Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (2024) review: Brilliant, but boring

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There is a subtle elegance to eBook readers. The fundamental technology has remained mostly the same over a decade, with e-ink offering a paper-like reading experience without draining the battery.

The Kindle Paperwhite is arguably the best Kindle Amazon has ever released. It does the same thing as all the versions of the Kindle that came before it – display text on an e-ink screen that’s easy to read in all lighting, but made the screen more responsive.

That makes it a great device to read books on… But that’s nothing new for Kindles. Which means that while the Paperwhite makes a great purchase for book-lovers looking for a new eBook reader, it’s definitely not worth upgrading if you have a fairly recent device.

What is the new Kindle Paperwhite offering?

Amazon’s Paperwhite has been the best-selling Kindle model since it first launched back in 2012. And there’s a reason for that. It’s a great balance between size, performance, and style.

This year’s Paperwhite update sees the screen jump up to seven inches, which is the largest the Paperwhite model has ever had. Yet despite that, Amazon has also managed to carve down the thickness to just 7.8 mm, making it the thinnest version ever.

That combo makes the eReader really comfortable to hold. It weighs 211 grams, which sounds heavier than it feels if I’m honest.

The back of the Paperwhite feels soft, like a rubberised plastic finish. There’s only one button on the whole device, which is the Power button. It’s located on the bottom of the eBook Reader, just to the right of the USB-C charging port.

This is one of the few design flaws of this product, as it’s an unnatural action to go to the bottom of the product to turn it on.

But the limited ports do help Amazon get this an IPX8 water resistance rating. You shouldn’t take it swimming, but it should handle the odd splash of water well enough.

While the physical package is immediately familiar to any Kindle user, the internals are where the real improvements are. Amazon has pumped up the contrast ratio on this display, and sped up the performance. Amazon says page turns happen 25% faster.

It’s also packing 12 weeks worth of battery life (depending on usage) and the screen’s brightness and warmth can be quickly and easily adjusted to read in any type of lighting.

There’s 16 GB of storage for eBooks on board, and that’s not expandable. That should be plenty, but if you want more, the Signature Edition offers 32 GB, wireless charging and an auto-adjusting front light sensor.

What does the new Kindle Paperwhite do well?

The biggest selling point for this Kindle is the speed of the page turning functions, and it’s good to see. Compared to the Kindle Scribe, and the first generation Oasis, the Paperwhite feels quick to turn pages. There’s no real lag — it just happens as you push or swipe the screen.

This is also true for browsing the Kindle store. I can’t say I’ve ever felt overly frustrated with the Kindle’s page turning ability, but I did get very frustrated trying to browse for new books on the Oasis.

The Paperwhite’s storefront is much quicker to load, and moving through pages of books across genres is noticeably faster to load. Whether that’s the improved Wi-Fi capabilities or the quicker e-ink performance (or most likely a combination of both) doesn’t really matter. It’s enough that it is faster.

Battery life is pretty sensational too. I’ve used the Kindle for about a month, reading a reasonable amount (probably not as much as I wanted to though), and the battery life is still above 30% from delivery.

I can’t confirm Amazon’s 12-week number, but I think it would be a reasonably close, depending on usage. The Paperwhite sips on power, and even if you read all day every day, you’ll still only have to plug this in periodically.

I am a big fan of the display. At seven inches, it’s easy to read, and Amazon’s adjustable font sizes makes it even easier if you are visually impaired.

It’s also quick and easy to change both the brightness and the warmth of the display. You can set a schedule to shift to a warmer lighting as well, so people who enjoy reading at night can always have the screen showing less blue light before bed.

What could the new Kindle Paperwhite improve?

I’m still not sure why Amazon includes a web browser on its Kindle devices. It’s not a great experience for anyone, and may not work at all on complex websites.

There’s probably an argument that it’s better to have it there for the minority of people who want it rather than not, but for me, it seems like an unnecessary element to the software.

The other challenge I have with the Paperwhite, which is not a device-specific criticism, is that it locks you right into the Amazon ecosystem. Kindle books only work on Kindles, so if you were to look to migrate to something like the colourful Kobo Libra, you can’t bring your books with you.

This device also doesn’t support Audible audiobook playback. I’m not a big audiobook guy, but I know that plenty of people are, so that’s going to be something to consider when you think about buying this Kindle.

Verdict

Reading on a Kindle is a nice experience. It can’t match the tactile feeling of picking up an actual book and turning the pages, but it is a lot more versatile. You can easily have hundreds of books stored on the reader, and read for months without needing to recharge.

The Paperwhite is arguably the best Kindle Amazon has made to date. You could make a case that the Signature Edition, which adds a few extra features like a light sensor and wireless charging, is a better value purchase.

But they are largely the same device. If you’re looking for an eBook reader and are happy to read within Amazon’s Kindle ecosystem, this is a great option, but there’s no pressing need to upgrade if you already own a working Kindle device.

Buy the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite online

Amazon Kindle Paperwhite 2024

RRP: $299

Check Price @ Amazon