Firmware Update Kindle Keyboard 3.4 Software Update Coming Out Today!

[Doitsu]

I just had a look at the actual fonts and found out that they were indeed updated. In addition to the previously installed fonts, the 3.4 firmware now provides additional Unicode support for a wide array of languages, most notably Arabic (without vowel signs) and Hebrew.
The main display font, PMN Caecilia LT 65 Medium, has been updated from
version 5.00 to 5.40. It still contains the same number of glyphs, but they added 339 standard kern pairs which should improve readability.

[civiliza]

I have just installed 3.4 via USB into an un-jailbreaked (jailbroken?) Kindle 3 and it seemed to go OK.

It is still connected via USB to charge it, but I "ejected" it from Windows then turned the Kindle off via the slider. For the first time since I received it the screen is blank.

What happened to the "dead authors" screen saver? Is this a one off or a "feature" of the 3.4 firmware?

EDIT - I turned it on and off again and the "dead authors" have returned. Guess this must have been a one off.

[Daveoc64]

Originally Posted by Vroo

I took the photos of the single line of text before update:

I think the difference is clearly visible.

Indeed it is.

The new font DOES look better on there. It's not a massive difference, but it's better none the less.

[ganburigan]

I installed FW3.4 to a factory-resetted Kindle3KB.
My usual jb 0.5.1 don't work any longer.
Anybody able to help ?

[Fred Vargas]

Anyone has a Special Offers kindle? After the upgrade my kindle dont show offers anymore and the screensavers is the "dead writers", this was my favorite change

[booklover6]

The update did not change my special offers.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I find that the soft keyboard on the Touch is much easier (and faster) to use than the physical keyboard on the K3.

Same here.

[xepe]

I think this would only apply to people that read in more than one language in their kindles, now you don't have to select a "primary dictionary" you just select the word and it would auto detect the language and display the definition.

Also the pop-up dictionary just got bigger, now 3 lines (vs previous 2 lines)

I think this is the killer feature in this update for me, I hated to change the "primary dictionary" everytime I switched to a different language book.

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by Doitsu

The main display font, PMN Caecilia LT 65 Medium, has been updated from
version 5.00 to 5.40. It still contains the same number of glyphs, but they added 339 standard kern pairs which should improve readability.

What about the condensed version? I'd say the most noticeable is the Sans-Serif font.

[Blossom]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I find that the soft keyboard on the Touch is much easier (and faster) to use than the physical keyboard on the K3.

I'm use to a touch keyboard. I actually do blog posts on my Fire so I can see me loving the PW once I get it. The K4 Keyboard is okay. Nothing I want to write anything more than a few words with.

[markdek]

Here's my question, and maybe someone smarter than me knows!!!

If the K3/Keyboard now has kf8, what features are accessible to the Kindle Keyboard w/ 3.4. Surely, they all are not. Will we get magnification, tables, etc.

I do know we get embedded fonts, but that's pretty basic. Question is, what else do we get.

And I'm confused, there are kf8 files (books) w/ .mobi extension, and also kf8 files with azw3 extensions. I tested a kf8 book w/ a .mobi extension, and it had embedded fonts......so what is the purpose of books w/ azw3 extension.

Lastly, should I stick w/ raw mobi books, or start buying/downloading azw3 books?

[soulfuldog]

Originally Posted by Vroo

I took the photos of the single line of text before update:

<snip images>

I think the difference is clearly visible.

It looks more visible in your photo than it does in my Kindle..... although in saying that, the following day looking at them in daylight I can see a slight difference now. Maybe it's just better in the natural light, either way, your pic shows it very well (but still more noticeable than on the two Kindle's I am sitting looking at!

[Doitsu]

Originally Posted by Blossom

What about the condensed version? I'd say the most noticeable is the Sans-Serif font.

All the main fonts display fonts have been updated. The condensed font now also contains 339 kern pairs and OpenType layout tables, which should improve readability.

Originally Posted by xepe

I think this would only apply to people that read in more than one language in their kindles, now you don't have to select a "primary dictionary" you just select the word and it would auto detect the language and display the definition.

This feature already worked in 3.3 as long as the book and the dictionary had the right language codes.

Originally Posted by xepe

Also the pop-up dictionary just got bigger, now 3 lines (vs previous 2 lines)

It’s also moves to the top of the page if you look up a word at the bottom of the page.

Even more important, at least for me, dictionary lookup now also supports non-Latin alphabets. I tested it with Russian and Greek dictionaries and both seem to work now.

[Harmon]

Upgraded my KK. Compared the fonts to the same book on my Sony T1. No doubt about it - the KK fonts are darker & crisper. Before, they were pretty much the same on both devices.

Didn't lose my jailbreak screensavers. Faster than it was before (archives deleted).

[badbob001]

Has anyone gotten Whispersync for Voice to work? I grabbed both the free ebook and audible version of A Tale of Two Cities but can't find a way to invoke this new Voice feature.