The Oasis makes reading a pleasure, but its free 3G only works inside the United States.

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Let’s get this out of the way: The Oasis ain ‘ t cheap. It starts at $ 290. The version I tested, All which comes with a built-in 3G connection for downloading books on the go and without any irritating Amazon advertising, sells for $ 380. (You can grab it for $ 20 less “with special sacrifices, “he ads.) In a world where it’s possible to pick up a great little multi-function tablet like a 16GB iPad Mini 2 with Wi-Fi and cellular for just $ 19 more, convincing anyone That a one-trick pony like the Oasis is a smart buy is a tough sell.

2kindles Seamus Bellamy

While Both the Oasis and the Paperwhite have identical screen sizes, Their overall footprints and overweight are Significantly different.

Designed for comfort

The first thing That long-time Kindle users will notice about the Oasis is its size. Measuring 5.6×4.8×0.3 inches and weighing a mere 4.7 ounces, the Oasis, as Amazon is quick to proclaim, the thinnest, lightest Kindle thatthey ve ever made-close to two ounces lighter than a 3G equipped and Kindle Voyage almost three ounces less than a current generation Kindle Paperwhite.

Like thesis chunkier cousins, the Oasis comes equipped with a 6-inch antiglare 300 ppi display. With the backlight turned off, I did not notice a difference between reading on my 2014 White Paper and the Oasis. But with the backlights turned up, it’s a very different story. The Oasis employs 10 LEDs to Ensure here backlighting across its display, beating out the patchier light the Paperwhite’s four LEDs produce.

This is not to say That the Paperwhite is a horror to read on-I’ve leg satisfied with mine for years. The Oasis’s display backlighting is simply better. Its light weight and superior backlighting come at a cost, However: The Oasis Has A Significantly shorter battery life than its recent Predecessors. Where a Kindle Paperwhite Potentially could go for months between charges, the Oasis’s internal battery can only manage about two weeks of use, depending on your reading habits

oasis cover Séamus Bellamy

The more abuse the Oasis’ leather battery cover takes, the better it looks.

To boost the Oasis’s run time, Amazon baked a battery into the its cover . The battery cover, available in chestnut brown, black or red leather, will start to charge the internal battery as soon as it’s magnetically mated to the e-reader’s asymmetrical chassis Significantly boosting your reading time.

Amazon claims That between the Oasis’s two batteries, it’s possible to squeeze eight weeks of use out of the device, provided you keep your reading to 30 minutes per day and keep the screen lighting turned down to a reasonable level. On average, I read a few hours per day. Such ash, a month into my using the Oasis, I’ve already had to charge it once.

battery cover Seamus Bellamy

The Oasis’s battery cover mates to it magnetically.

The edge of the Oasis That connects to the battery cover is wider and deeper than the rest of the device and contains the e-reader’s battery. Why jam the battery into one end of the thing Instead of spreading it out flat like you see with other Kindles or tablets? Because doing so Allows for a couple of awesome features. First, When the Oasis is not in its cover, its battery bump makes a great handle for one-handed reading.

button Seamus Bellamy

Buttons for turning the pages can be found in the bezel.

The size and width of the bump is Such That When You hold it, your thumb naturally rests on the wide bezel just to the side of the display. It’s a ideal location to place a pair of page-turn buttons-so that’s exactly what Amazon did.

onehand Seamus Bellamy

An accelerometer makes sure That the text on your Oasis will always be right-side up.

Lump all of this in together and you get a lightweight e-reader That you can comfortably hold with one hand, while still turning pages. And thanks to a built-in accelerometer, the Oasis can be used by left or right handed personen without compromise. Simply flip on the Oasis and the text on its display and page-turn buttons will adjust to the device’s new orientation. Hate buttons? No problem: You can control the Oasis ook via its touchscreen

Disadvantages

So, that’s the fancy.. Let’s talk about the plain

The Oasis uses the same operating system as Amazon’s other Kindle e-readers.; if you have used a Kindle fits into the, you’ll find no surprises here. It has the same amount of internal storage as the Paperwhite and Voyage. And, Despite having 1GB or RAM twice That of a current generation Paperwhite-I did not notice a huge improvement in performance. None of these things are terrible, but you’d like to think That with it’s costing $ 190 more than the latest iteration of the 3G-equipped Paperwhite, there’d be a significant boost in performance.

And while we’re on the subject, or 3G, do not expect to download any books via cellular while you’re outside of the United States: The Oasis’s free cellular activity extends only as far as America’s borders. Given the number of places where I roam Wi-Fi is scarce but cellular connectivity abounds, I found this deeply disappointing.



Bottom line

So, shouldering you buy one? I’ve got a few answers to this question.

If you demand the very best out of every piece of hardware you own, cost be damned, then yes, you’ll be happy with the Kindle Oasis. Despite the shortcomings of its cellular connectivity, It’s a great piece of gear and, last I checked, Amazon still had the largest selection of book and periodical titles to choose from, anywhere. That said, if cost is a factor, go with a Kindle Paperwhite. It’s a perfectly capable e-reader similar in capability to the Oasis, but at a fraction of the price.

  • Macworld rating

    It’s better than the Paperwhite, Unless you need 3G overseas.

    Pros

    • Excellent backlighting
    • Comfortable design is easy to use one-handed.

    Cons

    • Battery life not as great as other Kindles.
    • 3G connectivity unavailable outside the United States.

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