kindle if they had a color e-ink version like the Jetbook color, or that prototype that e-ink showed on the 2011 IFA.
"Nothing I'd buy a new one for." Exactly my thought. I'll continue to use (and love) my Kindle Keyboard everyday.
This makes me worry about Amazon's future in the ereader space. The Touch is gone, replaced with this for $139 sans offers. The capable Kobo Touch and Nook Touch are $99.
$40 for a light and whiter background? I'll continue to use my $4.50 clip-on light, thanks.
Kindles aren't at the head of the price versus performance curve anymore.
I agree w/r/t hardware buttons. My wife has a Kindle Touch, and I find it nigh unusable from a UI standpoint, since there is so little feedback after touching the screen to turn the page, especially with PDFs. (Did I accidentally flip backward? Did the software crash again?)
Does every product launch have to be about replacing existing gear? Our expectation that good products need to replace what we have seems pathological. I have friends with first gen iPhones that they love. I've subsisted on a ten year old Nokia before...
I agree. I wrote the following after having used my Kindle Keyboard for a few weeks:
What’s really remarkable about the device is how relaxing it is to use. ... The e-ink screen, at the cost of some functionality and elegance, is not only relaxing to the eyes, but also completely kills the low-grade but omnipresent anxiety of a touch screen. Which means you don’t have to worry about triggering a destructive action by accidentally brushing the screen somewhere and grip-placement is a lot less restrictive, i.e. if it’s most comfortable to hold by a corner of the actual screen, you can. The physical buttons mean that you know for sure when you’ve made an input. And the incredible battery life means I have literally never had to think about charging the device. I plug it in to sync to Instapaper (more on this later) often enough that I’ve never even come close discharging the whole battery, even on long trips. And while you get used to having to deal with all of these things using a modern smartphone, once you don’t have to anymore the immersiveness of the reading experience is truly unmatched.http://blog.byjoemoon.com/kindle
I really feel like in some contexts (reading device, cars) touch screens are more gimmick than feature.
I think they are less concerned about making people buy another kindle than getting a kindle into the hands of everybody. They make money with selling ebooks.
Agree, being an owner of a Kindle Touch I am occasionally frustrated by its refusal to acknowledge I want to change pages. There are times where I simply turn it off and on just so I can page change.
Still, I think I have some gifts for Christmas. While this might not be enough for me to upgrade it will be a nice gift for a few relatives I know who love to read.
I am however more interested in their other tablets as children's gifts.
On a side note, I will give Amazon credit for making a resilient device. I left mine out overnight and it got caught in a full down pour. Found it on the table outside with water to the brim. Shook it out, put it port side down in the bathroom sink with a hair dryer aimed at it for the morning and the damn think still works as well as day one.
Just keep in mind that most real books you read are printed on recycled paper that's beige, creme, off-white, somewhat yellow, grey, or a little brown anyway. The only "white paper" you actually read would be computer printouts.
I've never had a problem with "real books" and wished they were printed on "white paper" instead, nor have I ever complained about the Kindle display - it was always more than adequate in terms of contrast and colors. It's just the goddamn lag (esp. in the touch screen edition, which makes it so infuriating because of the lack of both tactile and visual feedback). So I'm inclined to just call this a marketing ploy.
I wouldn't call it a ploy. They are trying to improve the readability of the characters on-screen. Books have very dark lettering, so the beige paper doesn't matter. E-ink, on the other hand, is still working on darkness, and so increased whiteness of the background can be used to bolster contrast.
I have a ereader from Asus that has a slightly yellow, slightly grey screen. I don't know exactly how to describe the color, but it looks like a piece of paper.
I completely agree. I only accept reading technical whitepapers because I have to. When I'm reading for comfort, I don't want my eyes subjected to a harsh white (which is what I feel is implied by them focusing on how white it is). I'd have to see it in front of me to be comfortable saying I could replace my non-lit, non-white screen ereader. If it's pure white, it's a no-go for bedtime reading with sleepy eyes.
I think the difference is that the kindle isn't a "real book" if real books were printed on perfectly white paper (that wasn't glossy) they would easily show up any marks or finger prints on the pages making it distracting to read in the future. This isn't an issue with the Kindle.
It's also possible that off white paper is cheaper to produce which made it the choice for mass produced books for many years leading to us being more comfortable with it than alternatives.
All that being said I've never had a problem with the contrast of the Kindle but that doesn't mean I won't be happier with the new high contrast version, once I get in my hands for a few weeks and read in different lighting conditions then I'll know for sure.
My biggest concern is the page turning of this latest version...
looking at non-marketing pictures of the new kindle [1], it looks like the screen is about the same colour as a paperback page. The real advantage of the white seems to be that the front-lighting is a warm white light, not the bluish light that the nook uses.
One thing that is really interesting to me is battle of spec marketing and how Amazon is really managing to outdo its competitors here.
As far as I can tell the Kobo Glo and the Kindle Paperwhite use the same new display and lighting technology. However Amazon has christened theirs as the "Paperwhite" and so several sites I have read have discussed how kobo has released a competitor but it uses the "older e-ink pearl" technology. If anyone has some clarification about the displays I would happy to get more detail, but from the matching resolutions, to the similar device photos on their respective websites, to the description of how the front-lighting is achieved lead me to believe that Amazon is using commodity e-ink technology available to everyone else and christening it as a revolution.
Their other claim is that they get 8 weeks of battery life with the light enabled. Closer reading of the small print reveals that this is going by 30 minutes of reading a day, for a grand total of 870.5 = 28 hours of reading with the light. On their site Kobo claims 55 hours of use with the light on. Amazon does not say in their comparison if the light stays on for the whole 8 weeks, or just while it is being read. But either they have achieve an incredible breakthrough in battery life to allow for 8724 hours of lights or their battery life is 1/2 that of a competitor. Regardless I have seen several sites claiming that Kobo has some serious catching up to with "only" 55 hours of battery.
Anyway, just the usual specs jockeying between tech companies, but in this case as an owner of a kobo I was intrigued by the details as I have experience with one of their competitors. Always interesting to see what gets reported unchecked and what doesn't.
I was thinking of buying a Nook Glowlight because I often read in bed while my partner sleeps. But when I went to check it out in the store, the contrast is noticeably worse on the Glowlight, to the point where I decided not to get one. If this new Kindle can read epubs, has a light, and has contrast that's at least as good as a regular Kindle, I'm sold.
Edit: I know I can convert files, but it's a big pain to be constantly converting a big library, especially since I very often correct ebooks in Sigil.
No you can't. There's often delays in highly desired products, not to mention they stop their entire storefront when doing product launches ("We'll be right back!", but I won't since I can't order it right now). At least I can still use Amazon.com to order things.
Exactly. I don't even care if they're not selling it yet, at least have an informational screen up. I just went there to look up the specs on the new Kindle Paperwhite (weight, mostly) and the product isn't even mentioned anywhere on their site.
I'm excited. I have to admit that I really like the Nexus 7, but I can't really get into fiction books unless I see them on something that looks like paper. I can't really explain it, but I'll probably be purchasing one of these things. If only Google Play Books worked on the Kindle :)
I have the same unexplainable perspective on long-form fiction on LCDs, but I think I've actually isolated the hangup: It's the backlight timeout. I don't care whether the light is coming through or bouncing off the screen (your eyes can't actually tell the difference!), but it's the psychological effect of having a clock constantly counting down to when the screen will shut off, requiring that I spend no more than a certain amount of time reading each page.
212 PPI could be revolutionary in viewing non-text documents on an e-ink screen. The current Kindle is basically unusable for PDFs unless you have a DX. It might still be too low of a DPI, but it has to be a major improvement and right now most PDFs are just BARELY unreadable.
Probably one of the most interesting features of the new Kindle Paperweight is this: "The display has 62 percent more pixels, and it’s super sharp with excellent contrast". There haven't been any new breakthroughs in the eInk department since B&N Nook Simple Touch and Kindle 4.
The higher resolution was pioneered by iRiver one year ago, the frontlit screen by Barnes and Noble 4 months ago. And the combination of both by Kobo yesterday.
I posted a longer comment about this last night[1], but the short version is: Amazon is clearly much more interested in profiting from content than hardware. That means they want cheap devices that people will take everywhere and read lots of books on. The Kindle DX is less portable (and thus you're less likely to take it on your commute, etc), and its main advantage is for reading PDF's, on which they make money.
So I think it will be an expensive second-class citizen for the forseeable future. It's not in their interest to change that.
It looks like if you preorder by September 14 you can avoid sales tax in CA! I checked on some other preorder items that will not ship before Amazon starts charging CA tax.
How far off is the technology to combine this type of screen with your typical LCD tablet screen?
I would love to read on a "paperwhite" screen, and watch movies/surf on a standard tablet screen, all on one device.
The backlight is a huge upgrade - I have wanted this for years. And a sharper screen is always great. I bought a $79 Kindle last year (over the Touch) because it was smaller and had physical page turn buttons. I'm probably going to upgrade as soon as this is actually available.
I'm not crazy about the lack of physical buttons, but I'm sure I'll get used to it.
Color e-ink would be great, but from what I hear, the performance just isn't there yet. Hopefully next year.
Exactly. It makes the contrast, one of the selling points, more noticeable than if everything around it was white. The black case of the previous kindle was in my opinion a very good design choice.
I can tell you the main reason I bought the 3G version of my Kindle (since re-named the Kindle Keyboard 3G) was to get the white case instead of black.
The press conference is thin on some details, like refresh rate of the new screen, but I'm really excited about this. Higher contrast, long battery life, backlight..
I will order two. I haven't had a kindle for a year or so, but I'll use this in bed at night when I don't want bright screens / work intruding on my reading.
I'll probably get one, I just got the most recent kindle touch after selling the 2nd generation kindle for it. Looks like I'll be moving on to my 3rd kindle.
There's something about the price point that really sells me on these...$120 doesn't seem like a big deal, specially if I sell my current generation, it only ends up costing maybe ~$50 to upgrade and reading on an ultra light kindle is a lot more comfortable to me than an iPad or physical book.
It sounds like they wont have a non-touch model this time though. I like all the new features but I would probably go back to a non-touch screen if they offered it. I tend to hit the screen too often by mistake and end up losing my place.
There were both touch and non-touch Kindle e-ink readers announced. The non-touch Kindle does not have the "Paperwhite" screen but it is super fast and light weight, and it's now $69...
I've been waiting to take my Kindle Paperwhite home for some time now; I love the front-lit screen.
Why nobody is excited about size of new Fire? To me 7" is cute and all pockety, but it is still too small to feel confortable doing stuff on it. 8.9", on the other hand, is good compromise between small 7" and large 10".
I think this looks interesting and I will order one. The only thing that annoys me about the Kindle is that you can't set you own lockscreen image, even if you buy the non-ad supported version.
[+] [-] Roritharr|13 years ago|reply
The hardware buttons for the page turn are the essential feature i love about my Kindle Keyboard (3rd Gen).
The integrated lighting is nice, but not really the kind of innovation that i wish the market leader in e-books would be capable of and nothing i'd buy a new one for.
I'd instantly buy another Kindle if they had a color e-ink version like the Jetbook color, or that prototype that e-ink showed on the 2011 IFA.
[+] [-] eupharis|13 years ago|reply
This makes me worry about Amazon's future in the ereader space. The Touch is gone, replaced with this for $139 sans offers. The capable Kobo Touch and Nook Touch are $99.
$40 for a light and whiter background? I'll continue to use my $4.50 clip-on light, thanks.
Kindles aren't at the head of the price versus performance curve anymore.
[+] [-] colanderman|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] leoh|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] joebadmo|13 years ago|reply
What’s really remarkable about the device is how relaxing it is to use. ... The e-ink screen, at the cost of some functionality and elegance, is not only relaxing to the eyes, but also completely kills the low-grade but omnipresent anxiety of a touch screen. Which means you don’t have to worry about triggering a destructive action by accidentally brushing the screen somewhere and grip-placement is a lot less restrictive, i.e. if it’s most comfortable to hold by a corner of the actual screen, you can. The physical buttons mean that you know for sure when you’ve made an input. And the incredible battery life means I have literally never had to think about charging the device. I plug it in to sync to Instapaper (more on this later) often enough that I’ve never even come close discharging the whole battery, even on long trips. And while you get used to having to deal with all of these things using a modern smartphone, once you don’t have to anymore the immersiveness of the reading experience is truly unmatched. http://blog.byjoemoon.com/kindle
I really feel like in some contexts (reading device, cars) touch screens are more gimmick than feature.
[+] [-] Tichy|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] eclipxe|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Shivetya|13 years ago|reply
Still, I think I have some gifts for Christmas. While this might not be enough for me to upgrade it will be a nice gift for a few relatives I know who love to read.
I am however more interested in their other tablets as children's gifts.
On a side note, I will give Amazon credit for making a resilient device. I left mine out overnight and it got caught in a full down pour. Found it on the table outside with water to the brim. Shook it out, put it port side down in the bathroom sink with a hair dryer aimed at it for the morning and the damn think still works as well as day one.
[+] [-] firefoxman1|13 years ago|reply
Interesting, I often find myself swiping across my (3rd Gen Keyboard) screen wishing I didn't have to use those buttons to turn a page.
[+] [-] wamatt|13 years ago|reply
Slow UI or animations (ahem, looking at you iOS/OSX), are for me personally, a serious distraction to the reading experience.
[+] [-] ComputerGuru|13 years ago|reply
I've never had a problem with "real books" and wished they were printed on "white paper" instead, nor have I ever complained about the Kindle display - it was always more than adequate in terms of contrast and colors. It's just the goddamn lag (esp. in the touch screen edition, which makes it so infuriating because of the lack of both tactile and visual feedback). So I'm inclined to just call this a marketing ploy.
[+] [-] sliverstorm|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] freehunter|13 years ago|reply
I completely agree. I only accept reading technical whitepapers because I have to. When I'm reading for comfort, I don't want my eyes subjected to a harsh white (which is what I feel is implied by them focusing on how white it is). I'd have to see it in front of me to be comfortable saying I could replace my non-lit, non-white screen ereader. If it's pure white, it's a no-go for bedtime reading with sleepy eyes.
[+] [-] scottharveyco|13 years ago|reply
It's also possible that off white paper is cheaper to produce which made it the choice for mass produced books for many years leading to us being more comfortable with it than alternatives.
All that being said I've never had a problem with the contrast of the Kindle but that doesn't mean I won't be happier with the new high contrast version, once I get in my hands for a few weeks and read in different lighting conditions then I'll know for sure.
My biggest concern is the page turning of this latest version...
[+] [-] notatoad|13 years ago|reply
[1] http://www.theverge.com/2012/9/6/3295939/amazon-kindle-paper...
[+] [-] iandanforth|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jgon|13 years ago|reply
One thing that is really interesting to me is battle of spec marketing and how Amazon is really managing to outdo its competitors here.
As far as I can tell the Kobo Glo and the Kindle Paperwhite use the same new display and lighting technology. However Amazon has christened theirs as the "Paperwhite" and so several sites I have read have discussed how kobo has released a competitor but it uses the "older e-ink pearl" technology. If anyone has some clarification about the displays I would happy to get more detail, but from the matching resolutions, to the similar device photos on their respective websites, to the description of how the front-lighting is achieved lead me to believe that Amazon is using commodity e-ink technology available to everyone else and christening it as a revolution.
Their other claim is that they get 8 weeks of battery life with the light enabled. Closer reading of the small print reveals that this is going by 30 minutes of reading a day, for a grand total of 870.5 = 28 hours of reading with the light. On their site Kobo claims 55 hours of use with the light on. Amazon does not say in their comparison if the light stays on for the whole 8 weeks, or just while it is being read. But either they have achieve an incredible breakthrough in battery life to allow for 8724 hours of lights or their battery life is 1/2 that of a competitor. Regardless I have seen several sites claiming that Kobo has some serious catching up to with "only" 55 hours of battery.
Anyway, just the usual specs jockeying between tech companies, but in this case as an owner of a kobo I was intrigued by the details as I have experience with one of their competitors. Always interesting to see what gets reported unchecked and what doesn't.
[+] [-] acabal|13 years ago|reply
I was thinking of buying a Nook Glowlight because I often read in bed while my partner sleeps. But when I went to check it out in the store, the contrast is noticeably worse on the Glowlight, to the point where I decided not to get one. If this new Kindle can read epubs, has a light, and has contrast that's at least as good as a regular Kindle, I'm sold.
Edit: I know I can convert files, but it's a big pain to be constantly converting a big library, especially since I very often correct ebooks in Sigil.
[+] [-] robertskmiles|13 years ago|reply
One thing Apple gets right is that you can buy a new product as soon as it's announced.
[+] [-] stuff4ben|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] allwein|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] MichaelGG|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] brown9-2|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jrockway|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] mortenjorck|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] homosaur|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sahat|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ernesth|13 years ago|reply
So not a breakthrough by amazon ;-)
[+] [-] sireat|13 years ago|reply
Funny, spec wise this is identical to my cheapo $49 iRiver HD which I've had for a year. Some other readers have it too.
[+] [-] TylerE|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tzs|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pnathan|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jackowayed|13 years ago|reply
So I think it will be an expensive second-class citizen for the forseeable future. It's not in their interest to change that.
1: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4483305
[+] [-] atestu|13 years ago|reply
http://www.theverge.com/2012/9/6/3298468/amazon-kindle-dx-ki...
[+] [-] hasker|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] ghshephard|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jonny_eh|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jonknee|13 years ago|reply
Edit: Ordered. Should be here on October 2nd.
[+] [-] evandena|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] andyjsong|13 years ago|reply
Also I was thinking about buying something like this for my netbook: http://pixelqi.com/products
[+] [-] dlevine|13 years ago|reply
The backlight is a huge upgrade - I have wanted this for years. And a sharper screen is always great. I bought a $79 Kindle last year (over the Touch) because it was smaller and had physical page turn buttons. I'm probably going to upgrade as soon as this is actually available.
I'm not crazy about the lack of physical buttons, but I'm sure I'll get used to it.
Color e-ink would be great, but from what I hear, the performance just isn't there yet. Hopefully next year.
[+] [-] sadga|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] relix|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] MBCook|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vessenes|13 years ago|reply
I will order two. I haven't had a kindle for a year or so, but I'll use this in bed at night when I don't want bright screens / work intruding on my reading.
[+] [-] BryanB55|13 years ago|reply
There's something about the price point that really sells me on these...$120 doesn't seem like a big deal, specially if I sell my current generation, it only ends up costing maybe ~$50 to upgrade and reading on an ultra light kindle is a lot more comfortable to me than an iPad or physical book.
It sounds like they wont have a non-touch model this time though. I like all the new features but I would probably go back to a non-touch screen if they offered it. I tend to hit the screen too often by mistake and end up losing my place.
[+] [-] yajoe|13 years ago|reply
I've been waiting to take my Kindle Paperwhite home for some time now; I love the front-lit screen.
[+] [-] laacz|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bbq|13 years ago|reply
[+] [-] RexRollman|13 years ago|reply