It lastly occurred. After sixteen years of utilizing ereaders with E Ink screens I lastly broke one at present. I’ve had batteries die and the facility button stopped engaged on my Kobo Glo, however that is the primary time I’ve really damaged considered one of my e book readers to the purpose the place it’s not usable.
Sadly it was considered one of my favourite units of all time, and it was unquestionably my favourite Kindle. And it was my fault that it broke. However my Kindle Voyage had a very good run.
I purchased it used off of eBay in 2018. I purchased one new when it first got here out, however it had a blotchy frontlight that irritated me so I removed it in 2016.
I used to be absolutely anticipating Amazon to launch an improved 2nd gen Voyage in some unspecified time in the future. However that by no means occurred. So I made a decision to get one other one as a result of it had the perfect display screen I’d ever seen (frontlight excluded). The one I bought on eBay ended up having a very nice and even frontlight, so I ended up liking it higher than the primary one I had.
Through the years I reviewed dozens of recent ereaders, and none of them had a display screen as good because the Kindle Voyage. It simply had a clearer high quality with darker blacks than different E Ink units. Present ereaders just like the twelfth gen Kindle Paperwhite can lastly get near the darkness of the black ink, however nonetheless nothing can fairly match the readability of the Kindle Voyage’s micro-etched glass display screen.
Be Cautious Placing eReaders in Your Pockets
My Kindle Voyage broke as a result of I had it in my again pocket and I sat on it. The display screen cracked. E Ink screens are recognized for being actually fragile and straightforward to interrupt due to the skinny glass again panel, so it’s best to by no means apply stress to them or twist them.
But it surely wasn’t the E Ink display screen that broke; it was the entrance glass layer. The display screen nonetheless works effective, and the system nonetheless activates and off, however the touchscreen not works with the cracked entrance panel.
I’ve sat down on my Kindle Voyage 100 instances earlier than (I often lean away from it) and it by no means broke. However this time was completely different.
Kindles are extra sturdy than most manufacturers, however they’ll nonetheless break. Sitting on them is a foul concept. Placing them in a bag with different heavy objects can be one thing that needs to be prevented.
Lack of Alternate options
At this level I don’t wish to purchase one other used Kindle Voyage because it was launched over a decade in the past, however it’s sort of unhappy how few options there are in 2025.
Most 6″ e book readers which can be out there now are made out of low cost plastic, and only a few of them have page-turn buttons. The bigger 7″ fashions have buttons, however they’re too vast to slot in most pockets.
I actually just like the Boox Palma 2, however I simply really feel prefer it’s too costly to make use of as a primary ereader, and I’m afraid it should ultimately break if I carry it round in a pocket.
Pocketbook sells just a few 6″ fashions with web page buttons on Amazon, and I presently have considered one of their primary fashions, however the low decision display screen is tough to just accept after utilizing 300 ppi screens for thus lengthy.
I’ll most likely simply begin carrying round a Kobo Clara or primary Kindle for some time and see what sticks, however I want there have been some nicer choices extra just like the Kindle Voyage.
