The $179.99 Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Kids for 2024 builds upon the $159.99 Kindle Paperwhite with a colorful case, six months of the Amazon Kids+ subscription service, a two-year replacement warranty, and an ad-free experience, all for less money than if you purchased everything separately. It runs smoothly so that kids won’t be frustrated using it, its battery life is excellent, and it holds enough books to accommodate any child’s library. The regular Kindle Paperwhite is our top ebook reader recommendation for adult readers, so it should come as no surprise that the Paperwhite Kids is our Editors’ Choice winner for children.
Design: Whimsical Covers
The most obvious difference between the regular Kindle Paperwhite and the Kids version is the colorful case it comes with. Unlike the bulky case you get with Amazon’s Fire HD Kids tablets, the Paperwhite Kids case is almost identical to standard ones. It has the same book cover-like opening but comes in kid-friendly motifs. You can get the Starfish cover, which features a starfish in an underwater scene, or Cyber City, a futuristic city decked out in purples and blues. There’s also a cover with characters from “Diary of a Wimpy Kid” for an extra $10. I received the Starfish cover, which is pictured in this review.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
The case comes preinstalled on the device, which adds size and weight to it, but also protects against bumps and scrapes. With the case, it measures 7.0 by 5.2 by 0.5 inches (HWD) and weighs 11.6 ounces, which is wider, thicker, and heavier than the case-free Paperwhite (7.0 by 5.0 by 0.3, 7.4 ounces). The 2024 Paperwhite Kids is slightly taller and heavier than both the 2021 version (6.91 by 5.09 by 0.53 inches, 7.2 ounces) and the new Kindle Kids, with its 6-inch display (6.3 by 4.5 by 0.53 inches, 9.03 ounces).
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
Like other Kindle cases, the top and bottom leave the device’s edges exposed and accessible while the rest of the body is protected. The interior of the cover is finished with a soft felt to keep the screen clean, while the rest feels plastic and slippery. It doesn’t have the same premium design as the fabric or faux-leather covers that Amazon sells for its regular models. However, the ocean-themed Starfish case is cute and colorful and doesn’t attract fingerprints.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
A USB-C port for charging and power button are on the bottom edge of the Paperwhite. The button makes a pleasant clicking sound when you press it, though you won’t need to do that often since the cover automatically puts the Paperwhite to sleep when you close it and wakes it up again when you open it.
The Paperwhite Kids has 16GB of storage and a 7-inch display with a pixel density of 300 pixels per inch (ppi). Amazon doesn’t disclose the actual resolution, but the grayscale of the E Ink looks just as crisp and easy to read as on other models. There are warm and cool lights that you can adjust independently, and like all new Kindles, the Paperwhite Kids version can reach up to 94 nits of brightness. However, the lighting is a bit more uneven than in past models. There’s a slightly yellow tint to the entire display, with some more distinct uneven yellow tones at the bottom of the screen, even when the warmth light is set to zero. It’s only slightly distracting, and I got used to it after a while. I’m sure many people won’t even notice it. This is the case with the regular Paperwhite’s display as well.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
The Paperwhite is fully waterproof and features an IPX8 rating, which makes it perfect for kids. It can withstand spills and even be used in the bath.
In addition to the Paperwhite and case, Amazon provides a USB-C cable in the box. You need to buy or provide your own power adapter.
Performance: Quick Page Turns and Long Battery Life
The 2024 Kindle Paperwhite Kids has plenty of pep. You can easily swipe through and search for content on the Amazon Kids+ app, and the pages of your books turn instantly when you swipe the screen. Amazon doesn’t disclose the type of hardware it uses in the device but says that it is able to turn pages 25% faster than the previous model. All of the controls work quickly and smoothly. If anything, it might be a little too easy for kids to accidentally swipe a page ahead without realizing it.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
You get 16GB of non-expandable storage, which is more than enough for downloading any of the books available on Amazon Kids+. The service does come with a selection of space-guzzling Audible books, but you can easily remove any of the ones you’ve finished if you need to access more storage. You can always download them again from the cloud if you’re interested in a repeat listen.
Battery life continues to be fantastic. Amazon notes that the Paperwhite should get up to 12 weeks on a single charge, though it doesn’t disclose the actual size of the battery. Your child’s results will depend on how often they read and for how long. Amazon’s estimates are based on half an hour of reading per day, with the lighting set to level 13. I don’t like reading with that much light on the screen, so my battery tends to last for a long time. In heavy testing over four days, the battery only depleted by 8%.
The Paperwhite doesn’t have cellular connectivity, so you need to be connected to Wi-Fi in order to download books. It supports dual-band Wi-Fi.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
It’s important to note that while Amazon says the Paperwhite Kids is for ages 3 to 12, none of its ebook readers support Whispersync for Immersion Reading. Immersion lets kids listen to an audiobook while viewing the ebook on the screen, where the words are highlighted on the page as it’s read. This popular feature is only available on Fire tablets and in the Kindle app. You can certainly read along with your child on this device, but it’s best suited for kids who can already read on their own.
The Paperwhite Kids also lacks speakers and a 3.5mm headphone jack, so you’ll need Bluetooth headphones to listen to any Audible content.
Software: Amazon Kids+ Is Included, Ads Are Not
The Paperwhite Kids needs an adult for the initial setup. Amazon makes it easy by allowing you to perform via the Kindle App on your phone or tablet. It takes about two minutes to link your existing Amazon account with the Paperwhite. If you haven’t already, you’ll need to add a kid profile to your account. This is best done on a phone, tablet, or computer. Amazon gives you total control over your child’s device, including the ability to set daily goals, set a specific bedtime (after which your child can no longer access content), add books, approve access to the Kindle Store, and view your child’s reading progress. Some of the settings, including bedtime, can only be managed on an app or web browser.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
Once your child’s profile is set, you’ll need to create a PIN on the Kindle itself in order to launch Amazon Kids. Then, you just tap your child’s name and hit Start Reading.
It’s easy to navigate around the user interface. There are two tabs at the bottom: Home and Recent. The Home page brings up a selection of the Amazon Kids+ books that are downloaded to the device, along with rows of suggested content. There are Popular Book Series, Books You Might Like, Award Winning Books and Authors, and more. The Recent tab only shows the books and audiobooks that you’ve downloaded to the device.
You can find content using the search bar at the top of every tab. You can browse through Reading Awards, Vocabulary Builder, Your Bedtime, and other settings in the four-dot menu to the right of the search bar. You can also exit Amazon Kids from this menu, though you’ll have to punch in the parental PIN in order to do so. Swiping down from the top of the screen brings up the Quick Settings menu, where kids can access Airplane Mode, Bluetooth, Dark Mode, Sync, and All Settings. They can also adjust the brightness and warmth of the light from here.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
Reading menus are exactly the same as they are on the regular Paperwhite. Tapping on the top of the screen brings up buttons for font and line-spacing adjustments, the table of contents, highlights and notes, bookmarks, and a book-wide search. The bottom of the screen shows you the book page, the estimated time left until you hit your reading goal, and the percentage of where you are in the book.
The Amazon Kids+ service was not made specifically for reading, and this is particularly apparent when using it on a reading-only device. When used on a tablet, kids can access a wide selection of apps, games, and videos, as well as books on Amazon+. Here, they are left with a surprisingly small collection of mixed-aged books from which to choose. There are lots of picture books, like “Otis P. Oliver Protests,” but they don’t look their best on the small, grayscale display. Comics fare slightly better, as you can activate Panel View by double-tapping on the page. The Paperwhite will then give you a visual overview of the page, while subsequent page turns will display close-ups of each individual panel in order. This makes reading all the Marvel comics on Amazon Kids+ much easier, but they still lack color. You can read in color on the $279.99 Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition, but it doesn’t come in a version for kids.
(Credit: Sarah Lord)
You can read some popular book series on Amazon Kids+, like Harry Potter, Artemis Fowl, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid. But there’s no Roald Dahl, Percy Jackson, Hunger Games, or just about any other classic children’s literature. There also aren’t enough books in any specific age range or reading level to engage children for very long, nor is there an easy way to see a list of the books available on the service. Amazon Kids+ is a fine place to get young readers started, but you’re definitely going to want to supplement the selection with books procured elsewhere. The Libby app isn’t supported, but parents can send DRM-free epubs via the Send to Kindle feature. And, of course, you can always buy books from Amazon.
A year’s subscription to Amazon Kids+ costs $48 if you have an Amazon Prime membership or $79 if you don’t. The initial trial subscription expires after six months.
As mentioned, the Paperwhite Kids doesn’t display ads on the lock screen, which is nice. It costs an additional $20 to remove ads on the regular Paperwhite, which would bring it up to the same price as the Kids model.
Verdict: A Strong Value for Young Readers
The 2024 Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Kids should appeal to both children and their parents. It’s essentially an ad-free Paperwhite with a protective case, six months of Amazon Kids+, and a two-year warranty, all of which would cost much more than $179.99 if purchased a la carte. And the Paperwhite is a fantastic ebook reader on its own, with a waterproof build, smooth performance, and a sharp E Ink screen. That makes it the Kindle we recommend most highly to adults and children alike, and earns the Paperwhite Kids our Editors’ Choice award.
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Kids (2024)
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The Bottom Line
The Kindle Paperwhite Kids for 2024 bundles Amazon’s excellent waterproof ebook reader with child-friendly accessories and software for less than you’d pay for them separately.
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About Sarah Lord
Analyst, Mobile
