# Kindles 2 and Kindle Klassic - comparing screen clarity and shades



## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

Instead of continuing the screen-examples in a thread re not switching to K2, thought I should make a separate topic for this.

I'll start with the first display comparison and am adding some more that I did Thursday, after getting the K2 on Wednesday. I still preferred my K1 for almost a day but have changed my mind! The directness of access to the dictionary and to links without added pop-up boxes is great. I wish, though, that the 5-way were not anchored by the dictionary lookup for each word hovered over while passing through. But web browsing is much faster.

TEXT and book preview images. I used the same Amazon store page used by PC World in its K1 and K2 comparison that I linked to at the Switch thread. (Will have to find it again.)










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OUR PERSONAL PICTURES UNDER 'PICTURES' FOLDER










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TEXT spacing modified with shift-alt-5 to match K1's spacing between characters
Sample: Leslie's The Amazon Kindle FAQ










Leslie, looking forward to K2 FAQ. By the way, some of the text before this sample was in a lighter font on the K2. Was that section in a different color or shade? I used this sample to confirm that the fonts can be just as dark if they are specified as black.

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PLAIN TEXT FROM A BOOK ("The Spell of Egypt") - CLOSER UP
Default Font 3 with Shift-Alt-5 to expand text similar to K1's spacing

The Kindle Klassic first, followed by the Kindle 2 *
















* This close-up pair had to be taken separately, to get that close, and my shadow looms over them. 
- The rest of these were taken by lamp light, the lamp at the left, closer to the K1.

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WEB PAGE interpretation by K1 and K2
+ ESPN as example










The rows of links are quite sqeezed together by K2 browser.
They underline each link and highlight certain links.

Someone or something does a terrific job dithering the 4-shades for the header image.

Here's a zoomed-in area to show what the text looks like if we're reading the page.









And here's a separate shot I took closer up of the K2 screen. I used only the top part of the shot.









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WEB PAGE interpretation of 
PEOPLE MAGAZINE -










Text with images are shown quite differently on these two.

K1's 4 SHADES and K2's 16 SHADES - using this People magazine page


















This was not a bad job of dithering for 4-shades (using diffusion to blend the dots).

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MORE on K1s 4-shades vs the K2's 16 shades
using People Magazine still. This one's for Leslie 


























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JUST AN EXCUSE to put "Slumdog Millionaire" folks in this thread.










One last comparison -the K1 image is pretty nicely dithered:
















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MY KINDLE 2, AT REST ON THE LOUNGER










I hope this helps with some rumors about lack of clarity while others say the screen is crisp.

The 16 shades capability of the K2 will cause it to interpret colors as different shades of gray.

You know how they say, "Just give me the basics - no gray areas" ? The contrast from using only Black and White plus 2 other shades made up between them (for the K1) leads to inherently good contrast for the eyes at a loss of shading. The 11 added shades of gray (for the K2) means that some text will be in a lighter shade, depending on what the publisher or formatter decides to use for the font.

- Andrys (hoping this long a post with images is okay here)


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

Wow, what a great thread and fantastic pics. Thank you so much for doing this. Best side by side I have seen yet, especially since you included such specific samples.


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## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

Thanks, Atunah!

  I get a little obsessed.  After reading conflicting reports in the various forums, I wanted to see what was going on with the Kindle screen in different situations.  The overall responses to the the K2 seem actually very positive though.  The K1 continues to be a great unit -- I find it more natural to hold.
Easier to balance and grip.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

Great post. Thanks, Andrys!

As for the difference in my book, I don't know. I'll have to do some investigating.

Thanks for all these great pics.

L


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

I like what you've done.  One request.  Could you add one more set of pics with plain book text shown up close?


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## Linda Cannon-Mott (Oct 28, 2008)

Great photos!


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

One of you mods with authority here. . .should this really great thread maybe go in the Review section?

Ann


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## ELDogStar (Dec 19, 2008)

VERY well done!

EL


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## B-Kay 1325 (Dec 29, 2008)

Artsandhistoryfan,

Thank you for an excellent review of the two Kindles side-by-side.  I am one who made the decision not to buy the K2 and after reading all of the reviews and posts on the boards of how great it is and all the hype, I was beginning to feel like I was missing something.  Now I don't.  Looking at your pictures of the Kindles, the text doesn't appear that different and in some instances I liked the KK better, sure the actual pictures are clearer on the K2 but I don't look at pictures on my KK I read books.  I have made that statement in another thread before the K2 was released and I now have not changed my mind.  I am happy for all of you that have the K2, enjoy and keep the information coming.


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## gwen10 (Feb 9, 2009)

Great post. Thanks, Andrys!
What URL did you use for the People magazine? When I go to www.people.com, my screen doesn't look like that at all.  I don't have the header.
Thanks in advance.

UPDATE: Never mind!    I used 'advanced mode' and got the correct screen.  Very cool, thank you!


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## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

mwvickers, re your request:


mwvickers said:


> I like what you've done. One request. Could you add one more set of pics with plain book text shown up close?


Sure, I've now added close-up samples from a classic, under Leslie's Table of Contents.

Thanks, all. I had fun doing that.

B-Kay, 
I'm with you. Were it not for my avid interest in photography, I would not have upgraded.
The K1 is still nicer to hold. It feels like a book when I grab it while the K2 feels like a tablet!
But the cover will bulk it up  I'm too worried about accidents to use them w/o one.

(Do you believe it, my Amazon case just arrived!)

Also, I prefer the K1 keyboard. I don't know how guys deal with the new one.


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## r0b0d0c (Feb 16, 2009)

B-Kay said:


> Artsandhistoryfan,
> 
> Thank you for an excellent review of the two Kindles side-by-side. I am one who made the decision not to buy the K2 and after reading all of the reviews and posts on the boards of how great it is and all the hype, I was beginning to feel like I was missing something. Now I don't. Looking at your pictures of the Kindles, the text doesn't appear that different and in some instances I liked the KK better, sure the actual pictures are clearer on the K2 but I don't look at pictures on my KK I read books. I have made that statement in another thread before the K2 was released and I now have not changed my mind. I am happy for all of you that have the K2, enjoy and keep the information coming.


I agree - photos aren't really that important to my reading needs (and the K2 photos, while clearly better, still aren't that great, IMHO), and although I DO like the improved web page interpretation, I mainly use web browsing to download more books!

There are some new perks with the K2, but overall I'm happy as can be with my K1

Thanks, A&HF, for the nice pics and comparisons!!!


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

Wow its a really big step up from k1's picture quality. The web browser looks much better too. (increasing K2 envy)


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## dflachbart (Feb 9, 2009)

artsandhistoryfan said:


> You know how they say, "Just give me the basics - no gray areas" ? The contrast from using only Black and White plus 2 other shades made up between them (for the K1) leads to inherently good contrast for the eyes at a loss of shading. The 11 added shades of gray (for the K2) means that some text will be in a lighter shade, depending on what the publisher or formatter decides to use for the font.
> 
> - Andrys (hoping this long a post with images is okay here)


Hi Andrys,

great comparison and writeup ! 

Indeed, there's not much difference when I look at the plain text shots of your Kindles. Though I don't think that the difference I (and others) are seeing on our Kindles is a result of using a different gray shade for the font. I made the following test: I created an image that contains a single black filled square with a paint program, and converted/uploaded that image to both of my Kindles. When I compare the squares on both Kindles I can clearly see that the 'black' on the K2 is not as black as on the K1, so this shouldn't have anything to do with fonts. I think that there might be just slight differences in the units that are sold...

Dirk


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## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

Dirk, excellent experiment.

  On the Kindle 1, there are many old threads in which people say the words are too dim or too light on the screen and we'd tell them to call Customer Service then.  One aspect was that if you took those out into the sun, they'd tend to be almost not visible in direct sunlight , a clear sign of a defect.  

  When I did the close-up shot requested of pure text, in morning light, I thought my K2 text was kind of light.
Then I put the K1 next to it and it too was light!  So, also, I guess ambient light has a lot to do with it.  In some light, both screens look greenish, and in other light (more often) both screens are a beautiful light gray.  At night with very low lights, it's a darker gray.

  Using a Mighty Bright II at night, in dimly lit rooms, both screens are easy to read.

  Have you tried yours out in the sun?


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## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

Dirk and others, a bit more.

I just read on the Amazon forums this note quoting a customer rep about the less dark font sometimes experienced on the K2.

(I did mention in my last note of this thread that some text looked lighter but the K1's text for that book was also lighter - so I wonder if they changed the default for that also, with the latest software update.)

=======
Posted on Feb 28, 2009 8:01 PM PST
M. Matthews says:
I just got off the phone with CS about the contrast issue I'm having between my K1 and K2. He said that indeed, since there are now 16 levels of gray the display can produce, that the main body text of a book is using a level above the blackest (how many levels above the display's deepest black he didn't say). I had a suspicion about that because of seeing some bold text in a book I've reading that looked subtlety blacker than the main text.

"Why would you choose to do this?" I asked.

"To make the bold text stand out better and the main text easier to read." he answered.

I explained that I thought this was a bad choice (not easier for me to read), as they don't do this in a printed book. Bold text in print is exactly that-Bolder-, meaning slightly fatter than the main text body. Same intensity black ink. So for the display they should use the blackest shade they have for text. Even better would be to give the user a choice of shade for text, just like we can choose font size and leading.

So Kindle Mommy; yes, a software update could make the main body text use the darkest shade the screen can display. 
======= End of quoted public post =======


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## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

Just saw this interesting post too.

http://www.amazon.com/Dark-gray-screen/forum/Fx2EGRL42MHF15D/Tx38Z30Y69J6PQ5/1/ref=cm_cd_et_md_pl?%5Fencoding=UTF8&cdMsgNo=4&asin=B00154JDAI&cdSort=oldest&cdMsgID=Mx13Y76FEBC4Q5M#Mx13Y76FEBC4Q5M

=======
M. Tracy says:
I purchased two K2s, and when placed side by side, one was definitely darker/more gray than the other one...and much harder to read. I'm returning the dark one.

=======

 That happened quite a bit with the K1.


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## KBoards Admin (Nov 27, 2007)

Somehow I had missed this thread until today. That side-by-side view is really helpful. Thanks, Andrys!


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## Cammie (Nov 15, 2008)

Very helpful A&H!  After reading many reviews regarding clarity/contrast and seeing many comparison photographs, it appears to me to be a "luck of the draw" situation.  I believe the people who say their K2 is dark and/or murky/fuzzy, and for them, difficult and tiring to read.  I also believe the people who say their K2 is sharp and clear and a joy to view and read.  I think your photographs will help people decide if their K2 is in the "normal" clarity/contrast category like yours or whether they received "something different."


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## intinst (Dec 23, 2008)

What a wonderful review comparing the two Kindle displays. Thank you for the time it took and the additional time your further reseach required. A very thorough and thoughtful post.


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## ReadnSwim (Feb 24, 2009)

I like your post, Andrys.  I have both a K1 and a K2 and I WISH my K2 looked that good next to the K1.  I think it does prove, however, that not all K2's are the same.

How did you take your pictures?  Maybe I can try to replicate with my own two Kindles?


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## KBoards Admin (Nov 27, 2007)

Just blogged this here: http://www.kboards.com/blog/2009/03/side-by-side-kindle-1-and-kindle-2-displays/

Thanks for the post, Andrys!


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## happyblob (Feb 21, 2009)

That's interesting. One would think they know how to manufacture with stable quality.


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## kevindorsey (Mar 4, 2009)

I never made the switch.  Will wait for them K3, and see if it appeals enough to me.


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## Kind (Jan 28, 2009)

Harvey said:


> Just blogged this here: http://www.kboards.com/blog/2009/03/side-by-side-kindle-1-and-kindle-2-displays/
> 
> Thanks for the post, Andrys!


Thanks for the link and pics! I'm still pretty happy with the Klassic one.


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## ghum (Feb 13, 2009)

Like everyone else, I thank you for taking the time and effort to try to settle this very important issue.
As for myself your pictures have confirmed what I suspect: that "all Kindle 2's are not equal" when it comes to contrast.

The kindle 2 that was initially sent to me had fonts that appeared pale and washed out compared not only to my kindle 1 but also compared to the pictures of your kindle 2 ( your Kindle 2 contrast appears significantly better than my Kindle 2 contrast). I contacted customer service several times voicing my complaint. One customer rep assured me that there is no difference between the contrast between each of the kindles (kindle 1 vs. kindle 2 or a particular kindle 2 vs. another kindle 2.). However after having examined the pictures of your Kindle 2 I am convinced that because my kindle 2's fonts are much paler than yours there must be significant differences in the contrast quality of the individual Kindle 2's. This differences in the quality assurance of the Kindle 2's could account for the mixed comments of Kindle 2 owners-some saying that their contrast is poor while others state that they see no problems.

In any event, I have asked for a replacement Kindle 2 in the hopes that my problem with the contrast will be solved with a different kindle 2. I have also joined the on-line petition signing campaign to have Amazon address this issue:http://www.petitiononline.com/12345k2/petition.html

When I recieve my replacement Kindle 2 I will post my opinion concerning if the contrast of the replacement kindle 2 is any better than my original kindle 2.

Gary


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## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

ReadnSwim said:


> I like your post, Andrys. I have both a K1 and a K2 and I WISH my K2 looked that good next to the K1. I think it does prove, however, that not all K2's are the same.
> 
> How did you take your pictures? Maybe I can try to replicate with my own two Kindles?


ReadnSwim,
I left flash off and tried to do it by daylight but when there wasn't enough daylight I added a lamp. Te window was behind both of them, so in daylight the lighting was more equal. And I just stood over them and tried to center them together and focused on the middle.

If you use slightly higher ISO or ASA setting on the camera, it can let you use a smaller lens opening that allows us to use the center of the lens more rather than including the sides and that gives better depth of in-focus field. The Kindle 1 is fatter and closer to the camera, but it's also slanted so there is a distance difference even that way. It's better to use a tripod but I don't really have one.

I didn't use my Kindle 2 for TWO days, and this afternoon and tonight the basic font looks lighter.
I wonder if that's a physical thing with the hardware. Nevertheless, I feel they need to make their basic font as dark as possible, especially when the font is somewhat thinner, which many react to as 'cirisper' or sharper -- like a fine point vs medium point as I mentioned earlier.

I'll try to catch that in a picture sometime.


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## ElLector (Feb 13, 2009)

Wow!  Great job, Artsandhistoryfan.


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## artsandhistoryfan (Feb 7, 2009)

Thanks, everyone! I'm resuscitating this thread because CNet has done a story about the many threads on the Amazon forums about the lightness of the K2 font.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10191483-1.html

Most of the commenters appear to actually have Kindles.... Interesting discussion of the article.


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