Troubleshooting Quick question about backlight

[Monny]

I got two brand new Kindles PW3 right now, but i noticed that the screens look very different. One is very white, one is yellowish. Which one is "correct"? Is one of them some kind of newer (better) model? Which one do you have? Screens http://imgur.com/a/xAEPc

[Cinisajoy]

Easy way to tell. I need the first 6 digits of the serial numbers of both. Oh and it is a front light not a back light.
Also check the firmware.

[shamanNS]

@Cinisajoy: It has absolutely nothing to do with firmware version OR serial numbers. You a tiny step (as in "try factory reset, see if it fixes your problem") from turning into one of those clueless Kindle support people. @Monny stated that he/she bought 2 PW3s at the same time so there is 99.9% chances those are the same model/ same generation = no point asking for serial numbers.

@Monny: It's a well known fact that every Paperwhite generation (to be even more precise every Kindle model with built-in light; so Paperwhites, Voyage & Oasis) has had the same problem with light "temperature" being in all possible variants between "sepia-like" to "significant blue tint" range. No 2 Kindle specimen in one model/generation are the same. If you had bought 5 PW3 you would probably have at least 4 different light temperatures

But, for example, on average PW2s had warmer light that PW1s there were still PW2 that had bluer/colder light that some PW1.

From Amazon's perspective their are all "correct". And what is better is subjective. I personally prefer Kindles with slight yellow tint and what some people claim to be "neutral/white" for me is already in "blue tinted" category.

You decide which you prefer and then return the other one, and keep returning the replacement until you "win the lottery" and get the specimen you like.

[Dr. Drib]

ALL eInk readers are ONLY front light.

You should also take the time to fill in your 'DEVICE' info here at Mobileread.

You should also turn on your PMs.

[NullNix]

Originally Posted by shamanNS

@Monny: It's a well known fact that every Paperwhite generation (to be even more precise every Kindle model with built-in light; so Paperwhites, Voyage & Oasis) has had the same problem with light "temperature" being in all possible variants between "sepia-like" to "significant blue tint" range.

Even on a single Kindle, you can see the effective temperature vary as you move the device into different external lighting conditions. I can flip my Oasis between eerie blue, glowing yellow, no-apparent-backlight-just-looks-white and even (in the right conditions) something that looks somewhat reddish by moving between different levels of ambient light and frontlight intensity.

btw, all those people saying e-ink screens are opaque are not quite right: it is only practically opaque. I tested this when I broke my old K4 by pulling the screen out and putting a really intense variable theatrical light behind it, because this is what you do when working on lighting and bored. If you turn it way up (and shield the edges with something else so you don't get blinded by the light coming past the edges) you can see that the e-ink is actually somewhat translucent, and does glow if you chuck enough light at the back of it. This is unsurprising because the oil in which the opaque black and white granules are embedded is not itself opaque, so light can still find its way from the back to the front.

(This is not to recommend running a Kindle with a multi-kilowatt theatrical light mounted behind its e-ink layer. It's way too bulky to fit in the case, slow to change light levels, crazily power-inefficient, really unevenly lit and so hot it nearly melted the screen. I should have got pictures, but I didn't have my camera on me that day. )

[DaveFalcon73]

Monny, definitely as others have said, it's one of those things unfortunately with Kindle screens. Some can be more whiter than others. Apple have also had similar problems with iPhone screens. It usually happens when the company (Amazon in this case) use several different suppliers for the screen technology in manufacturing. I've had two PaperWhite's a PW1 and PW2 and the first was more yellow than the PW2. I've also had a Voyage since which was even whiter and now the Oasis where it's more yellow although it seems to be that this is what most Oasis screens are like now.

It's not a fault it's just the screen and how it was manufactured. If you're unhappy and you bought them from Amazon send the one back you're unhappy with and get a replacement, keep the photo just in case you need to use it for Amazon but I doubt they'll even want to know what the issue is.