Amazon upgraded its popular Kindle Paperwhite tablet on Tuesday with new features that align it more with last year’s Kindle Oasis — but this device is more than $100 cheaper.
The Kindle Paperwhite is probably the e-reader you should buy if you’re in the market for a new one, but only if the following features sound like they’re worth the upgrade.
The new device is water-resistant, which means it can be dropped into a pool or up to 6 feet of water for 30 minutes without getting damaged. Amazon also added Bluetooth and support for Audible so users can switch back and forth between listening and reading if they connect headphones or a speaker. You still need to own the Audible and eBook formats for this to work.
The Kindle Paperwhite is thinner and lighter than last year’s model and has one additional LED light that makes the screen brighter even when it’s used in the dark.
Amazon is adding new presets to its fonts, too. You might read a book in a certain font and size, but then hand it off to a child who prefers a different setting. It’s a useful feature if you share your Kindle with multiple people, or if you wear glasses occasionally but want to toggle between certain fonts and sizes at different times of day.
Amazon will sell two versions of the Paperwhite: an 8GB model that starts at $130 and a $160 model with 32GB of storage (better for storing more Audible books.) Those prices are for the “Special Offers” models, which show Amazon ads on the screen when the Kindle is idle. Each version is an additional $20 without Special Offers.
The book-reading device is available for preorder and launches on Nov. 7.
WATCH: Amazon Kindle Oasis review
