The final time I had a Kindle was a couple of decade in the past — I keep in mind it might need had some buttons on the entrance, and it was taller than Kindles are these days. The new Amazon Kindle is a mere 6.2 x 4.3 x 0.32 inches and is as gentle as a feather at solely 5.56 ounces — it certain has come a great distance because the final time I used one! The Kindle’s light-weight design is as a result of physique, which consists of between 30% and 75% recycled plastics and 90% recycled magnesium supplies. You can get this new Kindle within the conventional black coloration, or go for an attention-grabbing new denim blue hue.

Being so small and light-weight , the Kindle simply slips into the pocket of a hoodie or coat. Or for those who’re like me and nonetheless going by way of heat “fall” climate in Southern California and will not have jacket pockets to make use of, fret not! Just toss the Kindle into your purse or tech bag. This compact Kindle can slot in my Tom Bihn small café bag or Loungefly mini backpack that I exploit every day, and since it weighs lower than six ounces, I usually overlook that it’s with me.

The plastic is fairly easy with out a lot grip, so I like to recommend utilizing one among Amazon’s material covers. These are pretty reasonably priced at $30 a pop and are available quite a lot of colours. I used to be despatched the usual black cowl with my evaluate unit, however the rose coloration is definitely catching my eye, and I’m debating if I can buy it.

The material is properly textured, making it simpler to carry your Kindle, and the entrance cowl has a microfiber lining to scrub and shield the display screen. It additionally works like an iPad Smart Cover, in that it securely closes with magnets and wakes or places the Kindle to sleep. Plus, the duvet folds again for one-handed use, and opening it makes the Kindle really feel like an actual e-book.

Since that is the bottom mannequin Kindle, it isn’t something too fancy. You have the e-ink display screen with plastic bezels surrounding it, although the underside bezel is thicker than the remaining, and easily emblazoned with the Kindle emblem. However, it appears the thicker backside bezel is purposely designed this solution to give you extra space to carry the system such as you would a bodily e-book. I personally would have most well-liked page-turning buttons as an alternative of all of the screen-tapping that’s required.

If you’ve used a Kindle earlier than, you then’re in all probability already acquainted with the efficiency and interface. I discussed earlier that my final expertise with a Kindle was about 10 years in the past, and it actually hasn’t modified an excessive amount of from what I can see.

Since that is the baseline Kindle, it’s pretty fundamental in efficiency. It connects to Wi-Fi and has 16GB of storage in your books, which needs to be greater than sufficient — the earlier iteration solely had 4GB. It makes use of 4 LEDs to energy the backlighting, the display screen is 6 inches and glare-free, and the decision is 300 ppi. Again, nothing too spectacular while you evaluate it to the opposite Kindle fashions which might be out there, however for easy studying, it will get the job performed.

The capacitive touchscreen is responsive to the touch, and the system itself wakes up quick when you open the duvet or press the button. When I’m turning pages in a e-book, it’s fast. Since the Kindle makes use of e-ink expertise, there’s a flicker every time you do one thing, particularly going by way of menus, however that’s to assist take away ghost photos (this can be a factor with any e-ink display screen). However, when studying, the flickering is way much less noticeable.

Once you will have the Kindle arrange along with your Amazon account, the principle display screen is split into two sections: Home and Library. Home is your portal to the Kindle Store, permitting you to flick thru carousels of featured and really helpful books (together with these out there by way of Prime Reading or Kindle Unlimited). You may also seek for particular titles right here. At the highest of the Home web page, you’ll discover your Library, although there’s additionally a tab on the backside of the display screen to go to your Library (which can be simpler to succeed in along with your thumbs).

Once you add a e-book to your Amazon account, you’ll be able to obtain it immediately on the Kindle and begin studying. The commonplace reader settings are high-quality, however I are likely to desire extra textual content on the display screen without delay (much less web page turning), so I adjusted the settings to go well with my wants. The Kindle helps you to simply change the theme, font, format, and extra with a number of faucets, so you’ll be able to actually create your individual customized studying expertise. The menu panel for systemwide system settings (together with darkish mode and the backlight depth) is one other few faucets away.

For the longest time, the bottom mannequin Kindle has been utilizing the traditional Micro-USB cable for charging. Good information, everybody! Amazon has lastly ditched Micro-USB for USB-C, so though it features a cable (however no charging brick), you may cost your Kindle with any previous USB-C cable you will have laying round the home.

Once your Kindle is absolutely charged, it’s best to get a number of weeks of use out of it. According to Amazon’s spec sheet, one cost ought to final round six full weeks. Of course, your mileage could fluctuate relying on how usually you learn and whether or not you will have the backlight on on a regular basis or not, amongst different elements.

I acquired the system with round 60% battery, and after simply 5 days with it, the Kindle held regular at a strong 30%. I’ve but to cost the factor since getting it. I’ve been tinkering round quite a bit with the backlighting and different settings, so this may occasionally not absolutely mirror what would grow to be my common use. Regardless, it’s nonetheless excellent battery life, all issues thought-about.

The new Kindle will set you again a mere $100 ($10 greater than its predecessor), and you may purchase one proper now on Amazon. It is available in the usual black coloration, or a reasonably new denim blue. Amazon’s personal Kindle Fabric Cover will set you again one other $30, and it is available in 4 colours: black, darkish emerald, denim, and rose.

The Kindle has a one-year restricted guarantee, however you too can get an prolonged guarantee for simply one other $15.

Though I write for a dwelling, I haven’t made time to learn an precise e-book in years. Sure, I learn the information and different issues on-line each day, however that’s fully totally different from discovering your self engrossed in e-book. Ever since I obtained the Kindle (2022), I’ve been setting apart a small chunk of time each day to learn a e-book. Why? Because the Kindle has made me love studying once more.

I completely love the extremely small and light-weight design of the most recent Kindle, and it’s compact sufficient for me to deliver in every single place. The e-ink display screen is now a beneficiant 300 ppi and has a darkish mode and a backlight to provide the very best studying expertise — all at an incredible worth. Plus, with 16GB of storage, there’s loads of room for all your favourite books.