Paperwhite Second Gen: First Impressions

[fearindex]

Originally Posted by Josieb1

I bought a K4 last week but actually returned it on Thursday as I found it was no better than the K3 I already have.

My $69 Kindle definitely has superior blacks to the $79 model and definitely over Kindle 3 Keyboard.

But of course there was some discussion of contrast variances a little back, so it is hard to tell if all are equal.

There have been a lot of posts of increased text blackness in it, though.

[sirmaru]

Originally Posted by baggyrinkle

Somethings wrong here.

I keep staring at my new Kindle Paper White 2 and can't see anything wrong with it. Is it me, or am I missing something you critics are seeing that I cant seem to observe? I've diligently searched for pin holes with a magnifying glass. Loaded the test screens, solid and black and white, still I can't find any pin holes. Where are they? Sometimes I imagine that I am seeing some vague discolorations at the corners but they come and go. I can't decide if the background is sepia or white, depending on the level of the led settings. Surely, there are answers to my questions? How many PW's will I have to return to get that absolutely perfect one? Oh, wait a minute, I think I just observed some slight head lighting effects at the bottom of the screen. Damn, I missed that all along. Oh, and don't even ask me about fuzzy text. I'm not sure if its fuzzy or not. Sometimes it is fuzzy and sometimes its not. All the time I'm reading a book I am plagued with the thought that my Kindle may or may not be perfect!

Oh well,

Your eyes are really bad just like mine. Both of my PW screens look great and the fault must be my eyes. I'd probably miss a pin hole if it stared me in the face. I do have a large cataract in one eye and macular degeneration in both eyes but still muster 20/20 vision in both eyes without glasses or surgical correction. They must be defective and would probably fail the pin hole test.

[xendula]

Originally Posted by aceflor

I have alienated my dear husband to fly back to me with the two PW2s. Since he is only carrying a cabin case, he will need to make room in it so needless to say, he is not delighted (and that is a huge understatement). Now I am really worried about getting one (I don't even want to think of 2) bad PW2, because that would just really, really ruin the mood...

Good luck!! You got them for EURO 99?

[Chi Cygni]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

I also wonder if I did win the lottery with my perfect KPW1. No pinholes, no color blobs (and my score on Xendula's test showed that I would be able to see them if they were there ), no fuzzy letters, no light leakage to mention (about ¼th of an inch on the lower left, visible only in complete darkenss with the light set to at least 15 or so), and hardly any shadows on the bottom, unless I jack the light WAY up higher than the ambient light. In this room, it means I must set it to at least 18 to start noticing the shadows a tiny bit.

To be honest, if I was lucky, I'm happy with it, because "just returning a Kindle to Amazon" is not easily done from The Netherlands.Edit:Belgium

Yep, me too, sounds like my PW. I'm (for the upmteenth time) happy I didn't return mine. Perhaps the solution is to order one in August of the following year so it has all issues ironed out by then. I thought it was silly of me to do but in the end all the better. AND I have the font of my choice. I also examined it from all angles (sarcasm aside) and couldn't find a fault with it.

[Yolina]

Originally Posted by aceflor

I have alienated my dear husband to fly back to me with the two PW2s. Since he is only carrying a cabin case, he will need to make room in it so needless to say, he is not delighted (and that is a huge understatement).

I'm sure he'll manage, can't be *that* difficult to fit 2 PW in hand luggage.

Now I am really worried about getting one (I don't even want to think of 2) bad PW2, because that would just really, really ruin the mood...

It'll be fine, they've reserved the good ones for Europe

Here is what my PW2 looks like in a room with a table lamp as the only light source other than the PW2 light which is set at level 11.

EDIT: The text was modified to be bold so I can read better. There is dinginess to the screen which washes out text when it is normal weight.

[fearindex]

Originally Posted by jswinden

Here is what my PW2 looks like in a room with a table lamp as the only light source other than the PW2 light which is set at level 11.

EDIT: The text was modified to be bold so I can read better. There is dinginess to the screen which washes out text when it is normal weight.

I like that image.

The top half of the screen is clearly dimmer than the bottom half, but with your bold font modification, overall it is very nice. The bolder fonts indeed seem to hide the fact that there is unevenness. Also, I believe reading PWs in a lit room (even if just a little lit) is a major improvement over reading in unlit rooms. Unlit just brings out all the worst in it, at least on PW1. (Too bad I tend to read in darkness.)

Of course, this just from a photo on an LCD in the middle, hard to say how my eyes would perceive it in person, but overall I think your PW2 looks like a clear improvement over many PW1s I've seen.

[fearindex]

Originally Posted by sirmaru

Your eyes are really bad just like mine. Both of my PW screens look great and the fault must be my eyes. I'd probably miss a pin hole if it stared me in the face. I do have a large cataract in one eye and macular degeneration in both eyes but still muster 20/20 vision in both eyes without glasses or surgical correction. They must be defective and would probably fail the pin hole test.

Are you making fun of the people with issues with their PWs?

That's nice of you.

My PW2 has SO. If I get the "official" cover, or another one with magnet for turning the PW2 on when the cover opens, will I still have to touch the screen to close the ad and start reading?

[GoSharks]

Originally Posted by jswinden

My PW2 has SO. If I get the "official" cover, or another one with magnet for turning the PW2 on when the cover opens, will I still have to touch the screen to close the ad and start reading?

Yes you will. You can test this if you want to by placing a weak magnet at the lower right front corner- the kindle should go to sleep - then remove it.

Originally Posted by GoSharks

Yes you will.

Thanks, that is what I was afraid of. I don't mind the ad, but making me use two movements to actually turn on the PW2 sucks! Although it is a slight improvement over the three movements required with my generic cover if you count opening the cover.

[GoSharks]

Originally Posted by jswinden

Thanks, that is what I was afraid of. I don't mind the ad, but making me use two movements to actually turn on the PW2 sucks!

See my edit....

Yep, one of the reasons I went without SO.

Originally Posted by GoSharks

See my edit....

Yep, one of the reasons I went without SO.

I'll probably pay to get rid of the SO too, but I'm going to wait a few weeks to make sure my PW2 doesn't develop any issues requiring a replacement or return.

[levante]

Originally Posted by baggyrinkle

Somethings wrong here.

I keep staring at my new Kindle Paper White 2 and can't see anything wrong with it. Is it me, or am I missing something you critics are seeing that I cant seem to observe?

As I said before, my PW2 is perfect in every detail except one: It's worse for reading than my PW1 for its poor contrast. I bought a new kindle expecting a device better than the one I had. Hopefully the replacement will be ok.
I'm just a consumer who wants what Amazon announces: a reader with a more white screen and darker text.

[baggyrinkle]

Originally Posted by fearindex

Are you making fun of the people with issues with their PWs?

That's nice of you.

I think he took me seriously. My eyes are perfect after cataract surgery some years back. I guess you could say my eyes are satirical.