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New Kindle Oasis is Waterproof, Costs $249, and Has a 7″ Screen

Amazon has replaced its least satisfactory and highest priced Kindle today after a brief 18 months on the market.

The new Kindle Oasis looks a lot like the earlier model, only it is waterproof and will cost $249 when it ships on 31 October.

And oh yes, the new Oasis has a 7″, 300 ppi E-ink screen.

 

Amazon’s newest Kindle has what Amazon is now calling a 7″ Paperwhite display. It has a frontlight and touchscreen, and a screen resolution of 1680 x 1264.

Edit: found it.

Amazon never got back to me on the screen resolution before this posted, so I’m not sure what it is – I’m not even sure if that is a 7″ screen and not an improved 6.8″ screen  similar to the one Kobo uses on the Aura H2O. (We’ll have to look into this later in the day.)

At 194 grams, the new Oasis is bigger than its predecessor, and also comes with more storage – 8GB or 32GB – but it still has the same lopsided one-handed design.

Don’t get me wrong, I like one-handed ereaders – it’s just that with the first Oasis, Amazon got cute by dividing the battery between the case and the ereader, forcing you to choose between either a lightweight device with disappointing battery life or a heavy one with adequate battery life. Not only did this take all the fun out of the design, faulty connections between the Oasis and its case resulted in several early reports of battery issues.

Fortunately, Amazon fixed that problem with the new Oasis model, putting the battery inside the Oasis, giving it an acceptable life measuring in weeks. And according to Amazon, it’s IPX8 rated to protect against immersion in up to two meters of fresh water for up to 60 minutes.

According to the press release, the new Oasis does not have a battery case, and that’s great news.

What’s also great news is that the new Oasis has Bluetooth (and Wifi, obviously). And to answer your next question, yes, you can pair the new Oasis with a BT speaker and play audiobooks. The previous model had audio, but only for its accessibility feature – and that required a USB dongle.

The new Oasis is better in every way, and that includes the software. According to the press release, the Oasis has 5 levels of boldness as well an option to invert the screen colors to give you white text on a black screen. You will also be able to increase the size of items like the text on the home screen and library as well as the book icons.

Between one thing and the other, the new software features are going to make the Kindle a heck of a lot nicer for those with vision impairment.

Amazon has given us many reasons to buy the new Oasis, but if you have an older Kindle, you’re in luck: they’re getting the new software features in an update which comes out today.

The listing for the new Kindle Oasis should be live by the time you read this post.

Amazon

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Comments


Jim October 11, 2017 um 9:22 am

This looks like the battery works the same way as the previous Oasis. I have an oasis, and I must disagree that you’re "forced to choose" between lightweight and battery-rich. The oasis + battery is only 8 ounces, which is the same weight as a paperwhite. Not exactly heavy. Also, I take it out of the case whenever i want to read, then pop it back in the case when I’m done. No sacrificing battery for weight. It works beautifully.


vrf October 11, 2017 um 9:30 am

Jim, they seem to have ditched the battery from the cover and integrated it all into the device, now that it’s larger.


Rober N October 11, 2017 um 9:37 am

Still no warm night mode lighting like recent Kobos and virtually every smartphone and tablet offers? I’d love to switch my Kobo Aura One for a new Kindle since I prefer the Kindle store experience but I’m done with the Kindle’s harsh white/blue/gray light. I don’t understand why Amazon continues to be so stubborn about this feature when it’s such a cheap and obvious thing to offer. I leave the warm/yellow light setting of my Kobo on permanently and the lack of it is a major deal-breaker for me on this new Oasis. Oh well…maybe next year.


Steve H. October 11, 2017 um 9:43 am

Only missed the light temperature control for me! While I hoped for an 8″ model, 7″ is acceptable.I almost feel like they listened …One on order.
Question…Does it also have text to speech?


Frank October 11, 2017 um 10:29 am

I am glad waterproofing and a larger screen have been added, but a blue light filter would have been nice.


DaveMich October 11, 2017 um 11:00 am

audio books, or text-to-speech? There’s a huge difference.

Nate Hoffelder October 11, 2017 um 11:01 am

it supports audiobooks. That was clear in the press release and in the leaks

DaveMich October 11, 2017 um 11:02 am

Indeed, it’s audible support. Most complaints from older-model kindle upgraders is that text-to-speech doesn’t work. As I’ve said before, it does work for kindle fires. Anybody who upgrades to this because their old kindle broke and they want the kindle to "read them the book" will not only be disappointed, they’ll be royally pissed off when they they are presented with audible and it’s terms.


Will Entrekin October 11, 2017 um 11:08 am

Looks gorgeous. Pre-ordered.

Is light temperature that much of an issue on an e-ink versus LCD screen? I usually just turn my Paperwhite brightness down by half or more at night, and I’ve never had a problem with eye strain or sleep.

Those lamenting the lack of light-temperature adjustment — have you considered Gunnar glasses? I have a pair and love them.

Robert N October 11, 2017 um 11:21 am

I don’t need Gunnar glasses because most modern devices offer the option now. And, yes, it is a big deal. I own a Kindle Voyage and always kept the light very low at night but it ends up a sickly gray. I don’t find it enjoyable at all, or anything like a printed page. The Natural Light mode on the Kobo Aura One really is fantastic when you use it for any length of time and, let’s face it, the reading experience is kind of the main function.

It would cost Amazon next to nothing to replace their white LEDs with RGB LEDs like Kobo and others now offer. The Kobo can produce a clear, bright white light if that’s your thing. Or it can warm it up for those who prefer it. There’s really no excuse for not offering it in any Kindle refresh at this point.

Robert N October 11, 2017 um 11:28 am

And, honestly, since they are RBG LEDs in the Kobo, they could really take it farther and provide a setting to let you choose or define any color you like. The Kobo Aura One can be a bit orange/peach when the brightness is up and providing an option to define a color value would be trivial.


Javi October 11, 2017 um 11:10 am

Bigger screen… good.
Waterproof… good.
More storage… good but I don’t like "Collections". I would like to be able to insert folders full of books created in my pc. Upload 10.000 books to my kindle and create collections? no thanks…

I would have liked Amazon to copy the lighting system of the Kobo Aura One (Comfortlight Pro) but I think this kindle is a small advance.

The question I ask is will they someday bring out a kindle in color reflective screen? Electrowetting or ACeP? Next year? next century?


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John October 11, 2017 um 12:14 pm

The bigger screen and adaptive light sensor make this Oasis interesting, also the bigger battery and dispensing with the stupid case-battery arrangement are big pluses.
Still probably gonna stay with my first iteration Paperwhite till it dies though, and it’s still going strong.


DavidW October 11, 2017 um 12:58 pm

So a lower price, not forcing a bundle with a cover, larger screen, waterproof and bolder fonts… awesome. Preordered.


Alexander Inglis October 11, 2017 um 1:12 pm

It’s a tad expensive in Canada. The 32 GB model is CDN$490 — comes with cellular and no ads. The other option is 8 GB, wifi only, no ads $390. I love the Audible inclusion — now that Audible has launched n Canada — and the 7″ screen. Given the current Kobo Aura is nearly 8″ screen and half the price (no audio), or the Kobo New H20 is 6″ screen and waterproof (no audio) and the price of the 8GB model … the new Kindle isn’t compelling. If the price were comparable, however, I’d be in the market to replace my 6″ Paperwhite.


Javi October 11, 2017 um 1:32 pm

By the way, look in Amazon.com the photo next to "The firs waterproof Kindle". That’s a USB-C connection. Wrong photo, clear.


Vicente October 11, 2017 um 2:07 pm

New larger screen easily breakable… I will not risk such amount of money.


Void October 11, 2017 um 3:12 pm

Did they finally rig it to work properly with Calibre? Ie to import collection/shelf information so you don’t have to do the organization 1 book at a time on the ereader itself?


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Max October 12, 2017 um 8:22 pm

Something nice about my 6″ kindle: it fits (just barely!) in my shirt pockets.


Vikarti Anatra October 13, 2017 um 4:45 am

Recent Kindles support Cloud Collections so you can organize both Kindle Store ebooks and Personal Documents via www.amazon.com/myk


Tom S October 14, 2017 um 9:36 pm

The two 8th generation Kindles, Kindle and Kindle Oasis, are both getting Audible update:

“Audible will be available on the all-new Kindle Oasis via a free over-the-air update when the device ships—and it will be available via a free over-the-air update to Kindle (Gen 8) and the first Kindle Oasis in the coming months.”

This strongly suggests that first Oasis has Bluetooth after all and that the Audible update will turn it on and that VoiceView will not require dongle. There was probably no compelling reason to turn it on just for VoiceView, since anyone who wanted that had two much cheaper Kindles to choose from.

Recall that the FCC filing associated with the first Oasis included two devices, both tested for WiFi and Bluetooth. These were probably the two 8th gen Kindles that shipped.

Nate Hoffelder October 14, 2017 um 10:37 pm

"This strongly suggests that first Oasis has Bluetooth after all "

Teardowns suggested that was the case. They showed the original Oasis had the BT chip – what we did not know was whether it was connected or not.


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