Brand new Oasis 3 just developed a vertical line across screen

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

Doubt it. Been buying from Amazon since 2004. They used better packaging back then. Heck, the product packaging of the PW2s and PW3s was much more resilient than the ultra-thin packaging for the latest PW4 and KT4 (don't have the Oasis).

They probably figured they save a lot more money cheaping out on packaging (labor, packaging material, shipping weight) compared to how much they spend on returns for damaged items due to improper packaging.

I've bought ~5 Kindles from Amazon this past year (stocked up during sales while they were still jailbreakable). As cringe-inducing as the packaging was (flattened Airpacs and all), none of the Kindles were damaged.


S/N: xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx

Characters 1-8 for model and revision

Characters 9-12 for manufacture date (x: year, xx: week, x: day)

Characters 13-16 for unique identification

From experience though, refurbs don't get assigned new serial numbers so the manufacture date might be a good gauge for new vs refurb.

I guess we will have to agree to disagree. No big surprise there...

Here are my serial numbers, partially obscured:

• #### #### 9 29 7 ##RC replacement
• #### #### 9 40 2 ##G2 original

So if that date scheme is correct, the replacement was manufactured in July and the original was manufactured in October. So the replacement is quite possibly a refurbished unit.

[pghaworth]

Originally Posted by OtinG

I guess we will have to agree to disagree. No big surprise there...

Here are my serial numbers, partially obscured:

• #### #### 9 29 7 ##RC replacement
• #### #### 9 40 2 ##G2 original

So if that date scheme is correct, the replacement was manufactured in July and the original was manufactured in October. So the replacement is quite possibly a refurbished unit.

so the RC at the end indicates replacement?

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by pghaworth

so the RC at the end indicates replacement?

No, that's just the unique portion of the serial number.

[pghaworth]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

No, that's just the unique portion of the serial number.

thank you

[NiLuJe]

Back in the day, they used to hold a reserve of units for RMA requests. Which might skew the MFG dates for replacement units, even if they happen to be "new".

The important thing is that you're happy with the replacement .

[pghaworth]

Originally Posted by NiLuJe

Back in the day, they used to hold a reserve of units for RMA requests. Which might skew the MFG dates for replacement units, even if they happen to be "new".

The important thing is that you're happy with the replacement .

very true, but besides that, is that the device be jail-breakable, but with the Oasis 3 that isn't possible. I am so sad, even though I love it, because I can't have my book covers as my screen savers. it's not fair.

[bookyboy]

Originally Posted by pghaworth

very true, but besides that, is that the device be jail-breakable, but with the Oasis 3 that isn't possible. I am so sad, even though I love it, because I can't have my book covers as my screen savers. it's not fair.

I do not understand - at ALL - why they won't let you use your own images or book covers as screensavers, particularly if you have a no ADs version.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by bookyboy

I do not understand - at ALL - why they won't let you use your own images or book covers as screensavers, particularly if you have a no ADs version.

Yep. This one should even be pretty trivial to do. Sadly, rather than user experience, they appear to be more focused on features related to increasing users for subscription services.

[bookyboy]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

Yep. This one should even be pretty trivial to do. Sadly, rather than user experience, they appear to be more focused on features related to increasing users for subscription services.

Yep - Reminds me of the fruit company also..

[pghaworth]

Originally Posted by bookyboy

I do not understand - at ALL - why they won't let you use your own images or book covers as screensavers, particularly if you have a no ADs version.

I don't understand either and it has frustrated me forever. it is the main reason I always did jail-breaking. Kobo lets you have them... so there Amazon!

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by pghaworth

I don't understand either and it has frustrated me forever. it is the main reason I always did jail-breaking. Kobo lets you have them... so there Amazon!

Um... that's one of the first things I turned off on my Kobo Libra. I absolutely don't want to see any book covers on the screen. And yet it's a feature many people love. Funny how different we are.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by bookyboy

Yep - Reminds me of the fruit company also..

I'm actually rather happy with Apple right now (as far as iPads go, at least). Latest iPadOS 13 brought Dark Mode, basic mouse support and USB storage support (sadly, only FAT32, exFAT, HFS and APFS formats). I only have Lightning iPads right now (will pick up the CCK one of these days) but the latter should be even better when I eventually upgrade to a USB-C iPad.

[bookyboy]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Um... that's one of the first things I turned off on my Kobo Libra. I absolutely don't want to see any book covers on the screen. And yet it's a feature many people love. Funny how different we are.

I'd like to be able to just use a folder of images.

I personally think it's nice to have a rotation of random images I select. Scenery, family - lots of fun choices.

I did that way way back when on a JB Kindle PW2 (I think it was a 2)

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

I'm actually rather happy with Apple right now (as far as iPads go, at least). Latest iPadOS 13 brought Dark Mode, basic mouse support and USB storage support (sadly, only FAT32, exFAT, HFS and APFS formats). I only have Lightning iPads right now (will pick up the CCK one of these days) but the latter should be even better when I eventually upgrade to a USB-C iPad.

Meh. Give me a Windows tablet any day (full Windows, not some hybrid form). All those things have always been available on my Surface. I can even run Calibre on it or any other desktop program. What's the allure of iPads, I've always wanted to know? Besides their being relatively small and light.

It's off-topic, of course, I apologize for that.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Meh. Give me a Windows tablet any day (full Windows, not some hybrid form). All those things have always been available on my Surface. I can even run Calibre on it or any other desktop program. What's the allure of iPads, I've always wanted to know? Besides their being relatively small and light.

It's off-topic, of course, I apologize for that.

Response under spoiler.

Spoiler:

I bought my first iPad (2011 iPad 2) specifically for manga reading. The Viz manga app was exclusive to iOS at the time and was the only way to obtain digital versions of manga legally. 10+ hour onscreen battery life is pretty great and the standby time was pretty unheard of for a tablet (weeks). The weight thing is also a big deal for something you're holding for long periods of time.

I tried Windows tablets (slate, convertible and UMPC) before I bought my first iPad and they were bulky, heavy, slow, prone to overheating and had poor battery life.

I've dipped in the Android and Windows tablet waters every now and then. Alas, Android tablets have largely been abandoned. Meanwhile, Windows tablets still feel like they're convertible laptops that require mouse and keyboard (something I'd only use when on a desk) or at least a stylus. There was also noticeable touch input lag on the Surface Pro (4 or 5?) and Lenovo 2-in-1 I've had to deal with at work. I often tapped twice on the display which end up doing all sorts of unintended things. The Windows app store is also lacking certain apps such as Comixology (the website version is a poor, low image quality alternative).

The iPad is primarily for entertainment with some minor productivity thrown in. I still use Windows desktops and I still bring my laptop on extended vacations or when I think I might run into things that would require a desktop OS. For entertainment though (comic/manga reading, forums, shopping, etc), I much prefer the iPad. After 8 years with an iPad, I'm very comfortable with it and have favorite apps and "workflows" so-to-speak same as I have with Windows. Unless Apple does something majorly stupid, I'm just not considering alternatives any longer. Happy enough to keep my Win desktop, Win laptop and iPad setup.

Originally Posted by bookyboy

I'd like to be able to just use a folder of images.

I personally think it's nice to have a rotation of random images I select. Scenery, family - lots of fun choices.

Yep, this is how I have my Kindle setup. Most of my fanfics don't have covers anyway.