It would be an understatement if we said the new Amazon Kindle Oasis has the funkiest design any ebook reader has ever had. This is the eighth generation Kindle launched by Amazon.
It has been called Oasis, because unlike all the other tablets available in the market, Kindle only does one thing – it lets you read books. You don’t get distracted by an incoming email or a call while reading a book on a Kindle, you will always be engrossed in the world created by the writer.
The new Kindle Oasis costs $289.99, which is definitely on the higher end. In fact, currently, it is the costliest ebook reader in the market. The good thing is that you do get a leather cover and an extra battery with it.
Unlike the previous versions, this new Kindle has a rectangular bulge on the side which contains the device processor and battery. It might look weird to some but, in fact, it’s very practical since this bulge gives a good grip as it concentrates the maximum weight into your hands. This makes it extremely easy for one-handed reading.
It doesn’t even matter if you are left handed or right handed, the accelerometer inside it automatically detects which hand you are using to read, and it flips the screen accordingly.
There are also two built-in buttons on the side which are also flipped according to the hand you use to hold Kindle.
But even with that, the new Kindle is 20 percent lighter and 30 percent thinner than the previous versions.
Coming to the screen, Kindle Oasis has almost the same display as Kindle Paperwhite. It has a 300ppi E Ink Carta screen and a 60 per cent increase in brightness. New diffractive settings have been introduced which help decrease glares for a better reading experience in varied lightings.
Last year, Amazon released a new font called Bookerly with Paperwhite, and following the tradition, a typeface called Ember was released with Kindle Oasis. Though Bookerly was made available for the other versions as well, we don’t know if Ember will be made available as well.
In case you don’t like the bulge in the new Kindle, you can use the leather cover provided along with the Oasis to get rid of it. The cover connects magnetically, and it also contains the extra battery we were talking about above.
As soon as you connect your Kindle to the cover, it will instantly start charging your Kindle. According to Amazon, the Kindle will have over nine weeks of battery life with the cover and a 2 weeks battery life without it.
The cover is available in walnut, merlot, and black, and it’s the main reason why the price is so high.
The new Amazon Kindle Oasis is undoubtedly the most powerful and advanced reader yet. Even with the leather cover, it’s extremely manageable and light. It will be available on Amazon from April 27th.
