Looking at the overall reviews for each Kindle model reveals some interesting insights about the hierarchy of Amazon’s ereaders amongst themselves.
The Kindle is basically its own competition thanks to a complete lack of dedicated ebook readers in the US. The Nook is the one mainstream alternative and it’s hardly worth considering anymore because of B&N’s negligence.
Kobo has no distributors in the US, and doesn’t even seem try to compete with Amazon anymore.
So for most people wanting a dedicated E Ink ebook reader, the four different Kindle models are about the only viable options.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the current reviews for Kindle ereaders, in order of popularity:
Kindle Paperwhite – 4.5 stars with 28,109 reviews
Kindle Voyage – 4.3 stars with 10,670 reviews
Kindle Oasis – 4.1 stars with 1,800 reviews
Kindle – 3.9 stars with 1,744 reviews
I find it interesting that Amazon’s least expensive Kindle is also their least popular Kindle. Granted it’s been on the market for the shortest amount of time, but still 3.9 stars is pretty disappointing.
A lot of the negative reviews seem to be from previous Kindle owners that liked their older model with buttons better. There are also a number of complaints about the low resolution screen and the lack of a frontlight, which was my number one complaint as well.
It’s not surprising to see the Kindle Paperwhite at the top of the list. It’s the best Kindle in terms of price to features ratio with the high resolution screen and built-in frontlight.
But it is surprising to see Amazon’s highly-touted “premium” ereader near the bottom of the list. That’s not what you’d expect from a company’s highest-end model. A number of the critical reviews complain about poor battery life and frontlight unevenness. There are some complaints about the high price too, but not as many as you’d expect. A number of people mention that they wouldn’t mind the price if the device was flawless.
You as a reviewer can express disappointment at the lowest-priced Kindle not having a frontlight. But (most) customer reviews (purportedly post-purchase) complaining about no frontlight on a Kindle that comes with no frontlight are too dumb to be considered valid.
I ordered the basic Kindle bundle the other day to have one in my purse. (Kindle, case, and 2 year Square Trade warranty for $69.99 with the Prime $30 discount.) It’s arriving tomorrow. I am amazed at how many people leave low ratings due to no front light/buttons. All I think is “duh”. I wish all of those ratings could just be removed as this Kindle isn’t advertised to have those features.
My main Kindle is still my trusty Voyage. I tried the Oasis but to me, the screen wasn’t as sharp as the Voyage.
I also purchased the basic Kindle to carry in my handbag and I am very happy with it. It is clear to see in daylight and under the lights at work. It is very responsive and lightweight. I like it way more than I did the Voyage or the Oasis both of which I no longer have. I traded those for the Paperwhite which is great. It does not bother me to switch reading between the two even though the p.p.i. is different. Now I just wish Amazon would come out with the larger reader to match Kobo’s Aura One.
I agree with Joe T.
I still think this special pricing is a way to combat the popularity of the Kobo Aura One. I see no other reason. I personally think it’s too late to release a Kindle Voyage 2 this late in the year and if it remains 6″, it would undercut the Kindle Oasis which was barely released 5 months ago.
You can already see B&N giving up on e-readers. On their site, they basically say “Nook Tablets and eReaders”.
It really is pretty sad — the options for e-readers are slowly dwindling.
I’m glad I still have my Sony e-reader.
I have a kindle with no front light. It has worked flawlessly and the best part is the text to speech function. I listen to the books on my way to work. I am really disappointed that they are no longer including text-to-speech anymore on the newer models.
bring back the text to voice in your e books.
I am very disappointed in my new kindle.