Yesterday some leaked photos of a new Kindle “Paperwhite” got posted by The Verge and if it turns out the photos and information are accurate, this could mark a big change for the direction of the Kindle ebook readers.
The new Kindle appears to be a replica of the Kindle Touch from a design perspective, although the home button below the screen is missing and the bezel color is black instead of gray.
The new screen is where things get really interesting. Supposedly it has better contrast and higher resolution, as well as integrated lighting and eight weeks of battery life, even when using the light.
The biggest question, though, is the reference to “Paperwhite”. Is this a new type of screen technology? Or is it just the usual marketing terminology?
The article at The Verge uses the phrase “baklit display” in the title of the article. If that’s true then the new Kindle Paperwhite does not use E Ink as all the other Kindles before it have because E Ink and backlights don’t mix. The way the technology works E Ink needs a front-light like the Nook Touch with GlowLight.
It’s more likely the new Kindle uses a front-light instead of a backlight. E Ink doesn’t have any competitors so where would Amazon get a new type of ebook reader screen technology? The leaked photos all show black and white pictures on the screen of the new Kindle so it isn’t using an alternative color display technology.
Regardless, the new Kindle looks like it’s going to be getting some pretty nice upgrades. It will be interesting to see how it turns out next week when Amazon is expected to unveil their new line of Kindle ereaders and tablets. Stay tuned….
I got super excited when I saw these pics. I am really hoping that “Paperwhite” is a new technology, not just another “paper-like display” marketing gimmick (that has never really been true). Amazon has an opportunity to really pull out ahead of the competition here. I am also hoping that if this model includes a front-lit display, it won’t degrade screen contrast and definition like on the Nook Glow. I was at my local B&N on Wednesday and I spent about half an hour using the Nook Glow and the NST side-by-side. All of the book cover images on the Glow were blurry when compared to the NST, and I could definitely notice a marked deficit in text sharpness and clarity. If anyone can upgrade glow and improve contrast, it would be Amazon. I just hope they don’t let us down.
I hope Paperwhite is a new technology too. That would really blow the socks off the whole industry.
Here is the translated French from the image (Google Translate):
“First screen with Paperwhite
Marked contrast resolution
Integrated lighting
Eight weeks of life
(same with the screen lit)”
Paperwhite could, theoretically, be a B&W ultra-low power LCD screen.
More likely it is a typo referring to a front-lit eink screen..
This does not appear to you like Android?
Top status bar and icons, single and big central key, menu with home, back, “=” menu keys…
Seems like too new and risky business for such and big stablished market for Amazon. Unless they release more than one new ereader (?).
Oh my God! Oh my God… O_O
Interesting: I just went to Amazon to checkout the Kindles and found that they’re not selling any new Kindle Fires just used for $170….
There’s no way that the picture above is an actual picture of the screen. It’s illustrative and I’ll guess this is some marketing “hype”. If it’s the same high def screen as on the Onyx Boox i62HD then it will appear slightly darker to the eye. You’ll also notice better shades of grey than in the past because there are more pixels to work with.
All ad pics of eReader screens use a super white background and vivid display, but this is totally bogus. I am just going by what the text says. If I find out they are still using an 800 x 400 E Ink display, I will be totally disappointed.
I’m starting to think this might not be E Ink. Take a closer look at the picture of the blocks. It has way more depth and detail than anything I’ve ever seen on E Ink, including the HD screens. But then again it’s hard to tell from Photoshopped pictures. Usually Amazon’s Kindle pr pictures are very realistic so I don’t know what to make of these.
The eInk resolution has always been limited by the chip used by the eReader. The new PaperWhite display most likely referes to 300 DPI eInk screen powered by a new Epson Chip.
PaperWhite can only be one of three things: A higher resolution E-ink screen with actual backlighting; a higher resolution E-ink screen with frontlighting that does not ruin the contrast; or a higher resolution monochrome LED screen. A realistic expectation would be the frontlit E-ink, since the other two would be a little too miraculous.
The photos really do look like Android running on a Kindle. Maybe they’re doing like Sony and adopting the system.