Not one, not two, but three new Amazon Kindle Paperwhites have been announced
A main, Kids and Signature edition
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It’s been nearly three years since theAmazon Kindle Paperwhite (2018)launched, which is quite a long time in the tech world, but fans of flashy new gadgets will be pleased to hear there’s a newKindle Paperwhite for 2021thatAmazonhas unveiled.
This new mid-range e-reader was launched alongside a Kids Edition and Signature Edition model, the former being a reading gadget designed for children, and the latter being a slightly more premium version of the Paperwhite.
If you live in the States, you can pre-order thePaperwhite here, theKids Edition hereor theSignature Edition here, and they’re all due to be fully released on October 27.
If you’re in Australia, you can also pre-order now directly from Amazon, with the newKindle Paperwhite setting you back AU$239and theSignature Edition coming in at AU$289.
If you live elsewhere in the world, we don’t quite know when the new e-readers will go on sale just yet, but we’ll be sure to update you when they are available.
Analysis: what’s new with these e-readers?
The baseKindlecosts $139 / AU$239 (around £100), making it slightly pricier than its $129.99 / £119.99 / AU$199 predecessor.
The big change over the three-year-old Kindle Paperwhite is that, while that slate had a 6-inch screen with 5 back-lighting LEDs, the new one has a 6.8-inch screen with 17 LEDs, so it’ll be bigger with better contrast. Plus, it’ll have a warmth feature so you can change the coloration of the display slightly.
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Plus, the new Paperwhites have a USB-C port, making them the first Kindles to use the USB standard which will ensure it’ll charge much quicker. Amazon says they have a 10-week battery life and come with 8GB storage.
The Kids Edition one costs $159 (around £115 / AU$219) and it’s basically a standard model with a protective case that’s apparently child-proof, as well as a year subscription to Amazon Kids Plus.
The showstopper e-reader here is the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, which costs the most at a princely $189 / AU$289 (around £139). This has 32GB storage, auto-adjusting front light depending on your settings for the display and wireless charging.
We haven’t tested any of these new Amazon Kindle Paperwhite models yet, but when we do, we’ll be able to recommend if they’re worth the money or not. Just bear in mind, many companies may opt to shift stock of the older model during theBlack Friday dealsseason, so if the new features don’t appeal to you and you’re happy with an older model, it could be worth waiting anyway.
Tom Bedford was deputy phones editor on TechRadar until late 2022, having worked his way up from staff writer. Though he specialized in phones and tablets, he also took on other tech like electric scooters, smartwatches, fitness, mobile gaming and more. He is based in London, UK and now works for the entertainment site What To Watch.
He graduated in American Literature and Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia. Prior to working on TechRadar, he freelanced in tech, gaming and entertainment, and also spent many years working as a mixologist.
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