He is still the best buy of Amazon's e-readers: Kindle Paperwhite 2019, tested in recent days by the editorial staff, is the best ebook reader of the American giant. The advantages compared to the cheapest of the series justify the purchase and the small but fundamental adjustments have managed to perfect what was already the right middle ground capable of really satisfying everyone.
How it's made
The writer has had the version of three generations ago for several years (we talked about it here at the time), which was examined precisely for a brief side-by-side comparison: this new tenth generation Kindle Paperwhite, on the market since October 2018 , brings with it great renewals even if it were to be compared with the model that precedes it.
The rear shell remains in sturdy polycarbonate coated with a soft rubberized patina that greatly improves its grip – this was the only criticism we raised in the review of the Kindle 2019 released in March this year, which features a really slippery shell – also if you hold it with a completely wet hand, a condition that among other things could also be quite common given the presence of waterproofing, a feature that we will talk about in a separate chapter.
Edges, corners and bezels are well modeled, with a gentle curvature along the entire perimeter that maintains a certain specularity of the device. The old seventh generation Paperwhite featured a camber with protruding corners in the center of the lower air which fortunately disappears here, making it overall more comfortable and pleasant to hold.
But the biggest, visible and perceptible difference in everyday use lies ahead. Kindle Paperwhite 2019 no longer has the embossed frame but instead has a display flush with the entire front cover which is much easier to clean and where, above all, it will no longer be possible to get grains of dust along the edge.
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New Paperwhite on the left, old model on the right 
New Paperwhite on the left, old model on the right 
New Paperwhite on the left, old model on the right 
In the background the frame of the old Paperwhite, in the foreground the screen flush with the new
How are you doing
The user experience is the same as any other Kindle: it is as fast as the last of the series while the screen resolution, equal to 300 ppi, ensures a much higher rendering of texts and especially images than the latter.
Reading is fluid, comfortable and the advantage of the flush screen is also perceived in this phase, where scrolling between the pages is even easier and more intuitive.
The version that Amazon has temporarily granted us as a trial is the most complete, with WiFi + 4G LTE module with 32 GB of capacity, the highest memory cut that the company offers for this model.
Regarding this storage space (real are 27 GB and spare) this is an “exaggerated” capacity for a device of this kind: 8 GB is already more than enough to store an average number of books higher than what an average reader would be able to read throughout his life, but it will certainly be convenient for those who buy heavier comics or books (those containing a large number of images can even weigh 20-30 MB) or will use the device to also read files PDF.
LTE, road test More interesting is the presence of LTE connectivity. Amazon in fact integrates at its own expense a 4G Internet contract that can be used to download purchased books or documents sent to the device via email, to browse the pages of its ebook store, on Amazon.it (also to buy products not related to the publishing world) and on Wikipedia.
Especially on the move, this means that you will not have to connect the Kindle to a WiFi network or to the improvised hotspot with the smartphone in order to download the latest book purchased or go to deepen a particular topic via Wikipedia.
The greatest benefits are received with this last possibility. In fact, a Kindle without an Internet connection cannot go beyond the information provided by the integrated Zingarelli vocabulary, while with the 4G connection (or 3G where the higher network is not available) you can read notes and additions taken from Wikipedia. Furthermore, if you encounter a word in a foreign language, just touch it to be able to use the built-in translator.
With the 4G offered by Amazon you can also use the experimental browser to navigate directly on the Wikipedia and Amazon.it portal: for any navigation on all the other sites, WiFi is required, which is also necessary to download system updates. .
Unfortunately, 4G cannot be used to download web pages converted to mobile version (the proprietary format of Kindles) through one of the many services available on the net (to name a few, there is the official Send-to-Kindle extension for Chrome or the Instapaper service for converting items stored in your account): if you want to use your Kindle in this sense as well, you need a WiFi connection.
In case you decide to buy the Kindle with 4G, we recommend activating this connectivity only when needed, that is, keeping the Airplane mode active for the duration of the reading, as it is still a chip that would always remain active and in search of the network. consequently leading to higher battery consumption.
Battery, among other things, which can last up to “weeks” with a single charge even if everything depends, as we said, on the activation / deactivation of 4G / WiFi but also on the activation of the integrated light and the number of hours of reading per day.
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Waterproofness As we said the new Kindle Paperwhite 2019 is also waterproof. The anomalous May we are experiencing in the area we live in did not allow us to take him to the beach but we did not hold back from trying to give him a “bath” in the tub.
As you would expect from any IPX8 certified device, there are absolutely no problems in subjecting it to the direct jet of tap water, as well as it is absolutely capable of withstanding even short immersions in water up to one meter deep.
Obviously all this was not designed to allow us to practice snorkeling and reading at the same time but if we ever happen to be in the midst of a water balloon war in the garden or the Kindle should by chance slip out of hand and sink in the pool, it will be sufficient to pass over a dry cloth. and will be as good as new.
The only advice is to check that no water has ended up in the microUSB socket because the fact that this Kindle is waterproof does not mean that it will also be immune from any short circuits in case you were to try to recharge the battery with the socket still. wet.
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Conclusions
We said it at the beginning and we confirm it even now: the Kindle Paperwhite 2019 version is the best Paperwhite ever created and, when compared to the other models in the series, it is also probably the best purchase in terms of value for money.
Compared to the cheaper Kindle, the premium is more than justified by the higher resolution, the flush screen and the anti-slip shell. If you already have a Kindle, maybe a few years old, and you want something better, don't think too much and buy the new Paperwhite. Even the cheaper version, with 8GB of capacity and WiFi only, is sure to make the digital player happy.
The top of the range of the series is a refinement for those who want the best: compared to the new Paperwhite it is to be preferred only if you believe that the aluminum body with handle (and it is also super-thin), the light with adjustable brightness, the practical Page turn keys and the slightly wider screen (7 “against the 6” of the basic Kindle and Paperwhite) are essential for the use of the e-reader.
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Retail price
Kindle Paperwhite 2019 is on sale on Amazon starting from 129.99 euros for the 8 GB WiFi version which become 159.99 euros if you opt for the model with 32 GB of memory, up to 229.99 euros for the most complete of the series with 32 GB and 4G LTE module.
