Amazon announces new 7" waterproof Oasis with 32GB storage option

[newday07]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

thank you for posting it!

[Gardenman]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Sounds as if you're more particular about lighting than many of us. Do you really want to give yourself all the grief again? I have to confess that all the pictures that people have posted over the years showing bad lighting on Kindles have appeared absolutely fine to me. Obviously I lack discrimination .

I could never see any problem either

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by tdonline

My excitement was tempered by the 7 inch screen rather than a 8. But I'm back on the wagon after reading a post over at the e-reader blog. Basically that the Oasis has comparable actual text screen space as the 8 inch KAO since the latter has large header and footer footprints. So that about negates the biggest positive for moving to Kobo. The font and accessibility updates also negates my complaints about the PW's limited screen/reading options.

Since I'm an avowed non-early adopter, I'll wait for actual user reviews. I don't mind waiting if it means giving time to Amazon to iron out the kinks.

Actually, you're wrong about the KA1. The KA1 only has a header with kepub. While reading ePub, there is no header. Also, you can have smaller margins and smaller line height (depending on the CSS and/or the font). So no, the KO2 does not always have the same amount of text on screen as the KA1.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by issybird

*I'm not counting the mammoth DX.

The DX is like the first iPad. Looks good from the outside, but both Amazon and Apple made them too weak to actually be any good.

[tdonline]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Actually, you're wrong about the KA1. The KA1 only has a header with kepub. While reading ePub, there is no header. Also, you can have smaller margins and smaller line height (depending on the CSS and/or the font). So no, the KO2 does not always have the same amount of text on screen as the KA1.

Thanks JS, I appreciate this info, it's new to me. So if I'm reading Overdrive or ePub books, all of the above, applies to an out of the box KA1?

[booklover6]

Hey Amazon just posted a reply to a question on facebook -

Q - Anyone know if it has text to speech on the books that allow it? Or to have a book read do we have to order it from audible? If it has text to speech - I am all in!

A - A majority of books will allow Text-to-Speech to listen to the book. Only a few publishers do not allow it with their novels, but will opt for you to purchase an Audible version for a discount. ^MJ

I hope the Amazon rep was referring to the TTS being available on the device, since that is what the person was talking about.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by tdonline

Thanks JS, I appreciate this info, it's new to me. So if I'm reading Overdrive or ePub books, all of the above, applies to an out of the box KA1?

Yes, it's all out of the box with no patches and no hidden features.

With patches and/or hidden features, you can get use of the full screen.

[dordale]

To add a little more fuel to the Kobo Aura One / Kindle Oasis 2 screen available for reading debate...it's true that the Kobo does by default have larger headers/footers than the Kindle--except as JSWolf pointed out--with regular ePubs there is no header. But, offsetting that is the finer margin control Kobos have. I have both a Kobo Aura One and a Kindle Voyage, and I can set much narrower margins on my KA1 than on my KV.

That being said, even though I have an Kobo Aura One that I really like, I am very tempted by the new Oasis...I'm going to hold off for a while, at least until I see Mobile Read user reviews.

[Barty]

According to cnet review, you can't look at the text while audible is playing. Amazon is really missing the point here.

[WilliamG]

Looks good, but the case is a travesty. It only covers half of the aluminum back? One slide in and out of your bag and the back of the Oasis is going to be TRASHED.

Sigh...

[tdonline]

Hopefully there will be non-Amazon covers available pretty soon...$60 for a cover is too rich for me.

[hel]

Common tdonline, on Aura One you can easily remove header/footer and make a lot of other things you can't on Kindle Oasis since it is not hackable at all (for now at least). And moreover you can't say 8" is the same as 7", it is nonsense.

Bigger screen is better in a lot of cases.

But for me personally I read much more on Oasis than on Aura One. Just because it sits in hands better, lighter and has physical buttons. Aura One has a definitely better screen and backlight but still I read much more on Oasis. Aura One is the device on which I read bigger pdfs and technical literature (rarely), but for fiction I find my Oasis suits me better.

So they are simply different devices. I need both and I am not going replace them by one new Oasis. I think if you have an old Oasis you don't really have a good reason to buy a new one. Only reason if you really ebook-addicted and want a new toy.

[tomsem]

Originally Posted by booklover6

Hey Amazon just posted a reply to a question on facebook -



I hope the Amazon rep was referring to the TTS being available on the device, since that is what the person was talking about.

As an accessibilility feature, VoiceView does not care about publisher restrictions on TTS. If/when Amazon adds POTTS (plain old TTS) to the Kindle line, presumably that feature will respect publisher restrictions on TTS.

For example, on Fire, where both VoiceView and TTS features exist, VV will read out text on TTS-restricted books, but TTS will not.

I would not read much into the Amazon rep’s response in terms of whether or not TTS feature is planned for Kindle Oasis 2.

[wallflower75]

DANG IT, AMAZON!! I went three years. Three years without purchasing a new Kindle. I loved my Voyage. I still do. The other day, I thought smugly, "This is the longest I've gone without being lured into buying a new Kindle. Ha! I have at last overcome my desire to own the latest Kindles--I laugh at you, Amazon!"

And then you come up with a 7-inch screen and waterproofing. And my birthday's coming up.

Curse you, Amazon!!! *clicks buy button*

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Like recent Kindle models, it has "Voice View", which is TTS (in fact it's complete device operation via voice, for the blind).

If an alt tag is present for an image, will Voice View speak it?