New Kindle Paperwhite has a bigger screen, extra battery life and USB-C

Amazon has refreshed its popular Kindle Paperwhite for the first time in almost three years. The new model arrives with a bigger 6.8-inch e-ink display, a water-resistant design, and a mammoth 10-week battery life. The new Paperwhite is also the first Kindle to charge via USB-C. That might sound like a small change, but it’s something that fans have long been calling for. It means you’ll be able to charge your Kindle Paperwhite with the same cable used for your iPad Pro, Android handset, Nintendo Switch, or MacBook Air. It also enables faster charging, with the Paperwhite now refilling its longer battery life in a speedy two and a half hours.

Paperwhite is the most popular Kindle model that Amazon sells as it sits between the entry-level £69.99 model that lacks a few features, and the all-singing all-dancing Kindle Oasis, which carries an eye-watering £229.99 price tag. For most, the Kindle Paperwhite is the best balance of affordability and features.

This new model, the fifth-generation launched by Amazon since the introduction of the Paperwhite series in September 2012, includes a number of features previously exclusive to the pricier Oasis – as well as some not available anywhere else in the line-up. First up, the new Paperwhite has a larger 6.8-inch screen, compared with 6-inches on the previous model and the entry-level Kindle. It’s only a fraction smaller than the 7-inch display found on the Oasis.

To squeeze the larger touchscreen into the Paperwhite, Amazon has thinned down the borders around the display to a minuscule 10.2 millimetres. Given that some readers like to hold the Kindle with these borders, we’ll have to get our hands on the new Paperwhite to check whether this new design works. The screen sits flush with the rest of the front of the Kindle, which you won’t find on the basic £69.99 Kindle.

The screen has a 300 pixel-per-inch resolution, which is the same as the previous generation and means text is as crisp as you’d get from a paperback. However, the new model does boast an extra 10 percent of brightness at the maximum setting compared to its predecessor. As with all Kindles, the e-ink screen reacts like paper in direct sunlight, so you won’t have to worry about glare blinding you when reading on your summer holiday – like you might find with your smartphone.

The new Paperwhite is also rated IPX8 rating, which means it’s not certified as dust-proof but can withstand a dunk in over one-metre of water (3ft). That should be reassuring to butterfingers, who might be worried about reading in a bath, hot tub, pool, or beach with a Kindle.

Battery life has been boosted from approximately six-weeks up to 10-weeks. A new processor tucked inside the Paperwhite means page-turns are around 20 percent faster than other Kindles, which will be invaluable to readers. And with 8GB of storage included, you’ll be able to store thousands of novels and non-fiction books, magazines and comics. In fact, you’re unlikely to ever run-out of storage, especially if you’re only reading books.

Out of the box, the new Paperwhite has the redesigned Kindle interface, which rolled out to existing users a few weeks ago. This upgraded software adds several new features to make using your Kindle “easier and more intuitive experience,” Amazon says. The software includes shortcuts to switch between the three most common features – the home screen, your library, and the book you’re currently reading. There are also new filters to sort through your library and a new scroll bar.

All of the usual Kindle software features – like the ability to look-up definitions by pressing on words, sharing your favourite quotes from books to social media, syncing progress between the Kindle and audiobook version to pick up at the exact same spot between the two – make a welcome return too.

“Customers love Kindle Paperwhite, and we’ve worked hard to add even more premium experiences to the next generation,” said Eric Saarnio, VP, Amazon Devices International. “The new Kindle Paperwhite comes with a warm light and larger display for even more comfort, 20 percent faster page turns, and up to 10 weeks of battery life – all in a compact, waterproof design that makes it easy to enjoy a book anywhere, day or night. Now more than ever, it’s delightful to get lost in millions of books wherever you go.”

Kindle Paperwhite, which is only available in a single colour – black, is available to pre-order at £129.99 today. The new Kindle will start shipping October 27, 2021.

Alongside this model, Amazon has introduced a new upgraded model, the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, which includes an auto-adjusting light sensor to manage the screen brightness based on the ambient light around you, 32 GB of built-in storage, and, for the first time, support for wireless charging on any Qi pad. As well as these exclusive features, some of which you won’t even find on the £229.99 Kindle Oasis, the Paperwhite Signature Edition has all of the same functionality as the standard model.

The new Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition costs £179.99 and is available in black. It’s available to pre-order today, but won’t ship until November 10.

Amazon has designed new leather and fabric covers for its redesigned Kindle Paperwhite and Paperwhite Signature Edition in Black, Deep Sea Blue, and Lavender Haze.