Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, let all his Twitter
followers know on April 4 that a new Kindle was in the works. Just over a week
later, Amazon started showing off its completely redesigned Kindle Oasis e-reader.
The new device is close to square with a side grip and
a 6-in. screen that contains the e-reader’s central processing unit, storage,
and battery. By changing the glass covering, Amazon was able to strengthen the
glass and cut down the device’s size, according to a report from Mashable.
Amazon claims the battery life of the Oasis will be two
weeks, but the leather case that will be shipped with it includes a backup
battery that will extend the life by seven additional weeks. However, the
device does not include the Alexa app that provides voice services to a number
of Amazon products such as the Echo wireless speaker and voice-command device.
The Oasis is available for preorder and will begin
shipping on April 27. It will cost $289.99 for the Wi-Fi-only edition that
shows advertisements when the reader is turned on. The unit without
advertisements costs $309.99, while a 3G device will cost $359.99 with offers
and $379 without.
“The device’s funky new aesthetic is a surprise move
for the relatively no-frills Kindle category, and yet it packs the longest
battery of any e-reader ever made,” Nick Statt wrote in a review of the Oasis for The Verge. “These changes raise interesting questions for book
lovers: What do we really need in an e-reader, and how much should those
elements cost us?”