$60 off Kindle 10th Gen or Oasis

[Gotadimple]

Hi,
I just got an 'exclusive' offer to buy either the 10th Generation Kindle Paperwhite or a Kindle Oasis using a $60 off coupon from Amazon. Does anyone know if Amazon getting ready to issue new versions of these devices soon?

- Rita

[tomsem]

I have seen no rumors to that effect. It has been awhile since the latest 10th generation Kindle shipped, however, I think the longest between generations we have seen.

E-Ink does have a slightly improved panel (has the touch layer integrated and they claim 30% increase in contrast ratio for B&W and 40% for color, with 15% improved saturation). It is certainly reasonable that Amazon is working on devices using these.

https://www.eink.com/news.html?type=...ar=2021&page=1

[binaryhermit]

I'm highly skeptical of them announcing a new kindle model before next year, and I'm even more skeptical of it being a clear non-incremental upgrade when they do so, to the end user it wouldn't surprise me if it's like a PW4, except with USB-C. Maybe with a (faster?) Mediatek CPU like the speculation due to references to Mediatek found in the GPL source code they have to release legally. Though that may have just been some code from Fire tablets leaking in?

EDIT: But a faster CPU pretty much wouldn't make a noticeable difference since the bottleneck is the screen's refresh rate.

[pdurrant]

40% increase in contrast for the Kaleido Plus screen makes a color Kindle more likely IMO. I'd certainly be tempted, depending on format and specs, of course.

[binaryhermit]

But Amazon has historically taken years to add features major competitors add.

And AFAICT no major competitor has a color ePaper eReader (Kobo or Nook, mostly)

[cvkemp]

When you can get a fire tablet as cheap as they are, I am not sure that Amazon can compete with color eink devices

[binaryhermit]

I mean, some people swear by eInk devices (disclaimer, I am one of them) but I doubt that there's enough demand for such a device.

Then again, Fire tablets are such a terrible experience...

[Gotadimple]

Thanks all. I'm currently using a 7th gen Kindle that works fine. I may upgrade because the coupon brings the price down to $79.99 for the PW - less than the basic Kindle.

[Deskisamess]

Originally Posted by binaryhermit

I mean, some people swear by eInk devices (disclaimer, I am one of them) but I doubt that there's enough demand for such a device.

Then again, Fire tablets are such a terrible experience...

I love e-ink for reading, and only use tablet devices for cookbooks or magazines. I've no interest in color e-ink...I don't need color for reading novels etc.

I agree about the Fires being terrible experiences. I had several different models starting with the very first one, and once I used a real android tablet and an iPad, decided the Fires were awful. So undependable, constant reboots and resets to keep them working, slow, glitchy.

The last one we had was a refurbished Fire HD 8.9", and it wouldn't even run Netflix correctly. Just absolute garbage.

The 7" HDX had a beautiful screen, and was a decent tablet. But Amazon got cheap after that one.

[binaryhermit]

Honestly, I suspect an eReader with Android would be less laggy than a Fire tablet, and less ad-infected as well.

[tomsem]

Amazon long ago gave up on promoting Fire tablets as reading devices (only the first few generations were called Kindle Fire). They would not compete with a quality color e-reader (which would be much lighter and have much better battery life).

That said, Fire tablets are a good value, and I like the new streamlined desktop. The ads are not at all intrusive, you’re talking mostly just about the Lock Screen. Turn off all the notifications.

[Badcatalex]

Originally Posted by tomsem

Amazon long ago gave up on promoting Fire tablets as reading devices (only the first few generations were called Kindle Fire). They would not compete with a quality color e-reader (which would be much lighter and have much better battery life).

That said, Fire tablets are a good value, and I like the new streamlined desktop. The ads are not at all intrusive, you’re talking mostly just about the Lock Screen. Turn off all the notifications.

Yeah, I agree. But I removed ads on mine, a Fire 7 2019. The experience has much improved since the days of the heavy skin with a carousel for media, and it is pretty fast. For the record, I own also the original Kindle Fire HD 7 and the 2013 version, so I should know at least something. These days the UI is extremely close to stock, and it's not as bloated as it used to be. Plus it's super easy to put Google Apps on the newer (Lollipop onwards based) versions, all you need to do is install a few APKs and then it works perfectly.