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Not sure what this means? Can you explain?Raffeer said:The lack of a dedicated Home screen annoyed me
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Not sure what this means? Can you explain?Raffeer said:The lack of a dedicated Home screen annoyed me
I think Raffeer is referring to the lack of a home screen button; the fact that, while in a book, one must tap on the top of the screen and then the home button.Leslie said:Not sure what this means? Can you explain?
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Wow! Thank you for your very detailed review! I have been thinking about updating from KK to K5 (not interested in PW for many reasons). I now see NO reason to do so and will go kiss my KK and give it some over-due love it so deserves!FearIndex said:Continuing with my comparisons of the new $69 Kindle "5" with other Kindles. My Kindle 4 and Kindle PW comparison is a few messages up here: http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,129956.msg1921055.html#msg1921055
This time I have the Kindle 3 aka Kindle Keyboard black (or graphite) version to compare to, my old Kindle that I have given to a family member and missed a bit during the past year of lackluster Kindle 4 experience (mostly due to the Amazon lighted case).
The look:
Kindle 3, this dark version (it was also available in white back in the day), is still a lot lighter than the black Kindle 5 and Kindle Paperwhite are. Kindle 3 is a little easier on they eyes as a color, but also doesn't give as much contrast next to the screen as the pitch black Kindle 5 does. Also the Amazon Kindle logo on Kindle 3 is more grey than the whiter Kindle logo on the new Kindle 5. So, the new model is a bit more "striking" in appearance, where as Kindle 3 comes across a little softer with its softer hues and rounder corners. Both look good though, Kindle 3 is still a remarkably good looking piece of kit.
Amazon lighted leather cover:
In my view Kindle 3 has the far superior Amazon lighted leather cover compared to Kindle 4 and Kindle 5. The leather on the front and back is much better, the case is more substantial (Kindle 4/5 case is a bit of a joke here), it has a closing rubber band (Kindle 4/5 case doesn't)... and the light on the Kindle 3 does not shine in your eye when reading in bed (Kindle 4/5 lighted case shines disturbingly in your eye). So, if you had the Amazon lighted leather cover for Kindle 3, don't expect the new case to be as good. It isn't. The only thing better about the new Kindle 4/5 case is that the Kindle sits tight inside it, not moving in those metal clips like the Kindle 3 does in its case.
Kindle PW non-lighted Amazon leather case is high quality, though, so if you opt for the PW then that is a fine case.
The software:
Kindle 3 also received the "Kindle 3.4" software update recently (roughly equivalent to the new Kindle 4.1 on Kindle 4/5), so software-wise the Kindle 5 and Kindle 3 are pretty much equal when updated. Of course Kindle 3 has some features Kindle 5 does not, namely audiobooks, text-to-speech and the experimental MP3 player, because the new Kindle 5 lacks any kind of audio hardware (Kindle 3 has both a speaker and a headset connector).
Kindle 3 does not have, even after the software updates, the partial screen refersh option Kindle 4 introduced and Kindle PW and Kindle 5 have too. Later Kindles do the "blink" between pages only after each six pages or so, unless you turn every page refresh on in the settings. Some may like this and if they do, Kindle 5 certainly offers this bonus over Kindle 3.
The screen:
Kindle 3.4 software update included new, darker fonts, so the difference of contrast between Kindle 3 and Kindle 5 is not quite as much as it was when comparing the Kindle 3.1 software to Kindle 5. Still, Kindle 3 has nothing on Kindle 5 when it comes to the screen. Kindle 5 clearly has superior black text. Otherwise the color of the Kindle 5 background looks similar to Kindle 3, so both still retain that greyness in the background so inherent to e-ink.
Disturbingly, Kindle 3 contrast seems better than that of Kindle PW. Certainly not glowing praise (no pun intended) for PW...
Thank you.bookie said:Wow! Thank you for your very detailed review! I have been thinking about updating from KK to K5 (not interested in PW for many reasons). I now see NO reason to do so and will go kiss my KK and give it some over-due love it so deserves!
I think the trick with the frontlight is, use external lighting and then set the PW frontlight as low as you need to achieve whiteness, but avoid glowing and lighting the text too much. For example, when reading with overhead lighting on the PW, I have been experimenting with as low as 3-8 (out of 24) brightness settings. Enough to increase the whiteness of the background and tenderly light up the screen to provide additional lighting to help reading, if the overhead lighting is not completely sufficient. If the external lighting is good enough, any unevenness of the frontlight tend to disappear too in this case.xtine911 said:Thank you for the update, it's good to know that at least there's a "workaround" to fix the lighting issues, even if having to use an external light seems counterintuitive to what the PW is supposed to be.
If your Paperwhite text is a tad lighter than your Kindle 3 text, then we probably have the same darkness on PW and it is just the pictures that seem different. Because that is exactly how I'd describe the Paperwhite text darkness, a tad lighted than on my old Kindle 3.mooshie78 said:Same here. May just be the picture though I guess.
I will say the text on mine is a tad lighter than on my K3 when I compared them side by side. So I do think the touch and/or light layers make a tad of difference. But it wasn't enough to bother me given how much better I like the lit screen compared to having to use external light and deal with ambient shadows etc.
I settled down to read properly for the first time last night with the $69 Kindle 5, temporarily in the Amazon lighted leather case for Kindle 4/5. The light still shines in my eye when reading in bed and I hate that, but obviously that is why I have another lighted cover on order... Hopefully next week.FearIndex said:So, starting my experiences with the new $69 Kindle vs. Kindle PW and other models. For brevity, I will name the new black "$69" dollar non-touch Kindle as the "Kindle 5". I will refer to the previous generation, grey "$79" Kindle as the "Kindle 4".
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I agree with this. I found the black was a fingerprint magnet, more than any other Kindles have been. I put a skin on it to solve that problem. I also realized I didn't like the black so much which is why I ordered the $69 in graphite.FearIndex said:- One is how easily Kindle PW gets fingerprints on the bezel. Out of my Kindle 2, 3, 4, 5 and PW, the PW is easily the most prone to this, while the matte Kindle 4 and older are the least prone to this problem. If this bothers you (it doesn't bother me), aside from a case that covers the bezel, many have used "skinning" as the solution. A black skin (or any skin of course) would also allow hiding the white Kindle logo, if that is distracting for you. DecalGirl is recommended by many: http://www.decalgirl.com/
Keep in mind that in cover view, the panel of four other books (today, "Popular Mysteries & Thrillers") only show on page 1 of the home screen. Once you swipe to the next page, you'll see six of your books, nothing else.- Second is the suggested books on the home screen that appear on Kindle PW even when it is not a special offers model. I haven't tried the trick myself, but using Parental Controls to hide the Kindle Store behind a password is said to hide those book suggestions. Also, you can use List View for the home screen to hide the suggestions, although that hides all book cover pictures as well.
Agree, especially on the home page. What would be perfect, IMO, would be if we could use list view for the home page and then cover view once we were in a collection, because I do like seeing the book covers.Leslie said:I find List View much more practical than cover view, IMHO.
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I'm in the same boat, I was mulling over updating from my dearly beloved KK to the PW - whenever it might be available in Hong Kong. Looking at several pictures posted and the reviews here, on mobile read as well as on Amazon I decided that there is absolutely no good reason for me to do so. I love TTS, I love the page turn buttons and I love the e-ink screen (espcially after the last firm ware update). Instead I rewarded my KK with a new name (Esmerelda Weatherwax) a new cover and a new pink clip on book lightbookie said:Wow! Thank you for your very detailed review! I have been thinking about updating from KK to K5 (not interested in PW for many reasons). I now see NO reason to do so and will go kiss my KK and give it some over-due love it so deserves!
I just got my PW yesterday and I will be posting a review soon. One of the main reasons I ordered the PW was no book-light needed. Would never would carry a book-light with me, and hated those times when the light was just a little too dim. So the K5 would not be a option for me over my KK.manou said:I'm in the same boat, I was mulling over updating from my dearly beloved KK to the PW - whenever it might be available in Hong Kong. Looking at several pictures posted and the reviews here, on mobile read as well as on Amazon I decided that there is absolutely no good reason for me to do so. I love TTS, I love the page turn buttons and I love the e-ink screen (espcially after the last firm ware update). Instead I rewarded my KK with a new name (Esmerelda Weatherwax) a new cover and a new pink clip on book light![]()
I have noticed that clip-on lights are fairly popular on this forum (a newbie observation). However, I'd personally never want to use any kind of clip-on light that wasn't an integral part of the cover. It would seem like a hassle having a light with you. I'm looking for a more integrated solution personally (having used the Amazon lighted covers on Kindle 3 and Kindle 4).CAR said:I just got my PW yesterday and I will be posting a review soon. One of the main reasons I ordered the PW was no book-light needed. Would never would carry a book-light with me, and hated those times when the light was just a little too dim. So the K5 would not be a option for me over my KK.
Yes its kinda funny, my wife has a lighted cover for her K3 and she still uses a book light sometimes. BTW on that picture was the PW light on 24? The text contrast on my PW looks much better at 18.FearIndex said:I have noticed that clip-on lights are fairly popular on this forum (a newbie observation). However, I'd personally never want to use any kind of clip-on light that wasn't an integral part of the cover. It would seem like a hassle having a light with you. I'm looking for a more integrated solution personally (having used the Amazon lighted covers on Kindle 3 and Kindle 4).
So, to CAR and others opposed to carrying book lights, are you also against using Kindle covers that include an integrated light? The Amazon lighted leather cover for Kindle 3 for example, I felt, was a pretty excellent leather case, that also included a reading light for those occasions that the regular lighting wasn't enough.
This picture has the Kindle 5 (right) in the lighted Amazon case:
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