# Kindle PaperWhite: after a month



## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

So, My PW was delivered on Oct 2 so it's been a month. Thought it was about time to see if any of my initial impressions have been modified.  

I'm still very happy with the size of the thing and find it very comfortable to hold and use.  The case is also quite nice, feels good in the hand . . .love the auto-turn on. Bezos should give whomever thought of that a nice bonus.   It's very cool.

I am still hugely pleased with the screen.  The light is just amazing. . . . . I usually have it between 10 and 15 and, as far as I'm concerned, it looks like the page of a book. Excellent contrast and clarity. Really fantastic. I'm comfortable reading on size 3 with Caecilia, though 4 is marginally better; using Palatino, size 4 is preferred. I'm not a fan of sans serif fonts so I think I've settled on Caecilia as my usual default.  

I've decided to go minimalist with collections.  I basically just have 7: Classics, Fiction, Games/Active, Music/Church, Reference, Non-Fiction, Samples, and The Zon.  The Zon is stuff from Amazon -- dictionaries, welcome letter users guides, that sort of thing -- it was called "Amazon" but since it always shows them alphabetically, I wanted that at the bottom.  So "The Zon" it is.   So for items on my Device, I have it showing My Items and Collections.  The 7 collections are listed followed by non collected things in order of most recently used.  New purchases are immediately 'collected' so all that is normally there is the daily newspaper and what I'm currently reading.  

I'm not keen on the cover view.  I don't mind the suggestions shown at the bottom, but, with the collections showing first, there's not a lot of point.  The 'covers' for collections are pretty generic and not particularly attractive.  So I use list view -- it's what I was used to from all my previous kindles anyway, and works fine for me.  I will occasionally switch to cover view to browse through my Fiction titles to pick my next read. . .that work well.

I'm also still quite happy with the responsiveness of the touch screen. It's the only thing I was concerned about when I ordered the thing. . . but I've found I don't miss the physical buttons at all. I haven't had any problems finding a position to read in that works for turning pages fairly easily.  And it's definitely easier and marginally quicker to page through and choose things than with the K4 which was my previous "Go To" Kindle. The 'feel' of the screen is really nice too. . . I prefer it to the feel of the shiny screen on my other touch devices (Fires, a Xoom, a Razr).

So, my conclusion, after a month with the thing, is that I was right in the first place.  For me, this is the best Kindle ever.  I honestly can't think of what else they can do to improve it.  Oh, maybe little tweaks, but nothing major.  I'm extremely happy.  I'd seriously give it a Five Star rating, and I don't do that very often with anything.


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## R. M. Reed (Nov 11, 2009)

Auto turn on?
If that feature is related to the Amazon case, I don't have it.


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## mooshie78 (Jul 15, 2010)

Yep, the amazon cover has a magnet that auto wakes the device when opened.

I got mine on the 2nd as well and my sentiments echo Ann's.  It's my favorite Kindle, I love the smaller form factor (never used the keyboard), love the light (keep it on 14-15 most of the time, all the way up if in sun or fluorescent lighting, and little lower if in dark), love the touch screen, love the time left in chapter feature etc.


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## harpua (Nov 1, 2012)

I got mine around the same time.  I came from a K4 which I thought was great too but the PW is a fantastic upgrade, imo.  I was very leery of the touchscreen prior to trying it but find it wonderfully ergonomic, responsive and convenient especially compared to the physical buttons of the K4 which I had thought were good but now seem very slow and clunky compared to the PW.  The touch screen makes it so much easier to turn pages, use the keyboard and look up words.  Love the texture of the screen too and how fingerprint and smudge resistant it seems to be.

The light, while not as perfectly even (in most ambient lighting conditions) as was represented in the marketing materials, nevertheless seems a great advancement, imo.  I think it's significantly better for long reading sessions than a back lit screen or most external lighting.  I would miss it a lot if I had to go back to the lightless K4.  Fwimbw, I generally keep the light as far off as it will go (to avoid unnecessary wear on the battery) unless the ambient lighting conditions are low enough that I really need some of the PW's built in light to read by and then I generally keep it on the lowest setting that permits me to continue reading as that seems the most comfortable for my eyes.

I love the PW's default Caecilla font which is close to perfection for me.  I find it very dark and easy to read yet it's a bit thinner and much more elegant than the default font on the K4 which always bothered me (after the last K4 software upgrade) because I thought they made it a bit too blocky for my taste (probably in an effort to improve contrast). 

I also agree with the oft heard PW criticisms that wireless on/off is too buried in the menu and should be available from within books and it should have been possible to turn the light all the way off instead of to merely ultra dim.  With respect to the wireless on/off, I wish they had made it so one could just tap the wireless icon whenever it's visible at the top of the screen, to toggle it on or off.  But those are relatively minor complaints that hopefully will be remedied in a future software upgrade.

Edit:  One more thing that I prefer about the PW is that the gradations in font size at the small end of the spectrum seem much more gradual from one size to the next than they were on the K4.  This permits me to usually get very close to the perfect font size for my eyes.  With K4 on the other hand, the font size was frequently either too large or too small instead of just right.

In conclusion, even w/o considering the light, just the great touch screen and the improved fonts (size, style & resolution) arguably make it a worthy upgrade.  But then when one considers the light, it becomes a very compelling proposition, imo.  So I'm really very happy with it.


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## frazzm737 (Jun 4, 2010)

I received my PW a month ago also.  I am delighted with it!  The lighting, though a bit blotchy at the bottom, makes it easy to read in any lighting.  I am a minimalist regarding collections, also.  At my age I read only for pleasure so when I am through with a book I remove it from the device.  If anyone else in the family wants to read it, I can download it to one of my old Kindles.  So my collections are 'Currently Reading' and 'Unread.'  The 'Unread' category keeps growing, much to the delight of Amazon.  I like Ann's suggestion of 'Zon' for all the other items on the Home Page.  Now I will have only three collections!  I also hope that we will get a one-step access to wireless in a future upgrade.  I especially enjoy the feature at the bottom of the page where I can check the time remaining in a chapter.  I screamed often and loudly for the return of the Progress Bar, but this new feature works well for me.  Maybe this time I will be able to resist the next Kindle version as I am very happy with my new PW.


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## JimC1946 (Aug 6, 2009)

I've only had mine a little over a week, but I'm happy with it for pretty much the same reasons as Ann.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Got mine 11/3 and I'm still in love with it. I like the Helvetica font, for me it seems the darkest, I keep it on 4. The light is amazing and I really like the cover. The auto turn on is perfect.


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## VondaZ (Apr 21, 2009)

I got mine on 10/3 and I am incredibly happy with it. I had a problem originally because one LED was significantly brighter than the others, but even with that huge bright glare at the bottom of the screen, it was still better than a Kindle with any booklight I have ever owned (and I have gone through many of them trying to find something I liked). I did return that PW and the new one did not have any LED problems and was perfect for me. 

After hearing about the blotchiness, I realized I could see that on mine as well (both that I had), but I don't know if I would have noticed it if it wasn't called to my attention. At first, I would think about it a little obsessively, wondering if it was normal or defective, and it would distract me. But after just accepting it, I don't even see it anymore. Even when I noticed it - again, still way better tha a booklight. Now, its like its not there - even though if I look for it, I will see it.

I love the texture of the screen - the linen feel. I thought I would miss page turn buttons, but I find I like the texture so much I prefer to swipe pages rather than even just touch the screen. I also like that I can use the touch screen in a ziploc bag in the bathtub. I wasn't sure if that would work or not and am pleased that it does.

I love the cover view. I turned off access to the Kindle store to get rid of the recommendations so I can have a full page of covers. I used to be a big fan of collections, but I have stopped storing my library on my device after upgrading devices now several times - such a pain to delete and add all my books repeatedly. Instead, I now store all my books on my PC through Kindle for PC and I use the collections there. Now I only keep the books I am currently reading (to myself and to my kids), along with the books I plan to read next, plus books I just purchased, which get sent there by default. The cover view makes it so easy to pick out the book I want to open - although I think it would be cumbersome if I still kept my entire library on the device.

I also love the Amazon case. I have used an Oberon in the past and have also used my son's Kindle with an Amazon lighted cover, but ultimately decided that I prefer to read without a cover. I thought I would never go back to reading with a cover and would stick with sleeves. However, the Amazon cover is so slim and minimal and the auto on so convenient, I am very pleased with it. I am even considering buying out of the ads so I can open directly to my last place in the book.

I have been jumping around with the fonts. I usually prefer the Caecilla font because it is dark and readable. But sometimes I use Futura for light contemporary reading or for kids books and sometimes Palatino if I am reading something more classic/literary. I never liked Helvetica - reminds me of the old dot matrix printer fonts rather than a book font, but it is a nice dark font if I need to read with tired eyes.

I would still prefer a home button, though. Sometimes, when I want to switch books, I have to stop and think about what to do to get back to my library. Pressing the top of the screen still is not intuitive for me, so a home button would be nice. But I am sure everything will be second nature in no time.


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## Cardinal (Feb 24, 2010)

Mine arrived about three weeks ago and my impression hasn't changed at all.  The built in light, better resolution and book covers are the only things I like about it.

Really miss the page turn buttons, the progress bar, and the 180 degree rotation and wish page numbers were an option in the location/time left in chapter/time left in book cycle.

The built in light is the must have feature for me, but I would ditch this in a heartbeat if a PW model with page turn buttons was released.


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

I've only had my PW a couple of weeks but I really like it - for all the reasons people have already stated.

I do have a couple of very small niggles - I can't force sort my collection order using characters any more and honestly can't understand why they would change that - I doubt it was deliberate, but it's mildly irritating.

I also agree with VondaZ, after coming from the Touch, I keep pressing the middle of the lower bezel to go to home, forgetting I have to press the top of the screen to get the pull down menu for the home button - why replace a one touch function with a two touch one? They could have made the Kindle logo at the bottom into the Home button.

Neither of those are deal-breakers of course and otherwise I'm really pleased with it. The light on the screen means the official cover is cheaper too, as there isn't a need for a lighted version!

Btw, for those who might want to, you _can_ turn the light off altogether by pressing and holding the ' - ' at the bottom of the scale. You turn it back on by pressing the ' + '.


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## harpua (Nov 1, 2012)

Linjeakel said:


> . . .
> 
> Btw, for those who might want to, you _can_ turn the light off altogether by pressing and holding the ' - ' at the bottom of the scale. You turn it back on by pressing the ' + '.


Actually, that doesn't really turn the light all the way off. If you don't believe me, try it in a dark room or closet and you will see there is still a dim glow coming from the lights even after supposedly turning them all the way "off" with the press and hold method.


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

harpua said:


> Actually, that doesn't really turn the light all the way off. If you don't believe me, try it in a dark room or closet and you will see there is still a dim glow coming from the lights even after supposedly turning them all the way "off" with the press and hold method.


You're quite right! In normal light, to the naked eye, it looks identical to my Touch screen, but in a pitch black room there is still a slight glow. I guess for most people's needs that would be sufficient and wouldn't use any significant battery. I wonder why they made it like that though?


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## LarryWilmot (Jul 31, 2012)

Just decided to take the plunge and ordered one.  Mind you in seven weeks I'll have forgot that I ordered it. I guess it will be a nice surprise. Untill then it's the Android reader on my Galaxy Tab2.  

Cheers Larry.


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## SindleApp (Sep 13, 2012)

Has anyone noticed a battery life difference yet from earlier generations? I know Amazon claims it will hold a charge for 8 weeks but that has a lot of 'ifs' attached.


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## CAR (Aug 1, 2010)

SindleApp said:


> Has anyone noticed a battery life difference yet from earlier generations? I know Amazon claims it will hold a charge for 8 weeks but that has a lot of 'ifs' attached.


My first charge did not last very long on the new PW. I let it discharge all the way, then a full recharge. That charge lasted a long while, even with wifi on.


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## SindleApp (Sep 13, 2012)

Interesting. Yeah i'm curious to know now that it has the built in front light which is pretty much always on. Thanks for the reply!


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## MLKatz (Sep 8, 2012)

So none of you are experiencing the screen distortions, or dull areas, that some users have reported? I was considering purchasing one, but some reviews on the Amazon site said the new screen had "off color" patches in various areas.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

I've had my PW since Oct. 3, and, like Ann and others, I still love it! There is very little about it that I don't like, and the most bothersome thing, the process requires to turn off the wi-fi, can be remedied with a software upgrade if Amazon chooses to change it. My battery life hasn't been as good as I had hoped, but I will let the battery discharge fully and then charge it completely to see if that improves the available time. (I usually have chargers nearby, so the battery life isn't a huge issue with me at this point.) this is the fourth Kindle (fifth if I count my Fire), and it is my favorite. Love, love, love the "minutes left in chapter," the auto-on, and the front light.


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## CAR (Aug 1, 2010)

Cindy416 said:


> My battery life hasn't been as good as I had hoped, but I will let the battery discharge fully and then charge it completely to see if that improves the available time.


One additional note on battery life. Just as it was noted in another thread, there are rare times when the PW is turned on and the light does not come on. A restart fixes the issue. Well one time I had the opposite problem... when I closed the cover the light did not go off, it was dark in the room and that's how I noticed it. It took a restart to fix that also. You could see how that could affect battery life  I have not worried about it much, it's a pretty obvious software bug, that will get fixed and is rare.


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## stevene9 (Nov 9, 2008)

Cindy416 said:


> I've had my PW since Oct. 3, and, like Ann and others, I still love it! There is very little about it that I don't like, and the most bothersome thing, the process requires to turn off the wi-fi, can be remedied with a software upgrade if Amazon chooses to change it. My battery life hasn't been as good as I had hoped, but I will let the battery discharge fully and then charge it completely to see if that improves the available time. (I usually have chargers nearby, so the battery life isn't a huge issue with me at this point.) this is the fourth Kindle (fifth if I count my Fire), and it is my favorite. Love, love, love the "minutes left in chapter," the auto-on, and the front light.


I was on with Kindle CS on another matter and I mentioned I didn't like the number of keystrokes needed to turn the wireless on and off. He said the agents had been briefed on the major customer complaints, namely unevem lighting at the bottom and some colorations, but they have never mentioned any dissatisfaction with the airplane mode feature. I think they need to hear more about this if they are ever going to be pushed to change it.


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## Cloysterpete (Aug 21, 2010)

Mostly I'm happy with mine but of course it has issues, first the lighting is far from even but the other two issues annoy me far more.

On/Off switch, I turn mine on and off loads and I find that button hard to press with one hand, I have to use one hand to hold it at the top to steady it. It's a step back in design from the slider on the k3, that was so much easier to flick along just with your thumb.

One thing that is truly broken is the weights of the fonts, on most pages I get maybe one or two lines (sometimes just a few words) that are so much bolder and blacker than the text on the rest of the page, incredibly distracting from the book. I know others have this problem as I've seen photos on here, I hope they fix it as this is the worse problem I've run across so far.


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## mooshie78 (Jul 15, 2010)

Do you have the page refresh turned on so it  does the full refresh (with screen flash) every page turn instead of every six?

I noticed some of that uneven font stuff, along with some ghosting, but haven't noticed it since turning the page refresh on.


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## readingril (Oct 29, 2010)

I love my PW! Woke up at five as my body clock tends to do, read for a bit without disturbing hubby, and took a morning nap before I got out of bed. LOL


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

Like Linjeakel, we've only had the PW here for a week or so, but generally, I'm liking it. Enough so that I think I'm going to pass the old trust K3 onto a friend... for a financial consideration of course!

I do find the light a little "blotchy", so for normal reading in a well-lit room I keep it down at about 6. However, when I'm in dull conditions and would have struggled with the K3, the light is a godsend, and I'm prepared to live with the blotches.

I like the cover, but I find it rather uncomfortable to hold compared with the K3. I use my little finger underneath the Kindle to support it with the front flap turned back, and the bottom of the PW front flap tends to dig into my finger.

I found the fonts uneven until I turned page refresh offf, as a K3 user the refresh every page doesn't worry me and the screen quality is definitely better.

If you sideload books, covers are a bit of a nightmare, so I've given up with cover view and I use list view.

I hate airplane mode, already sent a moan to Amazon about this. 

Remember, you don't have to contact CS to tell Amazon about minor things that you like/don't like, just email [email protected] (or amazon.com).


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

stevene9 said:


> I was on with Kindle CS on another matter and I mentioned I didn't like the number of keystrokes needed to turn the wireless on and off. He said the agents had been briefed on the major customer complaints, namely unevem lighting at the bottom and some colorations, but they have never mentioned any dissatisfaction with the airplane mode feature. I think they need to hear more about this if they are ever going to be pushed to change it.


Thanks for the info. I'll let Kindle CS know.


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## kcrady (Dec 17, 2009)

Morf said:


> If you sideload books, covers are a bit of a nightmare, so I've given up with cover view and I use list view.


DRM-free books, sideloaded using the current update of Calibre, have no problems with displaying covers as long as you have reformatted the book to .mobi or .azw3 (even if it was already in that format).

I love love love the cover view, so nice to see what a book looks like again!

I've had my KPW for a month now and still love just about everything about it. My Kindle Keyboard left for Canada with my sister the day after the KPW arrived.


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

kcrady said:


> DRM-free books, sideloaded using the current update of Calibre, have no problems with displaying covers as long as you have reformatted the book to .mobi or .azw3 (even if it was already in that format).


...indeed, but only if you sideload using the USB cable.

If you use Calibre's web server and download the books using the PW browser (as I do) then it doesn't work. If you use Amazon's "Send to Kindle" it also is... interesting! 

See http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?p=2290016#post2290016 and the linked thread.

It just shouldn't have to be so difficult!


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Linjeakel said:


> I can't force sort my collection order using characters any more and honestly can't understand why they would change that - I doubt it was deliberate, but it's mildly irritating.


Remind me why you want to use special characters instead of numbers? I know others have posted about it, but as I never wanted to do it, it didn't stick. 

Betsy


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Remind me why you want to use special characters instead of numbers? I know others have posted about it, but as I never wanted to do it, it didn't stick.
> 
> Betsy


I'm more intrigued as to why the special characters don't work any more. I suspect the sort order has changed.

Linjeakel, could you start a new thread over in T,T&T about what you've tried and what does and doesn't work, and we'll look into it further.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Morf said:


> I'm more intrigued as to why the special characters don't work any more. I suspect the sort order has changed.
> 
> Linjeakel, could you start a new thread over in T,T&T about what you've tried and what does and doesn't work, and we'll look into it further.


Previously, Amazon has changed the sort order. However, this time, if you put a special character before the name, it sorts it by the first letter it finds, as if the special character isn't there. I tried it with several special characters with a collection that falls in the middle of my collections alphabetically (Nonfiction). It never budged. Nonfiction and Nonbook Items stay in the same alphabetical order no matter what I put before either of them.

And I still am curious about the benefit. 

Betsy


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## Linjeakel (Mar 17, 2010)

I find characters more flexible and more pleasing aesthetically.

If you number your collections and you want to slot a new one in, you have to renumber the ones below it. I used to use the '<' character and had my collections in three blocks. I used < < before (and after) the title for the first block, so it would come at the top, < for the second and nothing for the third block, so it would come at the bottom. The collections would sort alphabetically within each block and it was easy to slot a new one in to any of the three blocks, without having to change any of the others. And it looked nice.  

I tried a few characters, but by no means all and, as Betsy said, they have no effect - it's as though they're not there at all. As I said, it's not a deal-breaker, just a mild irritation. I can't think of any reason why they would deliberately change things, so I'm guessing it's just an oversight. They might fix it, they might not.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Linjeakel said:


> I find characters more flexible and more pleasing aesthetically.
> 
> If you number your collections and you want to slot a new one in, you have to renumber the ones below it. I used to use the '<' character and had my collections in three blocks. I used < < before (and after) the title for the first block, so it would come at the top, < for the second and nothing for the third block, so it would come at the bottom. The collections would sort alphabetically within each block and it was easy to slot a new one in to any of the three blocks, without having to change any of the others. And it looked nice.
> 
> I tried a few characters, but by no means all and, as Betsy said, they have no effect - it's as though they're not there at all. As I said, it's not a deal-breaker, just a mild irritation. I can't think of any reason why they would deliberately change things, so I'm guessing it's just an oversight. They might fix it, they might not.


Aaahhh....thanks. I know quite a few of our members use them. I recommend sending feedback. Since we can't nest collections, it is a way to make another layer of organization. I have so few, alphabetical is fine. Thanks for explaining!

Betsy


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

Amazon have tried to include an "intelligent" sort, which ignores special characters and words like "The", "A" etc.

I can see this is the case because if I sort by title, it's now putting the "The" titles in with the no "The" titles rather than having all the "The"s together.

(yes, that sentence does make sense, just about)!

So whereas I would have seen:

*A* Tale of two Cities
*P*ride and Prejudice
*T*he Secret Garden

I would now see:

*P*ride and Prejudice
The *S*ecret Garden
A *T*ale of two Cities

Doesn't solve your problem, but it does explain what's changed!


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I had used the characters on my K3 to sort my collections in groups. So I had a certain group always on the top no matter the starting letters. You know like read, library, up next ...etc. 

But even on my K3 it stopped working consistently a while back. For some reason some of the collections even though they had the same character in front, ended up mixed in with the titles. 

On my PW I am not going to use as many collections anymore. I will use goodreads for organizing that way. So its not important for me anymore. But it was nice on my K3 when it did work. Especially since I had 3 pages of collections at one point. 
************************************************************

So I have had a PW for a month too now. I did have some manufacturing issues with 2 of them so it was a while until I settled on a replacement and got to finally use it without worry. You know until one of them was actually mine its hard to get attached. 

I am totally in love with the touch surface now. I was worried about the lack of page buttons coming from my K3, but I am not worried anymore. I love how responsive the screen is and how fast everything goes on it. 

What I didn't think much about are the features I use a lot now and love are the dictionary and the lookup in wikipedia. I can now look up phrases and such I am not sure about and bam, there is the wiki definition. Or lookup a city, or a place or just anything. Characters as I read a lot of historicals. I totally flove this feature. 

I have also settled with the light. I am using it a lot lower now than when I started with. That gives me a e ink looking screen that seems like it has just a lighter backround, but not looking "lit". Only at night and late evening do I notice then the "glow". 

I still love the feeling of the screen just like I did the first time I touched it. The software is just so perfect and user friendly. Only thing I don't like is having to go home each time I want to turn off wifi. I'll send feedback to amazon about that. 

I love the official cover to wake it up. I still have ads, but I don't swipe to wake it, I just touch at the bottom so its not a bother. 

What is so great with the PW is that its seamless transition from morning to day to evening and night. And I don't have to lean to the side into the light at the side table anymore.  . My back and neck thank me.


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

Atunah said:


> I totally flove this feature.


I tried a dictionary lookup on flove, but it couldn't find it!


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## CAR (Aug 1, 2010)

Cloysterpete said:


> Mostly I'm happy with mine but of course it has issues, first the lighting is far from even but the other two issues annoy me far more.
> 
> On/Off switch, I turn mine on and off loads and I find that button hard to press with one hand, I have to use one hand to hold it at the top to steady it. It's a step back in design from the slider on the k3, that was so much easier to flick along just with your thumb.
> 
> One thing that is truly broken is the weights of the fonts, on most pages I get maybe one or two lines (sometimes just a few words) that are so much bolder and blacker than the text on the rest of the page, incredibly distracting from the book. I know others have this problem as I've seen photos on here, I hope they fix it as this is the worse problem I've run across so far.


Not having to use the power button on the PW is one of my favorite features. Might want to look into a cover with the auto on/off feature. 
As far as page refresh goes, I don't know how they managed to do a full refresh every six pages. It works well and makes the page turns much faster. But because they refresh the screen so little, I think that can cause some uneven text until the next full refresh, in some rare cases. 
Also I want to say the light on my PW has gotten better, not worse.  I think the reason for this is because, I have learned how to adjust the screen for even lighting in different conditions. So I am still very happy with the PW, and it is the only E-reader I use now.


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## Steph H (Oct 28, 2008)

Linjeakel said:


> If you number your collections and you want to slot a new one in, you have to renumber the ones below it.


I think I mentioned this in another thread. Under this new system without characters, I use new blocks of numbers for each block of collections. Under your example, for the ones that had << before it, I'd start with 10. Depending on how many collections are in that block, you could then go to 20 or 30 to start the collections that had < before it -- that gives you room to expand and makes it easier to see that next block of collections. Then skip to 40 or 50, whatever works, for the ones that didn't have anything before them.

I could probably cut my collections down a whole lot, because I keep a lot fewer books on my Kindle than I used to through my K3 several months; it just kept getting too slow so when I got my K4 in May and then the KPW, I started keeping maybe 50 or so besides what I was planning on reading for the next couple of weeks. Makes things so much faster.

As for the real topic -- after a month, I'm still really liking mine. I didn't have the Touch and was a tad worried how I'd like it on the Kindle but now I don't see how I'd go back. Getting through menus is much easier and quicker - try doing that stupid airplane mode for wi-fi with a controller! What a pain that was on the K4 (still is on the KPW, just *less*). The light is fabulous, and I love the "time left in the book" feature. I mostly use list view rather than cover view, but it's nice to have the choice. I do tend to slide my finger accidentally when changing pages which often changes the font size without meaning to; I hate that.

I'm not using the Amazon cover right now; I like the auto on/off and the way the KPW fit in it, but I also like having a pocket on the left side that I can fit my hand in for extra support, so I put a magnet in the pocket of my Belkin K4 cover and am using it instead. Works fine with the auto on/off feature.

I won't say the PW is perfect, but it's pretty darn close.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

FWIW regarding Airplane mode: I fully agree that those who feel like it's a step backwards in usability should share their opinions with Amazon.

For people who don't understand why others even notice it, a bit of history. 

Previous Kindles, up to the K3K had the top option on the menu -- whether entered from the home page or a book -- turn ON wireless or turn OFF wireless. Depending on what the original state was. So from the home page or in a book, it was very easy to pop up the menu toggle the wireless, and go back to reading or whatever.

NOW, to toggle wireless you must go back to the home screen (already an extra step if you're in a book) and you tap menu AND settings to get to the airplane mode toggle -- which is, in itself, a bit less intuitive than simply turning wireless on or off.

Sadly, I am not optimistic that even a veritable avalanche of feedback is going to help.  See, the K4 _used_ to do it the first way. But it was a software update that switched it to the 'airplane mode' method.  _And_ airplane mode is pretty standard on most portable devices nowadays. So, I'm afraid it's here to stay.


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

Ann in Arlington said:


> _And_ airplane mode is pretty standard on most portable devices nowadays. So, I'm afraid it's here to stay.


Well, I'm not so sure.

The Kobo had airplane mode, until a very recent update, when they changed it to wireless on/off. So maybe Kobo took some notice of customer feedback!

Anyway, if people want to try to change this (or other features eg bring back the progress bar)...

[email protected] or [email protected]


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## Lee (Nov 7, 2008)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Previous Kindles, up to the K3K had the top option on the menu -- whether entered from the home page or a book -- turn ON wireless or turn OFF wireless. Depending on what the original state was. So from the home page or in a book, it was very easy to pop up the menu toggle the wireless, and go back to reading or whatever.


Don't forget the K1, which had a physical 3G (K1 had only 3G, no wi-fi) On/Off switch on the back.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

My Kindle has an aeroplane mode, not airplane.  . I switched to British English so I can have my beloved 24 hour clock. Oh how I miss ye. This american am/pm stuff I never did like. 

I like the sound of Aeroplane better anyway.   But I still wish the Aeroplane landed on the book menu too. 

When I pick up my K1 now I realize how far we have come. Yet it still feels like a familiar good friend that gave me many hours of joy. And it still fits in my hands better than any Kindle that came after it. It was the best for my bad wrists. *sigh.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I appreciate the repost of the email addresses for feedback to Amazon, and I'm going to do that. I'm keeping the PW - I prefer the screen; I like the light; I love the case and size. I hate the fact I cannot easily move from chapter to chapter; I hate the airplane mode so deep in the menus.


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

Atunah said:


> My Kindle has an aeroplane mode, not airplane. .


Woah, and I thought I was pedantic! Good spot! 

Yes, you're quite right, it is aeroplane not airplane on mine as well. I've got no defence other than it's one of those words I've always struggled with spelling for some reason.

Is this a British/American English difference? Is it airplane on American Kindles?


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## FearIndex (Oct 10, 2012)

Morf said:


> Is this a British/American English difference? Is it airplane on American Kindles?


Yes and yes.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Morf said:


> Woah, and I thought I was pedantic! Good spot!
> 
> Yes, you're quite right, it is aeroplane not airplane on mine as well. I've got no defence other than it's one of those words I've always struggled with spelling for some reason.
> 
> Is this a British/American English difference? Is it airplane on American Kindles?


It is if you pick US English when you register it. If you pick UK English then it spelled areoplane.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I am in the US, but I wanted the 24 hour clock. I changed the language in the settings. You can do that anytime after registering. It just reboots. 

I might change it to german one of those days just to see.


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## R. M. Reed (Nov 11, 2009)

I find it odd that you have to use British English to get 24 hour time. I just checked my PW and couldn't find a place to change it without changing the language. Lots of military people and others (I used to be a bus driver, and we used 24 hour time) in the US work on the 24 hour clock.


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## readingril (Oct 29, 2010)

Hubby and I both work in fields with 24 hour clocks. My kids learned that way of keeping time early on. 

My Kindle is still in American English. 

via me, my Droid, & Tapatalk


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## MoSo (Nov 2, 2012)

I like my Paperwhite, but I think the Kindle Keyboard is still my favorite from the standpoint of the way the menus work - I have large  hands, and it was easy to hold the KK in one hand with my thumb lightly on the "next page" key. Just a slight change in pressure and the page turned. The Paperwhite is also easy to hold in one hand, but it takes actually moving my thumb to effect a page turn. A minor, and likely picky, point. Not as fond of the menu structure on the Paperwhite - but that light is very nice, especially since I have vision problem, particularly with contrast. I apparently got a "good" Paperwhite - 3 slight smudges of light at the bottom, not particularly noticeable unless it is a dim room.

My KK was passed on to someone else, so going back to it isn't really a choice, and I probably wouldn't anyway.


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## HappyGuy (Nov 3, 2008)

Yes, much of Europe is on the 24 hour clock. Makes MUCH more sense than the whole am-pm thing. And don't even get me started on the US not being metric.


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## Lursa (aka 9MMare) (Jun 23, 2011)

Atunah said:


> I had used the characters on my K3 to sort my collections in groups. So I had a certain group always on the top no matter the starting letters. You know like read, library, up next ...etc.
> 
> But even on my K3 it stopped working consistently a while back. For some reason some of the collections even though they had the same character in front, ended up mixed in with the titles.
> 
> ...


Yup, drove me nuts with my K3 as well. I finally had to give up.

But when I get my PW I think I will try using numbers. I do still want to use my collections and am still pushing for more sophisticated...even just one more level and some control!....organizational features on Kindles.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I just started adding some more collections and I added a 10 and a 20 and such in front of those I want to appear first. 
I did this while in collection view. Now I can't remember why did we have the characters on the K3 in title view? Was it because the collections could not be sorted by alphabet, but only recently used? I think that is what it was. 

They sort by alphabet on the PW under collection view. But I still have to use the number. Doesn't look as clean and nice as some characters, but oh well.


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## Lursa (aka 9MMare) (Jun 23, 2011)

Atunah said:


> I just started adding some more collections and I added a 10 and a 20 and such in front of those I want to appear first.
> I did this while in collection view. Now I can't remember why did we have the characters on the K3 in title view? Was it because the collections could not be sorted by alphabet, but only recently used? I think that is what it was.
> 
> They sort by alphabet on the PW under collection view. But I still have to use the number. Doesn't look as clean and nice as some characters, but oh well.


Does it have to be 10, 20, and so on or does 1,2,3, etc also work?


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I am sure 1..2.. 3 work fine too. Don't know why I used 10, 20. Maybe I thought if I needed to put something in between I can use 15, who knows. It was late last night when I did it so...


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## Lursa (aka 9MMare) (Jun 23, 2011)

Atunah said:


> I am sure 1..2.. 3 work fine too. Don't know why I used 10, 20. Maybe I thought if I needed to put something in between I can use 15, who knows. It was late last night when I did it so...


  Thanks.

Actually, that is not a bad 'test' that I can do with our PW here at work. And then report out on.


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## Steph H (Oct 28, 2008)

I mentioned using 10, 20 etc., because I have quite a few collections and that leaves some wiggle room for expansion. If you don't think you'll ever change much or don't mind renumbering if you do (assuming you have another sub-order to consider, too), then going 1, 2, 3 should work....unless you have more than 9.

If you have more than 9, you'll find that they'll probably be placed in this order: 1, 10, 11, 12....2, 20, 21, 3, 4.  See what I mean? It'll take all the 1's, regardless of whether it's one digit or two digits, before going to the 2's.  So you might at least start with 10 rather than 1.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Or make the first bunch 01, 02, etc. . . .


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## Lursa (aka 9MMare) (Jun 23, 2011)

Great advice from both of you, thanks!


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