Companies are always changing the appearance of the user interface on just about everything, but why is it that whenever Amazon makes changes to Kindles it always seems to be for the worse?
A lot of people really dislike the look of the new page view layout on Kindles that Amazon switched to with recent updates. When you tap the top of the screen to open the menu while reading, it now shrinks the view of the page to fit the menus above and below the visible area instead of overlapping the page like it did before.
When you swipe up from the bottom of the screen it now does the same thing as tapping at the top of the screen. On the old interface swiping up used to open a new single-page window where you could scan through the pages of a book. Then you could close that window and be right back where you left off.
Now when you scroll through pages with the new page view, you have to hit a link that appears at the bottom to go back to the page you were previously on.
I think what some people dislike about the new UI is it now shows less information than it used to. When you used to swipe up from the bottom of the screen, it would show you’re on page 103 of 159, for example. Now it just shows your on page 103.
What I dislike about the update is the new page view is slower than the old page view. Comparing the same book on two 12th gen Kindle Paperwhites, one with the old page view and one with the new, the new layout is slower to load every single time you open the menu so it’s hard not to notice the performance decrease.
It’s especially slow after first opening a book. It takes a solid 2-3 seconds longer to open the menu with the new layout compared to the old. After a book has been opened it’s only about 1 second slower to open, but still that’s pretty annoying after getting used to the faster response time using the old layout.
Aside from the performance dip, I don’t really mind the look of the new layout on the Kindle Paperwhite, but when you shrink the page down to 3.3″ on the 6″ Kindle it just looks too small and cramped.
I think the most annoying thing about these user interface changes is you get used to things being a certain way, and then when Amazon decides to randomly change things you have no say in the matter. There’s no easy way to avoid changes like this. Basically, the only way to avoid getting the update is to keep your Kindle offline forever, and that can be really inconvenient.
Actually there is one way to avoid seeing the new page view layout, but it comes with some extra work. Sideloaded books still show the old layout, even books that are sent through Send-to-Kindle. But some of the other new features won’t work, like the new Assistive Reader.
What do you think of the new page view layout on Kindles? Is it an improvement or an impediment?
Leave Amazon’s ecosystem. Look, I get it, click bait titles drive ad revenue. But the answer is, and always has been, to leave the systems of people that hate you. Stop giving them money. And if your fav author isn’t on another shop. See if they have a patreon or other early access site, or just stop buying their books until they go bankrupt and finally leave the Kindle unlimited program that prevents them from publishing anywhere else.
I wish there was a book version of the gamer revolts going on that’s destroying the evil game publisher stranglehold on games creation.
I hate the new page look on both the Kindle and the Kindle app. It’s far too easy to accidentally skip ahead or go back several chapters with a single accidental touch.
I just hope they fix the voice in voiceview. The other changes, at least they are trying.