IGNITE YOUR READING EXPERIENCE: IS THE KINDLE PAPERWHITE SIGNATURE EDITION WORTH THE UPGRADE?

Nestled among the sea of e-readers that compete for your attention (and dollars), the Kindle Paperwhite has long been a trusted companion for reading fiends on a budget. Now, Amazon’s newest Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition bumps up the price and the functionality – but at the risk of over improving. That’s why the million-dollar question is: are these Signature Edition upgrades worth the extra money? Let’s investigate the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition and see if you should be looking at this e-reader upgrade.

KINDLE PAPERWHITE: A QUICK OVERVIEW

Prior to looking at Signature Edition, here’s a quick refresher of why Paperwhite is a favourite Kindle among my book-loving friends: Its ergonomic size is easy to hold with one hand, and it’s waterproof, so it’s ready for the bathtub or the beach. The upgrade from the old Micro USB charger to a USB-C port was a welcome change to a more universal charging port.

WHAT MAKES THE KINDLE PAPERWHITE SIGNATURE EDITION STAND OUT?

More Than Just Memory

Bumping up from the 8GB standard, the Signature Edition offers 32GB of storage – a godsend to binge-readers and those who hoard periodicals. Yet do you really need that much? Perhaps. But is it also handy to know that storage should never be a concern? Yes, indeed.

Charging Made Effortless

Wireless charging isn’t in itself a new feature – it’s been used in everything from Nintendo gaming accessories to fancy portable blenders – but the addition does amount to a kind, thoughtful touch. If your house is already kitted out with Qi wireless charging stations (there are some standards, naturally), the ability to simply pick up your Kindle and drop it on a station and not have to think about it again becomes marginal but useful.

A Bright Idea: Automatically Adjusting Front Light

E-readers have always offered the ability to make reading less demanding on the eyes than tablets or smartphones, and the Signature Edition goes further in eliminating distractions: the brightness automatically adjusts to your surroundings so you have one less variable to adjust. You can get immersed in your book with the distractions kept to a minimum.

No Ads to Interrupt Your Reading Flow

Though we’re now spoilt for attention with ads all around us, reading an ad-free book on the Signature Edition really does offer a small luxury – saving more of those uninterrupted moments when you’re really absorbed in a story.

KINDLE PAPERWHITE SE: THE BATTERY LIFE TO BEAT

Its battery can last up to 10 weeks on a charge. Yes, 10 weeks! That’s a marathon in a world of sprinters. In my view, a badge of honour for a truly excellent device, even if carrying that badge to extreme lengths might be impractical.

WEIGHING THE WORTH OF THE KINDLE PAPERWHITE SIGNATURE EDITION

For an additional $50, the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition promises more features than you could possibly want: no ads, more storage, wireless charging and an auto-adjusting display – but does the whole really equal the sum of its parts?

UNLOCKING THE MAGIC OF KINDLE

When you look past the Signature Edition’s features, perhaps you can congratulate yourself and your fellow geeks for wanting a new device from Amazon – because it bears repeating how good Kindle really is for reading. Kindle has changed the way we read: not only do you carry a library in your pocket, you can look up words in the dictionary instantaneously, highlight text for later reference, and with Audible you can switch from reading to listening instantly. No other experience even comes close.

WHY CHOOSE KINDLE?

Whether you buy a Signature Edition or a plain old Kindle, you’re getting in on a world of reading that has only gotten easier and better. The Kindle is a lifetime of reading, a service that delivers new books at a click, and ease of reading difficult to find.

CONCLUSION

The Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition isn’t just a piece of hardware that comes with slight improvements over its predecessor, the entry-level Kindle Paperwhite. It’s an investment in an enhanced reading experience. And it’s a reading journey that is a reflection of you – a diligent, finicky and impatient consumer, who seeks convenience, flexibility and continuous reading from your e-reader of choice. The hefty price jump might be hard to stomach, but if you’re also someone who reads a lot, you might see the value in taking your reading experience to the next level. The Andre Agassi – Andre Agassi way of reading. At the end of the day, the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition is a choice. You can either view those extra features as signifying luxury and wasteful excess, or as necessities, without which the joy of reading might be irrevocably changed.