I submitted a review of this on the waterproofing website but alas I was too wordy. I had to shorten my review down to below 1,000 characters but feel like it’s missing some important information so I’m posting the full review here. The review is for a Amazon Kindle Paperwhite 3, waterproofed by WaterFi. As of this writing, they have refurbished ones for $100 (wifi) or $130 (wifi/3G) with free shipping (http://waterfi.com/refurbished-waterproof-kindle). You could almost buy three of them for the price of the new Amazon Kindle Oasis, which is admittedly a superior device but too pricey for some of us.
Review:
I’ve been keeping an eye out for the refurbished Kindles to come back in stock and finally was able to buy one. I had some problems with ordering but support was quick to respond to my email with help and told me a new batch was just about to hit the online store. I ordered Monday and had it in my hands on the other side of the US by Thursday.
I was looking for an e-reader to use in the pool and at the beach. I use almost all the popular ebook stores but my library leans heavily on Amazon. I also prefer their Kindle reader apps and think they keep reading position synced better than any of the others. I’ve only had it for a few days but I’m not worried about the shorter warranty on the refurb. In my experience if it works for the first month, it’s likely to continue working unless I abuse it. Although Amazon has the new Oasis waterproof Kindle, it’s almost three times the price! I could buy a lot of ebooks for that. I also am not worried about only having 4 GB to work with. eBooks are generally small files and I don’t need my entire library with me all the time. I spent $30 more for the 3G version so I could download any of my books at any time, even when I’m away from wifi. I don’t think it says in any of the spec on this page but the one I received is the Paperwhite 3, the latest version as of this writing. The reader is pretty heavy but it otherwise feels great in my hands. It has a slightly rubbery feel, which I prefer. The screen is amazing but if it gets very wet the water causes pages to turn. If accidentally wet this isn’t an issue but don’t expect to read underwater. If rinsing, turn it off first. It’s not required but it helps to keep from losing your page. The one I received had some light scratches on the back, which makes sense because it was a refurb. I don’t mind. I saved a lot of money and am likely going to scuff it a little myself. But the screen does not disappoint. It is flawless, reactive, clear, and bright. Much more responsive than my older BN Nook Glowlight. The only other possible negative is that the power button is hard to push. I suspect it’s because of the waterproofing but it doesn’t seem to move so it’s hard to know if I pushed it enough to turn the device on or off. The slight delay in reaction time means I sometimes turn it off and on again because I’ve pushed it twice thinking the first push didn’t work. I’ll adapt and can live with this flaw.
Overall I’m very pleased! I would also consider buying this as a gift. As a heavy reader who likes to be outside, I would prefer a refurbished, waterproof Kindle to a new, non-waterproof one.
