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Kindle Paperwhite 4 rumor!!

7K views 34 replies 18 participants last post by  Paperbackstash 
#1 ·
#3 ·
As described, I'll order two ASAP. My dream is that it will have USBc with rapid charging. My only USB micro devices are Kindles and I could pass a load of USB micro cables and charges onto others.

If the new Paperwhite doesn't fit  in the existing Paperwhite case, I hope Amazon Kindle abandons the idea that cases need to be cutesy or for personalization of the device. They're to protect the device and make handling easier.
 
#4 ·
Since it looks like the Voyage is going away altogether, I won't be surprised if some of the Voyage features end up in the new PW -- like the flush vs inset screen, thinner profile, and lighter weight.

As to cases, yeah, primarily they're for protection. But lots of people -- probably most -- also want them to be a bit of a way to personalize the device. Amazon sees the cases as an additional money maker but there will be third party options available pretty quickly -- probably less expensive and with more color/pattern options. :)
 
#5 ·
Ann in Arlington said:
Hmmmm. Interesting. I've never had a problem with the whiteness of the screen but, whatever.

I guess we'll see in a few months!
I never really had a problem with the tint of any of my Kindles either... currently using the Oasis 2. But I do have the nook Glowlight 3 with blue light filter and I use the filter on the auto setting. This slowly reduces blue light throughout the day. By 5 or 6pm it's completely sepia. Or almost Orange. I like the effect. Its comforting and they say it's better for sleep paterns but I dont know how true that is. I DO get a good night's sleep most of the time but that remains true whether I use my Oasis, nook or iPad.

I'm all for changes to the Kindle that may make it healthier to use, but skeptical, also, that it might just be a gimick...

My hope is really for a substantially thinner design. I'll probably get one no matter what though... just to test it out.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk
 
#7 ·
I am intrigued by the report of 17 LEDs of various colors and curious as to when and how the reader will adjust color. 

Blue light filters appear to be a technological flavor of the month (recognizing it has been over a month such features have been pushed on cell phones, etc.). 

 
#8 ·
The main point of interest for me there is that the Voyage will be phased out. As someone who dislikes intensly the aysmetrical design of the Oasis, not to mention the return of the page buttons, I was happy to stay with my Voyage, though concerned it might be left behind with the advent of new features. It didn't occur to me that it would be discontinued in favour of the Paperwhite.

The current Paperwhites (I have issues 1 and 2) are larger and heavier than the Voyage. If this doesn't change with future Paperwhites, and with support for the Voyage being withdrawn, I may eventually find myself having to take a step backwards to a more unwieldly model. I used to be very happy to keep updating my Kindles to the latest model but I've felt excluded from the excitement of new models since the advent of the O1 and O2 - and it looks like that might be set to continue. The Oasis models seem to have been successful so it's unlikely that Amazon will change the design of their flagship model any time soon and any Voyage fans like me who don't want an Oasis will have to revert to a Paperwhite if they need a new Kindle or want the latest features. (Though I'm really not in the least bit interested in the proposed new lighting features).

I'm too heavily invested in the Amazon / Kindle eco system to change now but I feel like in future I may just have to 'settle' for a Kindle I'm not very excited about.  :(
 
#11 ·
The Voyage is actually a really nice device. If it wasn't for the thin bezel that make it hard for me to hold and change pages with the not-buttons, I would still use it exclusively. I still use it here and there, just depends on what room I in. The shape of it is nice with the slanted edges and its solid and unlike the paperwhite with the non level screen, its easy to take care off. We only have a first gen PW in the house and I always hated that thing. The light on in is atrocious, but hubby doesn't mind. Its his now.  ;D

I wish the new Oasis had a battery life like the Voyage, it would be about perfect then. But that still bugs me. I actually went back for the time being to the old Oasis as I have 2 charge covers for it so it lasts me a lot longer that way. I mainly did that because I misplaced my new Oasis and it took me a while to find it. I put it on a shelf and something was put over it so I didn't see it.
But I now have to read the old Oasis in its cover at all times as the batter in the device itself is not holding a charge anymore. So I treat it as one unit. Its still pretty light though.

But yeah, if the Voyage had wee larger bezels and buttons I could actually press and feel, it would be perfect. My favorite buttons though are the ones from the K3 and the old basic I have. That basic is so pleasant to use with the buttons on the edge of the device. But it has no light, so there is that. And none of the features I so got used to now.

Instead of getting rid of the Voyage, they should like some of you said, put some of the Voyage features into a paperwhite. Flat screen, shape like the Voyage. Heck they could still have the thumb farts on it so it would please a larger population. Or how about keep the Voyage, make it as cheap as the Paperwhite and get rid of the Paperwhite.  ;D
 
#13 ·
This is all interesting. I had the first PW and wasn't much impressed, although I liked the light too much to go back to my KK. For me the problem was that it was all touch. My actual preference would be a whole lot more buttons even than the Oasis. Home, Settings, and Aa, for instance.

Anyway, the Voyage was the only model I ever really disliked and part of that was the blinding white screen. I really appreciate the softer, mellower Oasis screens (have both O1 and O2). The fake buttons were a constant aggravation too, of course. If you're going to have buttons, have them. If not, don't pretend, and let buyers choose to buy or not. I'd have sent the Voyage back when I got it, but I'd already donated the PW and felt stuck.
 
#14 ·
Ah yes, home button. The other day I sat on the balcony and took my older basic kindle with buttons with me. It was so nice to have a home button and my beloved progress bar. I still miss that thing so much. Still the best way to get an idea where in the book I am and the forward and back arrows are so much easier to go through the chapters too.

But yeah, no constant 2 step tapping the screen just to go home. Only thing that was hard to deal with was the no sorting by recent in the archive. Took me a while to find the book I had started on the Oasis since that sort is missing on the older devices. Those 4 buttons on the old basic are perfect, they don't take up any space either. I don't mind touch for other stuff, but for basic navigation during reading, they just work so much better for me. More intuitive.

Now get off my lawn.
 
#15 ·
ellenoc said:
This is all interesting. I had the first PW and wasn't much impressed, although I liked the light too much to go back to my KK. For me the problem was that it was all touch. My actual preference would be a whole lot more buttons even than the Oasis. Home, Settings, and Aa, for instance.

Anyway, the Voyage was the only model I ever really disliked and part of that was the blinding white screen. I really appreciate the softer, mellower Oasis screens (have both O1 and O2). The fake buttons were a constant aggravation too, of course. If you're going to have buttons, have them. If not, don't pretend, and let buyers choose to buy or not. I'd have sent the Voyage back when I got it, but I'd already donated the PW and felt stuck.
It just shows how difficult it must be for Amazon to please everyone and how important it is for them to have a wide range of different Kindles. All the things you've listed as wanting - all the buttons, the mellower screen etc, are all the things I really dislike. I'd choose the Voyage over the current Oasis or Paperwhite every time. This is why, like Ann, I'm hoping that the better features of the Voyage are incorporated into the new Paperwhite.
 
#16 ·
Linjeakel said:
It just shows how difficult it must be for Amazon to please everyone and how important it is for them to have a wide range of different Kindles. All the things you've listed as wanting - all the buttons, the mellower screen etc, are all the things I really dislike. I'd choose the Voyage over the current Oasis or Paperwhite every time. This is why, like Ann, I'm hoping that the better features of the Voyage are incorporated into the new Paperwhite.
I want buttons almost as much as I want a hand crank to start my car. I thought the Amazon case for the Voyage should have embarrassed them, but it took the Oasis 2 case to do that. For me, the Voyage was too thin and too lightweight. My Paperwhite is big enough for me to hold onto and it's still lighter than a large paperback. Flush screen would be okay and I like the power button on the back of the device instead of hidden on the bottom.

I gave my Voyage to a college student. I bought six after-market cases and they either didn't work or were slick plastic.

I am eagerly looking forward to the PW4.
 
#18 ·
The only button I really would like is a home button . . . the two steps required via the touch screen is cumbersome, in my opinion. And I do like to go 'home' at the end of each reading session because I often have several books going at once. Next time I pick the thing up, I might not want to read that book, but read this one instead. :)

I like page turn buttons, but it turns out tapping the screen to turn the page isn't a big deal for me. And that's coming from a person who, when they first introduced the kindle Touch model, thought it was a very bad idea. My concern was fingerprints, but it turns out the screen they use for eInk kindles aren't particularly susceptible to such.
 
#19 ·
Linjeakel said:
It just shows how difficult it must be for Amazon to please everyone and how important it is for them to have a wide range of different Kindles.
It does seem Amazon has figured this out. There used to be just "a" current model of the Kindle, but the company now seems dedicated to keeping several models available, all with different features. If they drop the Voyage it will surprise me since so many people like it, but maybe incorporating its more popular features into a PW4 will work. I'd bet, however, there will be unhappy cries from both PW and Voyage fans when they do that. We all have our particular druthers.
 
#20 ·
The reason that I need buttons is simple: I hold the Kindle in my left hand.  Having to reach across the screen to swipe or tap to turn the page is not efficient or comfortable.  If they gave me a way to change the tap areas on the screen so I could just tap the left edge of the page to go forward, that would eliminate my need for page-turn buttons (now that I'm over the fingerprints on the screen worry).
 
#21 ·
It will be interesting to see what Amazon comes out with--if anything.  For me, I absolutely love my Kindle Voyage.  I really like the haptic page turn buttons--and find them better than "real buttons".  For me it's the perfect size to carry with me anywhere either in my purse or on rare occasions in the back pocket of my jeans.  If my Voyage died, I'd want to replace it with exactly the same device.  I previously had a Paperwhite 2 and liked it quite a bit.  But once I got the Voyage the PW2 just sat around gathering dust until I finally gave it to a friend.
 
#22 ·
Andra said:
The reason that I need buttons is simple: I hold the Kindle in my left hand. Having to reach across the screen to swipe or tap to turn the page is not efficient or comfortable. If they gave me a way to change the tap areas on the screen so I could just tap the left edge of the page to go forward, that would eliminate my need for page-turn buttons (now that I'm over the fingerprints on the screen worry).
Andra if you swipe instead of tap, you can do a very small right to left side swipe on the left side of the screen to turn the page--no need to reach all the way across the screen. When I use my Kobo Aura One (which doesn't have page turn buttons), I often hold it in my left hand and use the swiping motion to turn pages. Although I haven't done this myself Kobos do have the advantage of allowing you setting different "tap zones" so that you can set the reader to make a tap on the left side of the screen page forward instead of back.
 
#23 ·
Andra said:
The reason that I need buttons is simple: I hold the Kindle in my left hand. Having to reach across the screen to swipe or tap to turn the page is not efficient or comfortable. If they gave me a way to change the tap areas on the screen so I could just tap the left edge of the page to go forward, that would eliminate my need for page-turn buttons (now that I'm over the fingerprints on the screen worry).
Being older than most trees means I grew up in a time when you were forced to be right handed. My left hand was tied to my leg, to my desk, to a large briefcase and I was hit. It always bothered my father that out of three left-handed kids only one refused to change.
.
I was also raised in the South and reconstruction wasn't totally done. There were no baseball gloves for your right hand. When I did my mandatory time in the military the rifles ejected the hot empties into you face and down your shirt if you shot left handed. Then, when I hired on as a police officer they had no holsters for the left side.

So, I became fairly ambidextrous. But, when I hold my Kindle in my left hand, I swipe to the right to go back a page and to the left to advance a page. You can do that on any part of the screen you want.

I can see the need for a home button, though. I have to go "home" when I finish a book. I have to tap the screen twice to go "home" and select a new book and remove the book I finished from my screen. I suppose speed readers have to do that two or three times a day but I go "home" a lot less often.

I am honestly excited about a PW4 and am most anxious about a decent case with no origama or battery gimmicks.
 
#24 ·
I don't know if this is quite right. 17 lights? Has anyone thought that they might need a car battery to keep it running...and fwiw I use all my kindles including a plain Jane k5 that is no lights and just buttons...I would like them to get back to basics and I do hope the paperwhite will always be the 119 value/bang for the buck reader it is...
 
#25 ·
Given the LEDs are different colors I suspect they will be lit at different times and at various brightness levels.  Thus, the load will not be 17 LEDs, but a fraction thereof.  And batteries keep getting more powerful for their size. 

How well the new generation e-readers are lit and how they respond to changing conditions is critical for competing with the latest and greatest.
 
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