What's good
- Slimmer and lighter than Paperwhite
- Sharp and clear display
- New PagePress sensor offers easier page navigation
What's bad
- Ghosting issues
- Light sensor errs on the dark side
Amazon is the undisputed champion in the e-reader market despite the claims that tablets would take over its space. Still, it seemed that after the Kindle Paperwhite, there wasn't much left for Amazon to improve upon. The release of the Kindle Voyage, therefore, was a bit of a surprise not least of which is due to its relatively high price point.
As thin and light as the Kindle Paperwhite is, Amazon managed to slim down the Voyage further to a mere 0.3 inches and 180 grams. It also departs from the traditional design cues of previous Kindle e-readers and instead opts for the sloped back of the Kindle Fire HDX tablet. While not necessarily more visually appealing, experts did notice a subtle yet noticeable improvement in grip and in-hand comfort over its predecessors.
The main event isn't the improved ergonomics though, it's the screen. The 6-inch E Ink display boasts a resolution of 1072 x 1448 pixels for a pixel density of 300ppi, making it the sharpest e-reader to date. More importantly, the Voyage is the first Amazon e-reader with a completely flush display. Previous iterations were slightly below the bezel giving it, "a vaguely cheap, disposable flavor," according to The Verge.
But it isn't just for appearances sake, the flush mounting made the experience of "turning" the pages much more seamless as did the addition of a new feature called PagePress sensors. These surface mount buttons appear on the right and left bezels and allow users to change pages with a gentle squeeze. The sensor will then buzz to let you users know the command was registered. Both the level of pressure and intensity of the buzz can be adjusted in the device's setting or turned off entirely.
Another new addition to the Kindle lineup is the addition of an ambient light sensor. Now instead of physically going into the settings to increase or decrease brightness, the device will update it automatically based on the ambient light levels. It doesn't work perfectly, however, as Tech Radar notes, "…it always erred on the side of darkness."
While the Voyage has made changes in positive direction critics add it still suffers from some ghosting issues and page turn speed has not improved over the Paperwhite. Still, they all agree that the Voyage is the best e-reader to date. With that said, reviewers are torn on recommending it. PC World states, "…I think the Paperwhite still delivers the best price-to-performance ratio..." Gizmodo adds, "It's trick to say whether…the Voyage is worth it…I suspect, though, that for many people the Paperwhite is more than good enough."
What the Critics Are Saying...
- Kunal Dua, Gadgets 360The Kindle Voyage is priced at Rs. 16,499 for the Wi-Fi variant and Rs. 20,499 for the 3G variant, which is a lot of money to pay for an ebook reader. While it's a significant improvement over the Paperwhite, Amazon's previous flagship ebook reader is still a great device that we wouldn't mind hangi...
- Dieter Bohn, The VergeThe reason I like the Voyage so much comes down to the physical design of it: it's simple and utilitarian. It feels like it's trying to accommodate itself to my needs instead of asking me to change my habits for it.
- Nick Guy, The WirecutterA smaller body, a lighter weight, and physical buttons make the Kindle Voyage attractive, but those features don’t make it worth the higher cost for most people.
- Jim Martin, Tech AdvisorThe Kindle Voyage is without doubt one of the best eReaders money can buy. Is it worth buying though? For most people, no. The extra resolution, sleek design and page-turning buttons are all nice-to-haves but by no means essential. You'll get a better reading experience on a Voyage compared to the c...
- Gareth Beavis, TechRadarIt's a lot of money. Yes. There's no doubting that. But the build quality, combined with the reading experience, tell me this is a premium product in the same way you can tell someone has a rather high salary when you slide into their Bentley.
Prices (Where to Buy)
Resources
Manuals / User Guides
- Kindle Voyage Quick Start Guide (PDF)
- Kindle Voyage Manual (PDF)
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