Amazon Has An All-New, Waterproof Kindle

Amazon Has An All-New, Waterproof Kindle

The Kindle Oasis is the best e-reader ever made, we think. And it just got better, with a larger screen and waterproofing for bath-time reading.

The new Kindle Oasis is built around a 7-inch 300ppi screen, and is IPX8 rated — so you can dunk it in the bath for up to an hour. As well as battery life measured in “weeks, not hours” — Amazon’s words — the Oasis has fast-charging to refill its battery in just two hours. There’s also an ambient light sensor to control the Oasis’s front-lighting automatically.

That 7-inch screen is good for 30 per cent more words per page, says Amazon — or it means larger text for better viewability overall. Where the original Kindle Oasis had a battery bump at its natural right — under the page turn buttons — the new one shifts that to the base, where Amazon says it’s more comfortable in the reader’s palm.

That rear is made of aluminium, while the front is glass, and the entire Kindle Oasis is 3.4mm thick apart from that microUSB-charging battery bump. It looks like there’s no option for a battery-boosting charging case like the original any more, but when you’ve got weeks to find a power outlet for two hours, I think you’re probably going to be OK.

You can pay $389 for the Wi-Fi-only 8GB Kindle Oasis for a pre-order today, or $529 for the 32GB version with free worldwide 3G; it’ll be stocked by both JB Hi-Fi and Officeworks. Black, tan or red leather covers for the new format reader’s shape are $84.95. [Amazon Kindle]


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