Newest Kindle Ticks The Right Boxes

Alright, time to talk Paperwhite. And time to upgrade some tech! Recently I shared that I had ditched my Kindle Paperwhite and switched to Apple Books for all my eReading needs, but then in the last week I rediscovered my Kindle and rekindled my long-form reading. That’s all good, but greater still is the newest Kindle, which ticked all the right boxes I wish-listed years ago.

In my “Top Kindle Wishes” I shared in June 2020, I discussed several things I wanted to see Amazon bring to the Kindle, which would cause me to upgrade. Well, Amazon delivered. Basically, my wishes came true, so I plan to upgrade. My Paperwhite, released June 2015 (3rd gen. PW, 7th gen. Kindle), will move aside for the one released November 2021 (a 5th gen. PW but 11th gen. Kindle, I think).

Here are the wishes I listed in 2020:

1. USB-C - the old Kindle uses Micro USB, but nearly all my other devices use USB-C, which is reversible.
2. Waterproof - the newer Kindle at the time I wrote my wishlist was already waterproof, and that’s definitely a worthwhile upgrade from my current one.
3. 7” screen - previously, this was only on the Kindle Oasis, not the Paperwhite. But now the PW has a 6.8” screen, so more words fit on a page yet it looks to remain easy to hold in one hand.
4. Faster CPU - either the CPU is better or the eInk tech is better or both, but reviews say that the newest Paperwhite is faster in menus, turning pages, and all else.
5. Wireless charging - this is available on the newest "Signature Edition" version of the Paperwhite. I wouldn’t go for this, but it’s nice to see it come to pass.
6. Warm Light - you can now adjust the color temp warmer on Kindle for more eye comfort, day or night.
7. Dark Mode - this was not on my list before, but the newer Paperwhites have Dark Mode for white text on a black background. I think when combined with the subtle glow light at night in bed, there will be even less brightness in the eyes, allowing easy reading for me and easy sleeping for my wife.
8. Book Covers - the newer Kindles (sans ads) now allow the cover of the book currently being read to appear on the display when in standby. Excellent, and something I did wish for.

That’s seven great reasons (omit wireless charging) for me to upgrade my current Kindle Paperwhite, which Amazon still supports. I’ll trade it in, hand it down to one of my kids, or keep it for backup.

The holy grail of eReaders, though, is to finally get color eInk for:

1. Colored highlights
2. Colored comics/manga
3. Colored book cover art

Color eInk is the last feature I can think of on my wishlist that would cause me to upgrade. I guess Amazon is waiting for the technology to be optimized and more affordable. It’s likely to be a feature that first comes to Amazon’s most expensive eReaders, like the Kindle Voyage, Oasis, or whatever they call it. Then in time, color eInk would trickle down to the Paperwhite, which would then be renamed to the Papercolor? Oh, I got it, the Kindle Kolor!

One more thing that’d be nice are physical page turn buttons. I’m fine without them, but they would be nice to have on a Paperwhite.

Do you have eReader wishes?