Kindle Oasis (2017) review: Expensive, but easily the best e-reader Amazon has ever built

Kindle Oasis (2017) Review – From £229

• Pros – Brilliant New Seven-Inch Display, Ambient Light Sensor, Water Resistant Design, Physical Page Turn Buttons, Premium Aluminium Case, Huge Library Of Ebooks
• Cons – Pricey Compared To Other Kindles, Probably Won’t Fit In Your Pocket 

Amazon has refreshed its flagship e-reader, Kindle Oasis.

The second-generation Kindle Oasis went on-sale a few weeks ago, alongside a refreshed Amazon Echo, Fire HD tablet, Fire TV, as well as the introduction of the Echo Show and Echo Plus.

The flagship e-reader starts at £229.99 for the Wi-Fi model with 8GB of storage and maxes-out at £319.99 for Wi-Fi and 3G data with 32GB of onboard storage.

Amazon has included a slew of new functionality in its no-expenses-spared Kindle, including support for Bluetooth headphones, an ambient light sensor and larger e-ink display.

Express.co.uk has devoured a few bestsellers on the all-new Kindle Oasis, here is our definitive verdict.

Review –

The first-generation Kindle Oasis was a brilliant device. Express.co.uk praised its lightweight wedge design, stylish leather cover, and beautiful backlit e-ink display. 

Thankfully, all of these make a very welcome return in the new Kindle Oasis.

The second-generation handheld keeps the same wedge-shaped design that debuted with the first Kindle Oasis back in April 2016. 

The circuitry, battery, microUSB port, and physical page-turn buttons are all housed on the thick end of the wedge, which measures 8.3mm or 0.3inches, and tapers down to a paper thin 3.4mm edge, some 0.13 inches.

Kindle Oasis’ unique design makes it perfect for one-handed reading.

Although the new Oasis shares a lot in common with its predecessor, there are a few differences in design. The most noticeable is the change in screen size, which has increased from six-inches, the same size display used in all previous versions of the e-reader, up to seven.

While that might not sound like a lot, in practice, it makes a world of difference. 

Compared to previous Kindle hardware, the all-new Oasis’ e-ink display appears positively expansive. According to Amazon, it is able to squeeze 30 per cent more content onto the display thanks to the increase in size.

Reading on the new Oasis, page turns are undoubtedly less frequent than on other Kindles – or most paperbacks, for that matter – which helps further immerse you in the latest bestseller.

But the increased screen size isn’t just about cramming more words onto the page, Amazon has taken advantage of the new seven-inch screen to include some brilliant new accessibility options.

For the first time, Kindle owners can customise the size of the homescreen, with a new large option reducing the number of book covers displayed, but increasing legibility for those with poor eyesight. 

Unfortunately, this new expanded view does not extend to the Kindle Store, Search, or Vocabulary Builder. Hopefully Amazon will fix this in a future update to the Kindle software.

Those who prioritise portability above all else might not be as overcome with love for the Kindle Oasis. Thanks to a combination of the seven-inch display and one-sided design, the new Oasis is pretty wide, measuring 141mm across.

In practice, while the Kindle Voyage and Paperwhite fit into the back pocket of jeans with relative ease, that’s not possible with the new Oasis – unless you’re MC Hammer, that is.

Kindle Oasis ships with the same pin-sharp 300 pixels-per-inch resolution touchscreen e-ink display as found on the Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Voyage. 

It’s a phenomenal screen that does a solid job of mimicking a printed page and ensures even the smaller font size appears pin-sharp.

Amazon has increased the number of LEDs that light the display – from 10 to 12 – to create more uniform coverage. The new Oasis display looks stunning, whether you’re reading in the dead of night, or in direct sunlight on the beach.

The new Oasis boasts an ambient light sensor, which automatically tweaks the brightness of the e-ink display based on the conditions around you.

It’s a convenient feature that first debuted on the Kindle Voyage, but failed to make the cut with last year’s Kindle Oasis.

Another significant change with this latest Kindle Oasis model is the move from plastic to anodised aluminium, which gives the e-reader a more premium feel.

The Kindle Oasis is not cheap – whether it’s compared to rival devices, or the remainder of Amazon’s own e-reader portfolio.

The transition to aluminium helps separate this Kindle from the rest of the pack and gives the hardware a heft that better befits its price tag.

On that point, although this is undoubtedly an expensive e-reader – Amazon has actually dropped the price compared to the previous generation, which started at £269 and maxed-out at £329 for a 3G-enabled model.

By comparison, the new Kindle Oasis starts from £229.99 and tops-out at £319.99 on Amazon.

But while that’s a healthy price cut on last year’s model, it’s still £60 more expensive than the second most expensive Kindle in the line-up, the Voyage.

However, unlike the latter, the Kindle Oasis is water resistant.

The second-generation Kindle Oasis is rated IPX8, which means it’s able to withstand immersion in two meters of fresh water for up to 60 minutes.

That level of water resistance is borderline excessive, since the Kindle Oasis only really needs to survive an accidental plunge into the bath or pool.

Nevertheless, it’s a very welcome addition to the flagship e-reader.

Software

Amazon’s top-of-the-range e-reader is powered by Kindle OS, which boasts an impressive range of features, including Whispersync, Family Sharing, Word Wise and X-Ray.

Each of these software features adds a level of depth or ease of use that makes the humble paperback appear laughably one-dimensional in comparison.

For example, Whispersync ensures your Kindle devices and apps are up-to-speed with the last page read and Family Sharing lets loved ones to aggregate their separate Kindle purchases.

Meanwhile, Word Wise is a god-send for anyone slogging their way through a particularly challenging read. This feature automatically loads concise definitions beneath difficult words, so you can continue reading with fewer interruptions. And finally, with a short press on-screen, X-Ray offers up quick hints and descriptions of key characters, places and topics of interest in a book – an invaluable feature for anyone reading A Game of Thrones.

Unique to the 2017 Kindle Oasis is the ability to pair Bluetooth headphones and listen to an audiobook on the e-reader.

On the daily commute, most will still favour the Audible app on their smartphone, since it’s a little less cumbersome than lugging around the Oasis.

However, it’s a nice little addition – especially when you find yourself in a situation when you doing have your phone to hand, like the beach, for example.

Like any Amazon e-reader, Kindle Oasis owners can tweak the font, font size, justification and spacing to suit your tastes. 

Kindles also come preinstalled with OpenDyslexic, a font designed to mitigate some of the common reading errors caused by dyslexia.

The Kindle Oasis will also show you how much time it’ll take you to reach the end of the chapter or the novel, based on your average reading speed. 

You can also share your favourite quotes or passages to social media, using the Kindle software.

Despite all of the smart features included with the Kindle, the operating system still does an unrivalled job of getting out of your way when you want to read. 

Unlike reading on a smartphone or tablet app, there are no emails, no WhatsApp messages, and no Facebook updates pinging into life and distracting you from your chapter. 

Kindles also have access to the unparalleled choice of the Amazon eBook store, and the Kindle Oasis has enough storage to hold thousands of titles ready for your next long haul flight, or beach holiday. And if you forget one – you can always download it from the hotel wifi in seconds.

Final Verdict 

Kindle Oasis is easily the best e-reader Amazon has ever built.

The second-generation Oasis keeps all of the best aspects of its predecessor, and includes a number of brilliant new additions.

The new Oasis has a beautiful aluminium design, gorgeous seven-inch e-ink display, and water resistant case.

Kindle Oasis is the Rolls Royce of e-readers, and is priced as such.

Although it’s cheaper than last year, it’s still pretty expensive – even when compared to the other Kindles in Amazon’s range.

If you’re looking for Kindle perfection, this is it.