Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I've used many Kindle's over the years, starting with the original one which I still have and still works to this day. The Kindle PaperWhite addressed many of the issues I had with previous Kindle models and generations and this new 2nd generation PaperWhite brings some small but noticeable improvements over the 1st generation. I'll go over some of the basics and elaborate on them as needed, starting with the screen: *** SCREEN *** The Kindle PaperWhite comes with a nice 212 ppi screen which is noticeably crisper and bolder than the standard, entry level Kindles, yet still slightly lower than the Kindle Voyage which boasts an impressive 300 ppi resolution. While it's nearly impossible for the human eye to see individual pixels at 300 ppi, 212 ppi isn't that far behind. UPDATE: The new screen boasts an impressive 25% increase in contrast (the manufacturer, E-Ink, claims it's actually a 50% increase) and a 22% better reflection prevention. This new display is called "E-Ink Carta" and replaces the 1st generation PaperWhite's "E-Ink Pearl" display. Faster page turns are also achieved by the new display due to the way the screen handles changing the "e-ink" between pages. Comparing my 1st gen and 2nd gen side-by-side, I didn't notice a huge improvement in contrast or "ink" saturation, however, when comparing my 1st gen to my brother's 2nd gen, the difference was very noticeable. So, either I got stuck with a dud, or I just need to tweak some settings on mine. The screen is a touchscreen and is very responsive and accurate; something that is sometimes a problem with touchscreen eReaders that are either unresponsive or inaccurate, forcing the user to press harder or very precisely touch areas of the screen to get a response. *** BACKLIGHT *** One of the biggest complaints of the 1st generation PaperWhite was the backlight, mainly due to the noticeable shadows seen at the bottom of the screen, especially when used in dark rooms or at night. Although I personally felt the shadows were not that big of a deal and most of time I never even noticed them, because so many people complained, Amazon went ahead and fixed it so this is probably the most noticeable upgrade from the previous generation. The backlight can be adjusted, as needed, which is nice as having it at a high-brightness level at night is actually hard on the eyes and for some people, makes it difficult to use for long periods of time. The opposite is true in bright light situations where the backlight being turned up higher actually helps make it easier to read. *** BATTERY LIFE *** Amazon claims the Kindle PaperWhite can go weeks (up to 8 weeks mentioned on some websites out there) but in real use case scenarios, the battery life is nowhere near that level. While the PaperWhite does have decent battery life, it is more likely to be in the one to two week range, not four weeks and certainly not eight weeks, especially if you're using WiFi at all to download new books, or to get your daily reads delivered such as newspapers and blogs. The PaperWhite charges very quickly so you shouldn't have any worries about topping off the battery as needed. The battery life is perfectly acceptable and adequate and you should have no problems even on week or two long vacation, for example, especially when compared to alternatives like a tablet, Chromebook, smartphone, etc. *** SIZE AND WEIGHT *** The new PaperWhite is the same size as the last generation which is nice because it allows you to reuse your current case. While I'm sure this has irritated the case manufacturers, it certainly is a nice thing for us! Even better, although the PaperWhite retains its size, it does take a slight trim in the weight, coming in at 7.3 ounces, compared to last generation's 7.8 ounces... again, not really noticeable, but a small improvement nonetheless. Regarding cases, I would strongly recommend getting one of the magnetic cases because they automatically turn the PaperWhite on and off simply by opening or closing the cover. It's a simple AutoWake feature but it does come in handy as you don't have to mess around trying to find the tiny on/off switch every time you put your PaperWhite away or take a break from reading. I'm not sure which case I have but I think it's the Amazon brand case and it works really well. I do know I bought them at the same time as they had a bundle sale at the local electronics store I purchased them from. *** PROCESSOR AND ON-BOARD STORAGE *** This new generation PaperWhite is noticeably peppier and much more responsive than the first generation, mainly due to the new "E-Ink Carta" screen which has replaced the older "E-Ink Pearl" display. While the first generation wasn't slow by any means, it is nicer to have the faster response time as it helps avoid tapping the screen twice to turn the page, only to find out you've skipped a page and have to go back! On board storage is 4GB (increased from 2GB just recently) which will handle a library of thousands of books, not to mention you have free, unlimited cloud-based storage for your content. If you got a PaperWhite with 2GB of onboard storage, it still is one of the new versions but it was manufactured before Amazon made the switch to 4GB of storage. Unless you have over 1,000 books, you won't even notice the difference as the 2GB is capable of holding about 1,100 books I believe. *** X-RAY FEATURE, HIGHLIGHTING, AND DICTIONARY *** Amazon has kept the X-Ray feature so those of you who have the previous generation and are considering upgrading, rest assured, the X-Ray feature is still here and has been upgraded to allow more functionality. More and more books are being preloaded with X-Ray data by Amazon and even it it's not there, you can always use the Wikipedia option to do a search. Those new to the X-Ray technology, it is a capability on the PaperWhite that allows you to click on a character name, for example, and find all references to the character in the book. This is very helpful for novels when a character name comes up that you've seen before but forgot the details about. It's also helpful for non-fiction books when you need to find all references to a particular item or topic. The "highlight" feature allows you to highlight (in black-and-white of course) a particular passage in a book and save it so you can go back to it at a later time. You also have the option of turning on an option that shows you other popular highlights from other readers of the book. This is a VERY useful feature, especially for non-fiction books as 99% of the time, the highlights other users have made, point out very important sentences and paragraphs in the book. Note that this feature does not show EVERY reader's highlights, it only shows the most popular ones and even tells you how many readers have highlighted a particular section. Again, this can be turned on or off if you find it distracting. The dictionary feature works by allowing you to click on a word you don't know or need clarification on which brings it up in the dictionary. *** OTHER MENTIONABLES AND REVIEW UPDATES *** Something to keep in mind is the PaperWhite does not come with audio output so unlike the Kindle Fire tablets, listening to audiobooks is not an option on the PaperWhite. If you need audio features, you may want to look at the Kindle Fire lineup as audio capabilities are not available on the PaperWhite, standard Kindle, or the Kindle Voyage. As has been the case for a while now, the Kindles come in either a "with special offers" or "without special offers" version. Personally, I always buy the "with special offers" version because the advertisements, mostly for books, do not bother me as they're really only seen on the screensaver and are not seen when reading the book. Sometimes they actually recommend books that may interest you, but more importantly, I really don't think it's worth spending the extra $20 just to get rid of them. If you think they'll bother you, get the "without special offers" version, or you can upgrade to that version at a later date after purchasing the PaperWhite. *** CONCLUSION *** This is still my favorite Kindle as it packs the most bang for the buck and is very affordable, especially when Amazon throws it on sale. While I don't think it's worth upgrading from the 1st generation, if you don't have a PaperWhite at all, I'd definitely recommend going with this version. Those with the first generation: I'd really recommend holding off for the moment until more substantial upgrades are made to the PaperWhite, but if you want to upgrade anyway, you certainly won't be disappointed. *** If this review was at all helpful to you, please take a second to let me know. You can also post a comment or ask questions in the comments section below. I always try my hardest to get you the most information possible to hopefully help you make a confident decision on whether or not to buy a product. Thank you for taking the time to read my review! ***