Oh, and that’s the joy of the waterproofing – if it did overheat while I was poolside, I could always dip it into the water to help it feel less hot and bothered. I’m typing this on what’s turning out to be the hottest day the United Kingdom has seen, ever, so I know that if I was reading for more than a couple of hours, it will need a moment to cool down. But if you read in the sunshine for a long time, it can get so hot it turns off. That casing is one of the reasons the Oasis looks so spiffy. There is one little wrinkle worth noting: the aluminum casing gets hot. So, you can read, qualm-free in the bath or at the poolside. The Oasis, like the mid-range Amazon Paperwhite but unlike the entry-level Kindle, is waterproof. That extra little convenience really adds up when you’re turning from page to page which is, after all, something you do a lot with a whole book to read. You can swipe the screen, of course, as on other Kindles, but the Oasis has this extra option. If you’re reading one-handed, it’s much easier to click the button than swipe the screen with your thumb, particularly when you’re turning back a page which requires a more extravagant swipe. These buttons may not sound like much but they’re actually one of the key reasons why the Oasis is the top-notch reader. These buttons are a little more defined as you press them than on the previous version: they feel even better than last time around. Turning the reader the other way up also reverses the button functions so up is always next page, for instance. It also has two physical buttons on it, which you press to turn to the next page or previous page respectively. The bezel on the side where you hold it: it’s not just for your thumb to rest on. The Amazon logo on the back of the Oasis runs sideways up the device, so it’s always the right way up. An accelerometer inside recognizes this and spins the content of the page.

What if you’re left-handed, say? Or like to swap your book-holding hand as you lie on the sun lounger? Amazon has thought of that: as you switch hands you find yourself, without thinking, turning the Oasis the other way up.

Used kindle oasis