It’s hard to believe that first Amazon Kindle was announced a decade ago in 2007, but here we are 10 years later and the e-tailer’s fledgling e-ink device has since seen three spin offs. With four different Kindles on the market – including the regular Kindle, Paperwhite, Voyage and Oasis – it can be hard to pick the right one for you when they all vary in price and features.
Luckily, we’ve compared all the current models to work out the differences and help you find the right one.
Screen: 6-inch 167 ppi
Built-in light: No
Interface: Touchscreen
Battery: 4 weeks
Size: 6.3 x 4.5 x 0.36-inches (160 x 115 x 9.1 mm)
Weight: 5.7oz/161g
Price: $79 (£59, AU$109)
Kindle
The Kindle is your standard, entry level model. Despite being at the bottom rung of the Amazon’s e-reader hierarchy it has a 6-inch touchscreen boasting a 167 ppi resolution that displays decently sharp test. That said, the Kindle lacks a few features seen on its higher-end cousins including a built-in light for reading in the dark.
Screen: 6-inch, 300 ppi
Built-in light: 4 LEDs
Interface: Touchscreen
Battery: 6 weeks
Size: 6.7 x 4.6 x 0.36-inches (169 x 117 x 9.1 mm)
Weight: 7.2oz/205 g (Wi-Fi), 7.6oz/217 g (Free 3G)
Price: $119 (£109, AU$179)
Kindle Paperwhite
The Kindle Paperwhite is a big step up from Amazon’s vanilla e-reader and arguably our favorite. First off, it features a newer e-ink technology named Carta that claims to offer a 50% increase in contrast and smoother page turns.
On top of this, the Paperwhite’s display is nearly twice as sharp as the standard Kindle – which Amazon updated in 2015 to match up with the Voyage and Oasis. It also offers a built-in lighting system, which consists of four LEDs that create a diffused illumination across the entire screen. Unlike an LCD screen you would find on an iPad or laptop, you to read for hours without the straining your eyes.
Screen: 6-inch, 300 ppi
Built-in light: 6 LEDs
Interface: Touchscreen, page press
Battery: 6 weeks
Size: 6.4 x 4.5 x 0.30-inches (162 x 115 x 7.6 mm)
Weight: 6.3oz/180g (Wi-Fi), 6.6oz/188g (Free 3G)
Price: $199 (£169, AU$299)
Kindle Voyage
Although the Kindle Voyage has a lot in common with the Paperwhite, it’s slimmer, lighter and has a screen that gets rid of the plastic bezels for a flush glass panel. Its biggest differentiator however is a set of haptic touch controls on the side that you can press to turn pages back and forth. This e-reader also features an evener lighting system with six LEDs and an adaptive light sensor that automatically sets the screen brightness.
Screen: 6-inch, 300 ppi
Built-in light: 10 LEDs
Interface: Touchscreen, page turn buttons
Battery: 2 weeks, 9 weeks with battery cover
Size: 5.6 x 4.8 x 0.13-0.33-inches (143 x 122 x 3.4-8.5 mm)
Weight: 4.6oz/131 g (Wi-Fi), 4.7oz/133g (Free 3G)
Price: $289 (£269, AU$449)
Kindle Oasis
The Oasis is the most book-like e-reader out of the Kindle family and thus has the boxiest proportions. Despite its square shape, Amazon claims the Oasis is 30% thinner on average and 20% lighter than any of its other e-readers. All the while it has all the features of the Voyage and a few more.
The Oasis is the only Kindle that still features physical buttons for turning pages and while they might look like they’re right-handed biased, left-handed users can just flip the reader over for the same experience. You'll also see the longest battery life on the Oasis but only if you keep the included cover attached.
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