Amazon completely revamped its Kindle family in October when it launched an all-new Colorsoft ereader, as well as updated generations of the other three existing models: the standard Kindle, the Paperwhite and the Scribe E Ink tablet.
The new Paperwhite has a slightly larger screen, a bigger battery and a more powerful processor that Amazon combines with E Ink technology to make turning pages faster. The Paperwhite again comes in a Signature Edition, which adds wireless charging, an auto-adjusting front light and extra storage — all for $200, $10 more than the previous Signature Edition.
The standard Kindle also got a $10 price hike, leaving a $90 gap between Amazon’s cheapest model and the Signature Edition. I tested both to see if the price difference is worth it. The higher-end model is certainly plusher, but the base model handles the basic features of an ereader well. Is the deluxe treatment that much better? Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition
The Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition is one of the most luxurious ereaders you can buy, but some people may not need to pay extra for all the best features.
Processor, capacity, and other hardware features
The company is calling the Paperwhite (Signature and Standard) the “fastest Kindle ever,” as it has a new dual-core processor and an oxide thin-film transistor layer that enables text and graphics to switch between pages faster. This layer is also more transparent than previous technology, so on-page clarity is enhanced as well.
For storage, the Paperwhite Signature has 32GB, which is double what the regular Paperwhite has, which is the same for both generations. They have a few extra backlights this time around: ten standard LEDs and nine warm LEDs, for a total of 19.
The screen is slightly larger at seven inches, up from 6.8, and has the same 300 ppi resolution. Despite the larger battery capacity (with an estimated 12 weeks of battery life instead of just ten), the device is a millimetre thinner than last time, and weighs only two-tenths of a gram more.
It has the same IPX8 rating, which means it can be fully submerged in water, and the back is made of a metallic plastic with a rubberised texture that’s easy to grip (so you’re less likely to accidentally dunk it in water). The bezels also help with grip, as they’re wide enough to accommodate a thumb without turning the page.
The hardware upgrades are subtle, but they provide a great way to read books. Opening menus, opening new titles and turning pages are all faster than any ereader I’ve tried. And ghosting is basically non-existent. The huge screen displays text clearer than a January morning and the auto-adjusting front lights are like a warm lantern illuminating your path. If I have one problem with the Signature’s design, it’s the power button being on the bottom edge.
One of the simplest joys in this life (for me anyway) is eating while reading. That means I put the book or e-reader on the table in front of my plate and shovel a stir fry into my mouth. Often, placing the Signature on the bottom edge leads to accidentally pressing the power button, interrupting my reading.
Notably, this doesn’t happen with the standard Kindle, even though the button is in the same location, because the smaller e-reader isn’t heavy enough to trigger a button-press. The Signature also has a rubber grommet on the edge of the flush-front screen, which I don’t hate, but I find myself distractingly fiddling with it when I read.
Touch Controls and Customization
I placed the Paperwhite Signature next to other e-readers in my test collection and compared page-turn speeds, menu load times, and scrolling refresh rates. While the differences weren’t huge, the Signature was definitely faster. (But the Kobo Libra Color is still the fastest at waking up after more than a few minutes of sleep.)
The Signature’s touch response is unmatched. I’ve accepted the fact that most ereader screens sometimes need an extra tap before they do what I want. Whether it’s turning a page or opening a menu, my first gesture sometimes goes unnoticed. Not here; the screen responds instantly to every swipe and tap. Unfortunately, sometimes that tap is unintentional, and other times the screen doesn’t respond the way I want it to—but it always responds.
This leads to some of the frustrations I had with the Paperwhite’s interface. Those misinterpreted taps almost always resulted in turning pages.
The area that lags behind in your reading is a narrow sliver on the left. Some people skip ahead in a book and don’t look back, but I often find myself at the top of a new page and realize I’ve been thinking about toast or Cristin Milioti for most of the previous page and have no idea what’s going on. Then, when I tap to go back, I’m often taken forward, which confuses me even more.