Got a Paperwhite and I hate it.

Forums › Gadgets, robotics, home automation, electronics (including wearables) › Got a Paperwhite and I hate it.

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#810619 3-May-2013 08:51

timmmay: I have to say the paperwhite is about 1/10th the weight of my 10" Android tablet, and about 1/20th the weight of the hardcover book "Sarum". I actually delayed reading the book until I got a kindle, because the paper book was too heavy to comfortably read lying down.

You are quite right Timmmay,

Compared to a tablet the paperwhite is much lighter, and I cannot remember the last time I read a hardcover book but am sure they are heavier too :D

Incidently I just got Edward Rutherfurd's latest book -Paris- on my Kindle. Am looking forward to it.

Another author who writes large books is the British Sci Fi auther Peter F. Hamilton. He writes multi book series with many volumes over 1000 pages each. I picked one up in Whitcoulls a while back and was surprised how big it was. No wonder it took me a while to read the kindle version ;P

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#810621 3-May-2013 09:05

I've read some Peter Hamilton, in hardback, the kindle would be much easier on the hands and arms.

Elpie

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#817323 14-May-2013 12:05

bongojona: I feel that I must defend the paperweight here.

I have had mine for several months now and am loving it.

The only downside after moving up from my kindle touch was the increase in weight - I was surprised how much heftier it was. But I have adjusted. It's not that much really -was just not expecting it.

The light is the star in my eyes (literally) as I find it much easier to look at even during the day. Battery life is not hugely affected by it either.

As to the touch screen, I was already using the earlier touch model so am very comfortable with it.

I wonder, if I may politely ask, if you are currently using a touchscreen phone ?

My theory being that those of us who are comfortable with such screens will adapt to a touchscreen kindle easier than those who do not.

I do occasionally turn the page unintentionally, but I do not not find that a major issue. Just touch to get it back.

I've been using touchscreens for as long as they have been around. That isn't an issue - the way I lie in bed and read is an issue for any touchscreen (I hold with one hand and balance the e-reader against my pillow). I've also been reading e-books since they were first around, back in the good ole days when Microsoft introduced MS Reader and the .lit format to PDA's.
That, of course, is part of the issue - my thumbs have muscle memory after so many years and want to click to turn pages ;)

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#817326 14-May-2013 12:07

Elpie:
bongojona: I feel that I must defend the paperweight here.

I have had mine for several months now and am loving it.

The only downside after moving up from my kindle touch was the increase in weight - I was surprised how much heftier it was. But I have adjusted. It's not that much really -was just not expecting it.

The light is the star in my eyes (literally) as I find it much easier to look at even during the day. Battery life is not hugely affected by it either.

As to the touch screen, I was already using the earlier touch model so am very comfortable with it.

I wonder, if I may politely ask, if you are currently using a touchscreen phone ?

My theory being that those of us who are comfortable with such screens will adapt to a touchscreen kindle easier than those who do not.

I do occasionally turn the page unintentionally, but I do not not find that a major issue. Just touch to get it back.

I've been using touchscreens for as long as they have been around. That isn't an issue - the way I lie in bed and read is an issue for any touchscreen (I hold with one hand and balance the e-reader against my pillow). I've also been reading e-books since they were first around, back in the good ole days when Microsoft introduced MS Reader and the .lit format to PDA's.
That, of course, is part of the issue - my thumbs have muscle memory after so many years and want to click to turn pages ;)

I am the same, I was in with touchscreens since they were invented, and I find the paperwhite not as good for page turning. A button on the bezel is 100x better easily. I don't have massive hands and I often hold my kindle in one hand, and I find it awkward to hit the screen.

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#817335 14-May-2013 12:19

MurrayM:
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.

Yes, mine looks like that. The first one I got was almost exactly as shown in the video except that the light you see at the bottom left side extended for about twice the length. The replacement Paperwhite they sent me has a different tinge to it but is just as blotchy, albeit without the retina-hurting bright light on the left. Neither is acceptable.

Amazon are aware of a problem with these and are working on an update. They were cagey about whether the updated Paperwhite would be just a software update or both software and hardware.

For those saying the reviews are positive its worth noting that if you buy an item then return it, any review you have written for that item is removed. Reviews stay for items you own and don't send back.

For anyone else who needs to return one of these its worth knowing that Amazon will ask you to ship back to them and that they will refund shipping. Don't accept this. I got caught sending an item back under these circumstances and they refunded $6 whereas shipping cost me $40. Get onto chat with customer services and ask for a commitment for a full refund on shipping. I did this for the Paperwhite and they generated a shipment-paid packing slip so all I needed to do was drop the Paperwhite off at UPS.

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#817354 14-May-2013 12:40

Elpie:
For anyone else who needs to return one of these its worth knowing that Amazon will ask you to ship back to them and that they will refund shipping. Don't accept this. I got caught sending an item back under these circumstances and they refunded $6 whereas shipping cost me $40. Get onto chat with customer services and ask for a commitment for a full refund on shipping. I did this for the Paperwhite and they generated a shipment-paid packing slip so all I needed to do was drop the Paperwhite off at UPS.

Really? That sounds like very poor service, and would make me think twice before purchasing again from them. You would be hard pressed to send it within NZ for just $6, let alone to the US. I would have thought they would have sent you a courier ticket to send it back to them with, or arranged for it to be picked up. I am not even aware of any UPS office in my area to drop it off at.

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#817357 14-May-2013 12:43

mattwnz:
Elpie:
For anyone else who needs to return one of these its worth knowing that Amazon will ask you to ship back to them and that they will refund shipping. Don't accept this. I got caught sending an item back under these circumstances and they refunded $6 whereas shipping cost me $40. Get onto chat with customer services and ask for a commitment for a full refund on shipping. I did this for the Paperwhite and they generated a shipment-paid packing slip so all I needed to do was drop the Paperwhite off at UPS.

Really? That sounds like very poor service, and would make me think twice before purchasing again from them. You would be had press to send it within NZ for just $6, let alone to the US. I would have thought they would have sent you a courier ticket to send it back to them with, or arranged for it to be picked up. I am not even aware of any UPS office in my area to drop it off at.

I think Elpies experience isn't typical. She is having some issues that fall outside of what I would expect and far outside of my experience and that of others here. I have given her a point of escalation.

I have returned two kindles for various reasons and other items, I've never had anything other than perfect service and always had them pick up my items. All big organizations will have the occasional issue. Hopefully she has a better experience with escalation.

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#817373 14-May-2013 13:09

networkn:
I think Elpies experience isn't typical. She is having some issues that fall outside of what I would expect and far outside of my experience and that of others here. I have given her a point of escalation.

I have returned two kindles for various reasons and other items, I've never had anything other than perfect service and always had them pick up my items. All big organizations will have the occasional issue. Hopefully she has a better experience with escalation.

That is true, but a companies reputation can be based on it's weakest link, as often people will post bad experiences, rather than good ones. Personally I haven't had any problems with Amazon, but nor have I received a defective item. It is how aftersales support is handled that matters on all conditions.

minimoke

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#823931 23-May-2013 08:10

I've had none of the problems mentioned in this thread. My problem is I have Scottish blood running through my veins. So I bought the Special Offers version to save US$20 bucks. Trouble is I'm too tight to buy any of these offers so the SO feature was a pain.

Contacted Amazon yesterday via their chat function and within 3 minutes special offers removed. No problem, fast, simple, hassle free. Just all round excellent service..

So I've got a Paperwhite and am continuing to love it even more!

Now I can jailbreak it and start working some of the tweaks. There's more fun to be had than just reading books.!

timmmay

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#823934 23-May-2013 08:19

I'd like to hear anyone who jailbreaks it, how it goes, and what benefits you get. I'd like to change the screen savers, but not if there's any risk of breaking it.

Elpie

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#824124 23-May-2013 13:36

networkn:
mattwnz:
Elpie:
For anyone else who needs to return one of these its worth knowing that Amazon will ask you to ship back to them and that they will refund shipping. Don't accept this. I got caught sending an item back under these circumstances and they refunded $6 whereas shipping cost me $40. Get onto chat with customer services and ask for a commitment for a full refund on shipping. I did this for the Paperwhite and they generated a shipment-paid packing slip so all I needed to do was drop the Paperwhite off at UPS.

Really? That sounds like very poor service, and would make me think twice before purchasing again from them. You would be had press to send it within NZ for just $6, let alone to the US. I would have thought they would have sent you a courier ticket to send it back to them with, or arranged for it to be picked up. I am not even aware of any UPS office in my area to drop it off at.

I think Elpies experience isn't typical. She is having some issues that fall outside of what I would expect and far outside of my experience and that of others here. I have given her a point of escalation.

I have returned two kindles for various reasons and other items, I've never had anything other than perfect service and always had them pick up my items. All big organizations will have the occasional issue. Hopefully she has a better experience with escalation.

Nope, I didn't. The response I got was that Amazon are very sorry that I have been inconvenienced, a small number of customers have reported the same problems and they are looking into these, and that I can return the second Paperwhite, along with the leather cover I bought for it, for a full refund. Shipping will be refunded on the Paperwhite but not on the cover as the cover is not defective. Given that the cover is useless to me without the Paperwhite I am just going to suck up the loss and send everything back.

I've been using Amazon for over a decade, across two countries, and spending thousands of dollars with them. I'd not had any issues with their service at all, until they reneged on their undertaking to refund shipping at USD20 and only gave me $6 back. I didn't get anything more than a, "we made a mistake and apologise" for that, but the handling over the Paperwhite issue has really soured me on shopping with them again.

The issues I have had with the Paperwhite are not unique - they have said its a problem experienced by some people & are working on a fix. Even the best electronic devices can get through quality control with issues and I have no issue with that. I have a real issue with the after-sales "service" and loss of my money.

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#824128 23-May-2013 13:43

Elpie:
The issues I have had with the Paperwhite are not unique - they have said its a problem experienced by some people & are working on a fix. Even the best electronic devices can get through quality control with issues and I have no issue with that. I have a real issue with the after-sales "service" and loss of my money.

They should have given you a refund on the cover. If they were a NZ business operating in NZ, they would probably have been required to, as it is a consequential loss as a direct result of the purchase due to it being an accessory for the defective product. That is poor service from them. I would escalate that to their management, as their covers aren't cheap. Personally I got a magnetic cover off ebay for $10 which is perfect for mine.

Elpie

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#828284 30-May-2013 13:39

Just an update:
The replacement replacement is as faulty as the first replacement. I talked to Amazon customer services again today and was told that "all Paperwhites have dark patches but people's sensitivity to these differ". And, "at average reading of 30 minutes a day it shouldn't be an issue". So, it appears that I am not an average reader as I read for 3-4 hours a day every day and can't handle reading books where parts of the page are obscured by dark smudgy patches. The pink or green tinges are not normal so Amazon is prepared to get another return, however, they are not (yet) prepared to refund my money and want to send yet another Paperwhite out to me.

I'm escalating this (again!) as I now just want my money back. This is me gone from the Amazon Kindle ecosystem and I doubt I'll ever return to it.

timmmay

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#828285 30-May-2013 13:40

Can you take a picture and post it? Does it look anything like the picture I took of mine, page 3 of this thread?

mattwnz

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#828287 30-May-2013 13:43

Elpie: Just an update:
The replacement replacement is as faulty as the first replacement. I talked to Amazon customer services again today and was told that "all Paperwhites have dark patches but people's sensitivity to these differ". And, "at average reading of 30 minutes a day it shouldn't be an issue". So, it appears that I am not an average reader as I read for 3-4 hours a day every day and can't handle reading books where parts of the page are obscured by dark smudgy patches. The pink or green tinges are not normal so Amazon is prepared to get another return, however, they are not (yet) prepared to refund my money and want to send yet another Paperwhite out to me.

I'm escalating this (again!) as I now just want my money back. This is me gone from the Amazon Kindle ecosystem and I doubt I'll ever return to it.

My experience with their support team hasn't been great either recently. I don' think they read the emails, they seem to just paste stock responses.

With the lighting, unfortunately it is never going to be perfectly uniform, as the lighting is done from the sides. It's not back lit like an ipad. But would be interested to as to how bad it is. Odd that all 3 have the problem, unless they are only sending your refurbished ones, instead of new. Or maybe they have a bad batch of them. Mine was fine, although you can see a bit of lit bleed at the very edge if you look hard.

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