One new feature in the upcoming Kindle Oasis will make a huge difference to many people. The new model adds a Night Shift-style display capable of shifting color to match the warmer light of evening.
Other than that, the new Kindle Oasis is almost exactly the same as the current model. But this great new addition means no more cold blue pages when you’re reading in bed at night.
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Kindle Oasis models, compared
I love my Kindle. I have the original Oasis, from a few years back, and I still think it’s the best Kindle ever made. It’s smaller and lighter than both the current and forthcoming Oasis models. And, while it lacks the waterproofing of the newer models, the lightness and pocketability are useful daily, not just when I go to the beach. It also offloads part of the battery to the companion case (included). You can take the case off and leave the tablet impossibly lightweight.
The Kindle Oasis 3, which Amazon starts selling on July 24, is externally identical to the Oasis 2. It can even use the same cases. The specs:
Size: 6.3 inches x 5.6 inches x 0.13-0.33 inches (159 x 141 x 3.4-8.4 mm)
Weight: 6.6 ounces (188g)
That’s pretty much the same as the previous generation. To compare, here’s the original Oasis:
Size: 5.6 inches x 4.8 inches x 0.13-0.33 inches (143 mm x 122 mm x 3.4-8.3 mm)
Cover: 5.7 inches x 4.9 inches x 0.07-0.18 inches (144 mm x 125 mm x 1.9-4.6 mm)
Weight: 4.6 ounces (131 grams)
Cover: 3.8 ounces (107 grams)
In the end, it’s a toss-up. And you can’t get the original model anymore anyway.
Color illumination
Photo: Amazon
Like all Kindles, the new Oasis has an e-ink screen, with the lighting generated by a rim of LED lamps that reflect off the paperlike screen. In this model, those lights can change color. This works like Apple’s Night Shift, and can be put on a timer so that the light automatically shifts to the warmer end of the color spectrum as the day grows older.
This is not like Apple’s True Tone technology. True Tone monitors the color of the ambient light in the room, and adjusts the color balance of the screen to match.
However, the Kindle Oasis 3 can adjust the intensity of the light automatically, which sounds ideal if it works as expected.
Kindle Oasis 3: Better than ever
Couple this new feature with the Oasis’ slim aluminum body, large screen and asymmetric design — which puts a thicker handle and screen bezel on one side to house a handgrip and physical page-turn buttons — and you have a great Kindle.
The new Oasis comes in 8GB and 32GB versions (buy the bigger one if you use it for audiobooks), and starts at $270 (with a discount if you let Amazon serve ads to your Kindle). Plus the price of a cover.
