Brand Kindle is the iPhone in the world of e-book readers. Our editors got the latest Oasis – the most expensive model offered by Amazon. Let’s find out in which direction went to change.
A few words of introduction
If you are going to buy e-book reader to choose a Kindle, and hundreds of brands mainly based on Android . In the latter case, the dominant approach “the more features the better,” which usually translates to less stability, cumbersome interface, shorter working hours and pushing into the background as the basic function, which is reading.
If readers Amazon manufacturer very carefully introduces new features and usually they relate to the same convenience of reading, not any additives (eg. new typefaces). It was not too far a situation in which you had the impression that the company only to the test new features. Always in the context of an update received perfectly working product and zero irritation.
on the dark side of the coin however is the fact that the interface Kindle’ów still not been spolszczony, the company sometimes aggressively promotes shopping at Amazon (in the end this was created reader), and support EPUB format as it was not so there is no (reigns MOBI and PDF). The free applications, such as Calibre, can, however, convert a book into the required format, and add the missing covers.
The Terrifying design
After seeing photos of the reader the network had, to put it mildly, very mixed feelings. One side of the wider and thicker, the other thin. Case not fully protect the back of the case and the obligatory need to purchase. Two hardware buttons to change pages placed with only one side of the reader. Asymmetry chasing asymmetry and the symmetrical Paperwhite III or Voyage I was disgusted. No eyesore.
When one reader came to me for testing and I took it to hand, resistance melted quickly. It turned out that the strange shape of the device is not a bunch of drunken designers only inflated ergonomics. Hardware buttons work much better than in the Voyage, in which after prolonged reading aching fingers, and palpation of the button in the dark is difficult. He came accelerometer, which allows you to instantly translate the reader from one hand to the other, keeping the thumb buttons under control, everything is smaller and lighter (only 130 grams – 50 grams less than the Voyage and 75 less than Paperwhite’a), despite the behavior of the same sized, high-resolution screen (6 inch, 300 ppi).
The quality of the
The very unpacking boxes is a great pleasure. Amazon accustomed users of their devices to the fact that although the boxes are small, there is in them an impeccable order. It is no different this time.
Construction reader erected on niezbierające fingerprints plastic, leather, suede and rubber-like material to improve grip in the rear. With shiny, piano panels that are easy to collect scratches they won thus pragmatism. Housing Oasis retain its aesthetic value long after purchase.
At the top of the reader find the switch and microUSB charging connector (cable is included, charger while traditionally run). For this we have two buttons to change pages. They are long and have a clear jump clicked. There is no question of an accidental change the page. On the back of the reader will find 5 more pins that connect to the spring-loaded pin cover, trailed to the reader a strong magnet.
I have not found any weak points of the structure, which uginałyby whether seemed disturbing noises. The housing is perfectly fit and you can see that the manufacturer has not spared on materials.
Brighter screen … no one knows what
Relative Voyage’a in Oasis the number of LED backlights increased from 6 to 10. She jumped brightness, which, however, already in the middle of the scale is quite sufficient. With stronger backlight can be seen uneven propagation light at the right edge of the device (with buttons), which may irritate those waiting for perfection. However, the more useful values, this defect is less visible. There is no dark corners at the same time as PaperWhite’cie (4 LEDs), but it sześciodiodowy Voyage is still wins the uniformity of illumination.
the latter also has a brightness sensor environment, which evaporate from the “Oasis.” Perhaps this is related to the use of the accelerometer and more multilateral work, at which the LED could be at a moment obscured. However, the loss (and the related manual backlight control) is felt.
On the plus side is, however, possible 100% off the backlight – previous models even set 0/24 minimally emit light, which allows operation in complete darkness , although not at a comfortable reading.
Cover with battery
the diminutive reader is holed up in a battery with a capacity of 245 mAh. At 1320 mAh in the Kindle Voyage, this result is not impressive. However, standard on the set of leather cover has the additional 1290 mAh, for a total of 1535 mAh. At least in theory, because in practice the cover constantly tries to recharge the battery in the reader, and it’s well known does not happen without a loss and can shorten battery life.
Sam reader stand about 8-10 hours of reading enabled 3G and backlight. At the time (with cover) measured in months not count. After sporadic reading to sleep during the week I got rid of more than 1/4 of the total capacity of the battery. Prolonged sitting at the ebooks I think the reader easily discharged in less than 2 weeks. It’s still not a bad result, sufficient to read 2-3 books, but clearly weaker than obtained by me on Kindle’u Voyage.
How to read?
Accelerometer clearly improved the ergonomics of reading the reader held in one hand. A substantial impact on it has a bulge at the rear side buttons. Fingers have nowhere to support, and when the tire of one hand, translate the reader to another and the image automatically rotates.
As you can see from the above description, the reading goes best with the reader unhooking from the magnetic latch cover, although, of course, can also read the pinned cover. This option I liked the reading of the reader in the horizontal position. Cover in this mode can even to some extent serve as a support.
This is what I read in the most comfortable bed, and a tiny frame around the text glad eye. Unfortunately, the accelerometer does not rotate the display to the level, so changing the display mode to be run traditionally, by the menu. Buttons to change pages can be interchanged – choose which one corresponds to the next, and that the previous page. At first I was surprised that the upper defaults to the next page in a vertical arrangement, and quickly changed. But when I started to read horizontally, returned to the settings of the original.
Where to get the book?
Despite being on the default settings, the startup screen Amazon persistently urges us to buy books in his shop will not find there Polish-language news. Sam usually I use the compare price e-books upolujebooka.pl, which collects titles of the biggest Polish shops ebookami. Some of them allows you to automatically upload books on Kindle. By registering reader we create an account, which is assigned a personal e-mail. By sending the book to this address, after a while it appears in the reader.
It is worth remembering that to limit spam, they reach the book only with our pre-specified e-mail addresses. We can change them on the Amazon management devices (available in English). Of course the book can also be sent directly from the computer, what helps free app Calibre.
It happens that bought in Polish shops in book format MOBI are not correctly displayed on the reader covers. The latter issue, as long as we do not want to use the manager Calibre, can be overcome by using a free tool ExtractCoverThumbs. After unpacking start the application, select the directory tree of our reader and press start. After a while, we have a menu full of covers.
Old-new interface
If you already have a reader Amazon and jealous glances toward the oasis in search of some significant changes in the interface , saddens you. Holders updated readers, they got almost exactly the same as the buyer oasis. The differences are limited to view the charge level of the two batteries on the beam settings and the possibility of converting the function buttons change pages. Differences should be sought in the hardware, and not on the menu.
More information about the changes in the interface of Amazon readers wrote in this article.
who?
with the price of the order of 289.99 euro a version of Wi-Fi and 349.99 euros for the 3G version (free data transmission across the globe), giving respectively in 1285 and 1551 zł, would definitely not recommend Oasis to people who are just entering the world of readers. This is a product for e-bokowych-timers, those who already have one or more devices of this type, who read a lot and expect the highest level of comfort.
Despite the luxury performance, Oasis after all, have exaggerated the price. Decent reader, which undoubtedly Kindle Paperwhite III, we get for the price even below 600 zł, and yet offers longer battery life and the same resolution screen (same sprezentował already two such a close). In turn, the Kindle Voyage, offering my opinion the best on the market screen in terms of uniformity of illumination, and the brightness sensor environment, it dropped the price to a much more reasonable 919 zł.
As a satisfied owner of the latter, I do not feel the need to update equipment. Apart from the fact that the reader is changing much less frequently than smartphones, but I should be afraid of unprotected elements of the cover of the housing and, unfortunately, addicted to automatic brightness adjustment. This does not change the fact that Oasis is the most pleasant to use reader with which so far had to deal with. Accelerometer and hardware buttons for a long time should be the standard in the world of readers.
Geek full fledged – because after all that has Bluetooth is better. By profession spec telecoms and photographer, privately multikonsolowiec and ebookoholik. How not sitting at the computer, it probably takes pictures.
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