Quick review
The good
The not-so-good
A new Kindle is here, but it’s not for the high-end. Rather, the 2022 Kindle is a basic model with a premium screen. Is it worth just under $200 locally?
Before the year’s end, two new variations on Amazon’s eReader options will be here. On the one hand, there’s the premium and expensive model coming in the Kindle Scribe, and then there’s something else.
Costing a little more than the current $139 basic Kindle in Australia, the “all new” equivalent of that model is on the way, getting a few changes and a forty buck increase in price. Is it worth it?
What’s new and different about the 2022 Kindle?
Not quite the very basic model, but also not the Paperwhite, Amazon’s 2022 Kindle — also known as the 2022 “all new Kindle” — fits somewhere in between the two, providing the same size as the cheap model, but an improved screen like the more expensive Paperwhite.
It’s a model that sits dead set in between, because the $139 entry-level 6 inch Kindle is still being sold, and this model is $40 more at $179.
So what’s different?
On the surface, not much, and a mere glance isn’t going to show you a whole heap of obvious changes. The basic Kindle and the all-new 2022 Kindle look the same, but the newer model sports a sharper screen for its 6 inch design, upping the resolution from 167ppi (pixels per inch) to 300ppi, almost twice the res for sharper text and images.
There’s also another doubling, with the 8GB storage of the $139 model jumping to 16GB in the $179, giving you just that little bit extra room for more books, comics, and so on and so on.
But everything else is basically the same, with an identical 6 inch screen size, a four LED front-lighting system without the warm tone you can get on the more expensive models, and no water resistance to speak of whatsoever.
It’s the basic model made to be a little better and slightly more future proof. Kinda sorta.
Does it do the job?
If you want a slightly better experience for reading text but you don’t want to go out and spend over $200, the 2022 Kindle does a solid job, providing a modest upgrade from the original, improving the reading experience slightly. You’ll even find USB Type C to charge from, handy because it’s not only what the EU wants devices to have by 2024, but it’s also what most phones charge from.
Pair that with an increase in resolution, and it means for less than $200, you can get some of what the Kindle Paperwhite offers for a little less.
Books with images will look a little sharper than on the lower res screen, and the same is true for text, though we’re emulating paper here in black and white, so don’t expect colour.
Even on books this writer has written, the text is only going to get so sharp, which is easier on the eyes, but not to the extent that the warm LEDs can deliver from the Kindle Oasis or its Paperwhite sibling.
What does it need?
We’d frankly love it if there was some amount of warm lighting, more than four LEDs for the front light, or even a hint of the water resistance the more expensive models get. Those are the main differences, beyond the screen size, which misses out on 0.8 inches, which isn’t enough to get upset about.
Outside of the Paperwhite differences, the only major issues with the 2022 Kindle are the speed and the value.
In the case of the speed, it’s pretty clear the sub-$200 Kindle is an entry-level Kindle. While it’s easy to use with minor touches on the left and right for going back and forward a page, minor swipes from the top and bottom for power settings and navigating a book, plus the touches in the top right corner for a bookmark and the top left to go back to the library, it has moments where the speed can drag.
Throughout our Kindle review period, there were times when books were slightly slower to load and leave out from, and when we threw the Kindle to standby, it was operating at a good second or so delay.
It’s not always like this, but when it drags, you’ll see it.
Then there’s the question of value.
Is it worth your money?
Available for $179 in Australia, the 2022 Kindle is a bit like the weird middle child, especially if its less expensive $139 Kindle sibling keeps on sticking around.
With twice the resolution and twice the storage capacity, it’s a technically better Kindle, but it’s also only a good $60 away from a much better Kindle, the Paperwhite, which has warm lighting and water resistance bundled in from $239.
If Amazon keeps the $139 Kindle in place, that model is still a better value, especially for folks who may not care about super sharp text on what’s clearly there for reading and reading alone. But if the entry-level $139 Kindle disappears, the value argument will suddenly become free for this one, because $179 for a sharp eReader capable of holding thousands more books is also a good idea.
Yay or nay?
We’re not sure how long the older entry-level Kindle is going to stick around for, but Amazon has already started removing it from comparisons, missing from the current Kindle’s comparison to every other model. That’s a pretty solid indication the older model will disappear soon.
When the $139 model disappears, the 2022 Kindle will make a lot more sense than it does right now.
At the time this review was published, the 2022 Kindle was a modest upgrade, with a minor change or two improve the quality and keep the Kindle slightly premium, even if it’s still very much an entry-level device. The Paperwhite still feels like better value, especially for not a whole lot more, but if you want a cheap eReader that’s easy on the eyes, the $179 Kindle has it.
It’s not really an upgrade path for current owners, though. Folks with a budget Kindle should consider the more expensive models if they want a slightly more premium experience, because between the warm lighting, increase in LEDs, slightly bigger screen, and water resistance, there’s more going on for the Paperwhite, Oasis, and even that upcoming pen-equipped Scribe model.
Frankly, if all you need is an eReader your eyes will like, the 2022 Kindle will suit just fine.
