I have the first generation Paperwhite, so its about 6 years old now. I read a lot, so it gets a lot of use. Nothing really wrong with my Paperwhite, although the screen illumination is a little uneven / mottled.

Is the Oasis worth the cost of upgrade?

I believe the Oasis is smaller and lighter, but the Paperwhite still has a larger capacity battery / superior battery life.

1290mah cover / main :250 mah Kindle Oasis
1320 mAh Voyage
1470 mAh Paperwhite 2

I have thought of upgrading before, and they have had several generations of paperwhite, then a voyager, and now the Oasis. Just curious if its time to finally drop the money.

I had a Kindle first edition back in the day and a few years ago I upgraded to the Kindle Voyage (now discontinued). I weighed the Voyage against the Oasis and went with the Voyage for price and glass screen differences at the time.

If sticking strictly with the Kindle, I wouldn't hesitate to go with the Oasis if I read a lot of books as a "prime" pastime. Otherwise I'd just stick with a newer Paperwhite ... nah, I'd get the Oasis just because.

That said, I don't do Kindle anymore and my "perfectly good" Kindle Voyage lives in a drawer as backup. I now have the latest (2020) Fire HD 8 PLUS and run the Kindle app on it. The battery doesn't last near as long on the Fire as a Kindle but there are still some pros for the Fire over the Kindle if you don't just need a dedicated reader. The Fire will show book illustrations better and some illustrations the Kindle won't even display for certain books and in color if available, the Fire will allow you to do most things a tablet will do other than just a dedicated reader and run all the apps available through Amazon ... can even "trick" the Fire into running google apps I'm told. I also have a charging dock for my Fire HD 8 PLUS ... sold separately and only available for the "Plus". The Fire lives mostly in the charging dock (doesn't ever over-charge) and seems to always have enough juice for an all day read.

Fire HD8 Plus does much more than a Kindle Oasis and for less money but less apparent battery power than a dedicated reader and the Fire isn't water resistant (I don't think). Just mentioning another option that covers more bases. I don't read while in the bathtub or while swimming

I have both -- a PaperWhite and an Oasis.

The Oasis stays next to my bed. It is much better for night time reading. More LEDs around the perimeter for even lighting. The light intensity can be set to adjust automatically, getting brighter or dimmer in response to ambient light. I have the model that was introduced last year; previous models of the Oasis had white light only. The newer models have light with variable color temperature, which can be set to respond to ambient light, so that as the room gets darker, the light gets softer (warmer). This might not sound like much, but it really is a great feature for reading in bed; my wife is not disturbed by the Oasis light, the PaperWhite light does bother her if my insomnia kicks in and I read in the middle of the night.

Also, the Oasis has physical page-turning buttons as well as the touch-sensitive area on the screen. The screen's response to touch can be disabled, which is something I do when reading in bed. This way, if I fall asleep while holding the Kindle, it doesn't start flipping pages if my thumb touches the screen, so I don't lose my place.

The PaperWhite shines in other areas. I keep it in the "library" (right next to the crapper) where I don't need the Kindle's internal light. The PaperWhite is a bit thinner, so it is my "take-along" reader when I anticipate sitting on my rear end in a waiting room, like doctor, out-patient lab, etc. Slimmer, which means just a bit more portable, and also much lower cost than the Oasis, so if something bad happens while I'm out and about, it won't cost as much to replace.

The two devices sync with each other (as does the Kindle app for smartphones, tablets, etc.), so you can stop reading a book on one device, and pick it up on a different device, and as long as each device has been able to talk to WiFi, you will resume reading on the second device at the place where you stopped on the first device.

I'm due for a new ereader. I loved my last Nook, but it finally died.

I absolutely will not upgrade until they move to USB-C charging. That is an absolute dealbreaker for me. Even the cheapest electronic devices have moved to USBC now, it's absolutely silly that the Kindles still have Micro USB. I've had a few different e-readers and I'm not very brand loyal, the first one that catches up to the rest of the world with USBC will get my money.

We have both the Oasis and the Paperwhite.

The price of the Oasis ($250) has gone up by $75 since I bought it two years ago. The Paperwhite I bought for my wife this summer was a refurbished one and cost $60.

They both work great. I like the page keys on the Oasis, but it just barely fits in the cargo pockets of my pants, while the Paperwhite is easier to carry around.

So I don't think the upgrade to the Oasis is worth $190. When I see the Paperwhite on sale again for $60, I am going to buy a spare.

Short Answer - Yes. I have both a paperwhite and the oasis. I read about 70 books per year and would never give up my Oasis for the paperwhite. I read a lot in bed at 3:00 when I wake up. You old guys understand. It is easy on the eyes and usually after a few pages, I can fall back asleep. It is great in direct sun as well. Battery life is not a concern and it charges very fast.

Watch for a big sale on Black Friday. That's when I bought mine in 2019. I paid $174.99 without a cover. I'd definately buy again.

I, too, have the first generation Paperwhite. It still works perfectly, except that its microUSB jack is getting a bit wonky – disconnects with the lightest of tugs, even with my newly-purchased cord.

I’ve been waiting for a Kindle, any model, with a USB-C jack, but the Oasis doesn’t appear to have that, so I’ll stick with my ancient Paperwhite.

And I’ll pop for 3G connectivity on my next Kindle, hoping that it will also provide accurate time/date info for my note annotations.

My Paperwhite doesn’t have 3G connectivity, so I download books to my Mac, then transfer them to my Kindle. That works perfectly if I use the Firefox browser, but the “transfer via computer” option isn’t presented if I use my preferred Safari browser. Or if it is I haven’t been able to find it.

quote:

Originally posted by Perception:
<snip>
I absolutely will not upgrade until they move to USB-C charging. That is an absolute dealbreaker for me. Even the cheapest electronic devices have moved to USBC now, it's absolutely silly that the Kindles still have Micro USB.
<snip>

Preach it brother!

Man, if only they had a way to transfer over your on-device library and folders. Having to sort through all that again isn't great.

I prefer having items I've read stored locally, in folders I've set up. That makes it easier to scroll through things I've got unread online (many of which wife purchased, shared login).

I upgraded from the Paperwhite to the Oasis. Well worth it, in my opinion.

Rather than rambling on, let me just say that I fully agree with V-Tail’s comments re the device.

My (2020) Amazon Fire HD8 Plus has USBC, so maybe Amazon will soon have other branded devices with USBC going forward.

Aside from just being a different cable to.use, what does a USB-C connection do that the micro USB doesnt? Not being a smart ass, genuinely asking.

Those with both, do you do find the Oasis screen to be more evenly lit?

quote:

Originally posted by Lord Vaalic:
Aside from just being a different cable to.use, what does a USB-C connection do that the micro USB doesnt? Not being a smart ass, genuinely asking.

Nothing. Just no fumbling to find the USB charge connector turned the right way. Not a big deal to me but some complained, so I mentioned it. The HD8 Plus charging dock has no connector at all ... not between the tablet and dock anyway. Just toss the tablet into the dock and it starts charging. No fumbling and no port to go wonky over time and use. But if charged directly from an electrical outlet, use the USB-C cord.

quote:

Originally posted by Lord Vaalic:
Aside from just being a different cable to.use, what does a USB-C connection do that the micro USB doesnt? Not being a smart ass, genuinely asking.

1. Micro USB has to be inserted "right side up." USB-C will go in either way, there is no top or bottom.
   
   
2. If you are transferring books via cable, USB-C is faster.

quote:

Those with both, do you do find the Oasis screen to be more evenly lit?

Yes, definitely. The Oasis has more LEDs around the border. There is a noticeable difference. I now use my Oasis to read in bed with the room light off, and use the PaperWhite in settings where the ambient light is sufficient.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:
If you are transferring books via cable, USB-C is faster.

Nice to know. I never noticed the speed difference ... but I only use the cable for charging, not for a computer interface to download (or upload) books. Maybe it's faster than WiFi too?

I have had every generation of Kindle since the original 3G with keyboard. In my opinion, Amazon still has not got it completely right yet.

Paperwhite

Pros

Screen size. It fits in a back pocket.

Battery life - much better than an Oasis

Cons

Micro USB port

No keys to change pages

The screen is not quite as good - not a deal killer in my mind.

Oasis

Pros

Screen size - the extra little screen size is nice

The screen is also better than the PW but see above

Keys to change pages

Cons (trade offs)

The screen is too big to fit in your back pocket

Cost. It’s pricey for what you get.

The battery is terrible compared to the Paperwhite

The keys are noisy. It drives me nuts sometimes when I’m reading in a quiet place and every page turn is click, click, click.


Bottom line: If your Paperwhite is broken, go for it. If not, I’d wait until you really need to upgrade and then see what is available.

One final thought, there is a lot of research by Amazon and others towards developing a reliable, efficient, and usable color ink. The goal is to have a bright ink system that would preserve the battery life of a Kindle but give you color photos for textbooks, comic books, etc. From what I’ve read, I’d say its still a couple of years out at least. Unless you really have your heart set on an Oasis or your old Kindle is broken, I’d sit tight and see what happens over the next year or two regarding color ink and Kindles.

quote:

Originally posted by BB61:
I’d sit tight and see what happens over the next year or two regarding color ink and Kindles.

I've daydreamed of the day when they will have a marriage of the Kindle and Fire. A reader with all the battery life and a tablet that does things similar to a computer, functions as a reader and in color. At the end of the day though, some just need a good reader, so maybe that marriage will never happen.