Got a Paperwhite and I hate it.

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#810245 2-May-2013 15:33

People with problems are far more vocal than happy customers. On Amazon it has 4.5 stars out of 5. One unhappy customer will tell everyone they know, a happy customer just uses it.

Compared with my partners old keyboard kindle the paperwhite screen is awesome. Easier to read in every situations. I'd like a physical page turn button, but it's not a big deal for me.

MurrayM

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#810261 2-May-2013 15:42

So the problems that the guy in the video below saw aren't at all common?

timmmay

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#810273 2-May-2013 15:45

I don't watch videos, they're too slow, but if they were common it probably wouldn't have a 4.5 star rating.

MurrayM

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#810287 2-May-2013 15:52

timmmay: I don't watch videos, they're too slow, but if they were common it probably wouldn't have a 4.5 star rating.

Could you do me a favour and watch that video and just let me know if your Paperwhite looks anything like the one in the video? If all Paperwhite's look like the one in the video then it looks like people are just settling for bad screens / lights because they don't know any better, but I'm guessing that the guy in the video just got a dud.

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#810298 2-May-2013 16:24

MurrayM: So the problems that the guy in the video below saw aren't at all common?

The lighting is definitely not even. But that goes witht eh technology, as it is being side lit, not backlit.

timmmay

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#810299 2-May-2013 16:26

Mine looks much more like the Amazon picture than his picture. It's slightly brighter at the bottom where the lights are, but it's pretty uniform. His is obviously faulty.

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MurrayM

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#810309 2-May-2013 16:45

Ok, thanks for confirming that he just had a dud device.

mattwnz

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#810318 2-May-2013 16:48

MurrayM: Ok, thanks for confirming that he just had a dud device.

The one in the video is an extreme case, but it isn't as uniform as shown on the kindle website either. You do get some darker patches near the bottom of the screen.

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#810330 2-May-2013 16:55

I watched the video on mute. Looks like the guy had the thing cranked to max, and then took photos in the dark to try and make his problem look as spectacular as possible. Here is mine at max bright, then the brightness I use, and then in the dark. I can see slight discolorations when I crank the brightness right up, but on my regular setting I never notice anything.

https://imgur.com/a/TkuQ5

Warning: reality may differ from above post

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#810338 2-May-2013 16:59

mattwnz: The one in the video is an extreme case, but it isn't as uniform as shown on the kindle website either. You do get some darker patches near the bottom of the screen.

I've been reading about the Kobo Glo and the new Kobo Aura HD. They seem to do quite well at getting the light to distribute evenly, and a 6.8" screen at 265 ppi sounds great for reading comics.

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#810340 2-May-2013 17:02

qyiet: I watched the video on mute. Looks like the guy had the thing cranked to max, and then took photos in the dark to try and make his problem look as spectacular as possible. Here is mine at max bright, then the brightness I use, and then in the dark. I can see slight discolorations when I crank the brightness right up, but on my regular setting I never notice anything.

https://imgur.com/a/TkuQ5

Thanks for the images, very useful.

I guess it's really hard to photograph things like this; your second pic, of the brightness you read at, looks impossible to read with to me! But I'm guessing in real life it looks much brighter.

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#810341 2-May-2013 17:03

If it is side lit, I don't think it is ever going to be perfectly lit. Personally I never use the light anyway.

MurrayM

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#810343 2-May-2013 17:08

mattwnz: If it is side lit, I don't think it is ever going to be perfectly lit. Personally I never use the light anyway.

I read somewhere that it's not possible to turn the light on the Paperwhite completely off. Is this true? Sounds like that would eat into the battery life (I know LED's don't use much power, but still they need some!)

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#810397 2-May-2013 18:49

The light goes very very dim, so dim you could only see it in a very dark room. I charged my PW today as it hit around 20% battery. I read for 1-2 hours a day, mostly in low light with the backlight dim. I don't even remember the last time I charged it - I think Christmas, then maybe in March, but not really sure.

MurrayM

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#810431 2-May-2013 19:43

Well I've just learnt that my father has bought a Paperwhite, apparently The Warehouse had a special deal running, so I'll be able to have a play with his to see what I think.

Thanks everyone for your observations!

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