The Oasis is, over all, comfortable to hold. But over several hours of reading, the wedge got tiresome to grip, and I found myself switching between hands. Amazon’s cheaper Kindle Paperwhite, with a curved back that lacks the thick grip, is more pleasant to hold over long durations.
Now onto the upsides. The Oasis’s signature feature, the adjustable light, is a delight. The device has 25 LED lights — 12 white and 13 amber — to let you tweak the color tone from cool to warm manually or automatically on a timed schedule. I set the device to adjust its light automatically, and at night, the warmer color tone felt easier on my eyes.
One quick aside: There’s a debate over whether the color tones of screens affect sleep. Some studies have shown that blue light emitted from screens, including smartphones and some e-book readers, can act as a stimulant, disrupting your circadian rhythms and making it harder to sleep. It’s unclear whether screens with warmer color tones help you get better sleep.
As for other benefits, the Oasis works for both lefties and righties. If you’re holding the device in your right hand and rotate it 180 degrees to hold the grip with your left hand, the screen automatically reorients itself so that the book is right side up.
Books look fantastic on the Oasis. Like other e-readers, it uses e-ink technology, which has matured over the last decade to make text look crisper and clearer. As with other e-readers, the battery for the Oasis lasts weeks. (I haven’t had to recharge my test unit since receiving it more than a week ago.)
All things considered, I recommend the cheaper Kindle Paperwhite (which I own) over the Oasis. For roughly half the price, it has most of the same benefits: weekslong battery life and an excellent screen. The lack of color adjustment isn’t a deal breaker.
Rather than degrade the reading experience, the Paperwhite’s smaller screen is a benefit. It’s less cumbersome to hold and fits into most coat pockets, whereas the Oasis does not.