Greatest book readers for 2024

Any book reader will allow you to cram a Magnificence and the Beast-sized library’s value of books in your pocket, however so will your cellphone. An book reader presents a extra book-like studying expertise, with fewer distractions and fewer eye pressure, and lots of embody additional options, like adjustable frontlighting. Some actually are pocketable. Others are waterproof or supply bodily page-turning buttons, whereas a couple of even allow you to take notes.

I’ve been utilizing book readers for practically a decade, and I’ve gone hands-on with dozens, from the Kindle Paperwhite to lesser-known rivals just like the Pocketbook Period. Whether or not you need one thing your child can throw in opposition to the wall or a water-proof, warm-glow Kindle that received’t wreck your spa ambiance, these are one of the best book readers for everybody. 

Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.9 x .32 inches / Weight: 205 grams / Display space and determination: 6.8-inch display screen, 300ppi decision / Storage: 16GB / Different options: IPX8 waterproofing, Bluetooth audio help 

If you happen to largely purchase ebooks from Amazon, you’ll desire a Kindle, and the Eleventh-gen Kindle Paperwhite is your best option for most individuals. Beginning at $139.99, it’s cheaper than the Kobo Libra Color — my high non-Amazon book reader, which I’ll dive into later — for most of the similar options. These embody a big 300pi show and an adjustable heat white frontlight, which make for a transparent and gratifying studying expertise. The latter additionally conveniently improves sleep by slicing down on blue gentle that interrupts melatonin manufacturing. 

That heat white frontlighting is a bonus over the cool white of the $99.99 base-model Kindle, and in contrast to the bottom Kindle, the Paperwhite has IPX8 water resistance. The $189.99 Signature Version Paperwhite additionally has an auto-adjusting frontlight and no lockscreen advertisements. It additionally has wi-fi charging, which is a uncommon characteristic to search out in an e-reader.

Amazon is the biggest on-line retailer on this planet, and it dominates the US book market, so Kindle house owners have entry to benefits house owners of different book readers don’t. A lot of Amazon’s {hardware} technique depends upon providing cut-rate reductions to drag you into its content material ecosystem. In case you have Prime and purchase lots of Kindle ebooks, the Paperwhite is your best option as a result of Amazon makes it extremely straightforward to purchase and browse its stuff. Its ebooks and audiobooks are sometimes on sale, and Prime members get extra free content material by way of Prime Studying. Rivals like Kobo supply gross sales, too, however it’s laborious for them to supply reductions as steep as Amazon does.

There are downsides, although. The Paperwhite has lockscreen advertisements until you pay $20 additional to do away with them. It’s additionally too large to carry comfortably with one hand. Maybe the Kindle Paperwhite’s largest flaw, although — which it shares with all Kindles other than Hearth tablets — is that it’s not straightforward to learn books bought outdoors of Amazon’s retailer. Kindle book codecs are proprietary and solely work on Kindle. Not like Kobo and different book readers, Kindles don’t help EPUB information, an open file format utilized by just about everybody besides Amazon. So, for instance, for those who typically store from Kobo’s bookstore (or Barnes & Noble or Google Play Books or many different book shops), you may’t simply learn these books on a Kindle with out utilizing a workaround. There are methods to transform and switch file codecs so you may learn on the Kindle and vice versa, however it’ll take a few additional steps.

Nevertheless, for those who don’t purchase your books elsewhere otherwise you don’t thoughts buying from Amazon, you’ll be more than pleased with the Kindle Paperwhite.

Learn our Kindle Paperwhite evaluate.

Dimensions: 5.69 x 6.34 x 0.33 inches / Weight: 199.5 grams / Display space and determination: 7-inch display screen, 300ppi (black-and-white), 150ppi (shade) / Storage: 32GB / Different options: Bodily page-turning buttons, waterproofing, Kobo Stylus 2 help, Bluetooth audio help 

The Kobo Libra Color is a superb various to Amazon’s book readers, particularly for readers outdoors the US or anybody who doesn’t wish to faucet into Amazon’s ecosystem. Kobo’s newest slate presents most of the standout options discovered on the Eleventh-gen Kindle Paperwhite — together with waterproofing, USB-C help, and a 300ppi show — together with a couple of perks that make it extra useful and gratifying to make use of.

The colour show is the obvious. The Libra Color makes use of E Ink’s newest Kaledio shade display screen know-how, which supplies soothing, pastel-like hues that also pop in direct daylight. It’s not as sharp as studying in monochrome — the decision drops to 150ppi when viewing content material in shade — however it’s a pleasant contact that makes viewing a wider vary of content material extra nice. Ebook covers and comics, whereas nonetheless muted, have an added layer of depth, even when the colours are nowhere close to as vivid as that of a conventional LED pill.

Moreover, the Libra Color works with the Kobo Stylus 2 (bought individually), which suggests you may spotlight textual content with varied colours or take notes utilizing Kobo’s built-in notebooks. You can even benefit from among the extra superior capabilities discovered within the Kobo Elipsa 2E, permitting you to resolve math equations, convert handwriting into typed textual content, and insert diagrams. This lets the Libra Color perform as a mini pocket book of types, although I wouldn’t use it as a major note-taking gadget for the reason that seven-inch show can really feel cramped to put in writing on.

The colour show is simply a part of the enchantment, although. The Libra Color additionally lacks lockscreen advertisements — in contrast to the bottom Paperwhite — and packs bodily page-turning buttons, which really feel extra intuitive to make use of than tapping both facet of the show. The speedy e-reader additionally helps extra file codecs, together with EPUB information, and makes it a lot simpler to borrow books from the Overdrive library system. Native help for Pocket, in the meantime, means you may learn your articles offline for those who’re somebody who makes use of the long-standing bookmarking app.

Nevertheless, at $219.99, the Libra Color prices $70 greater than the entry-level Paperwhite — and that’s with out Kobo’s $69.99 stylus, which is required for performing sure duties. That hole widens additional when the Paperwhite is on sale, which it frequently is. There’s additionally the truth that the Kobo can’t simply faucet into Amazon’s huge library of ebooks, which could be irritating for those who’ve amassed a group of Kindle titles over time. It may be performed, however it’s a must to convert file codecs utilizing third-party apps, which is hard and may take time.

But when these issues don’t matter or apply to you, the Kobo Libra Color provides you with one of the best digital studying expertise of all of the e-readers on our checklist. It’s my private favourite, if nothing else.

Learn our Kobo Libra Color evaluate.

Dimensions: 6.2 x 4.3 x 0.32 inches / Weight: 158 grams / Display space and determination: 6-inch display screen, 300ppi decision / Storage: 16GB / Different options: USB-C help, Bluetooth audio help 

The base-model Kindle ($99.99 with advertisements) is one of the best low cost book reader. Its 300ppi decision makes textual content clearer and simpler to learn than the lower-resolution screens on different book readers in its value vary. Plus, it even has USB-C for comparatively quick charging. 

Studying on its six-inch display screen feels a little bit extra cramped than it does on the bigger shows of the Kindle Paperwhite and Kobo Libra Color. Nevertheless, the flip facet is that its small dimension makes it pocketable, gentle, and simple for small arms to carry. Mixed with its comparatively reasonably priced value, the Kindle can also be one of the best book reader for teenagers — particularly within the children model Amazon sells for $20 extra. It shares the identical actual specs however is ad-free with parental controls, a two-year prolonged alternative assure, and a case. It additionally comes with one 12 months of Amazon Youngsters Plus, which grants children entry to 1000’s of youngsters books and audiobooks free of charge. After that, although, you’ll should pay $79 per 12 months.

The bottom Kindle doesn’t have additional conveniences just like the bodily page-turning buttons discovered on Barnes & Noble’s entry-level e-reader, the Nook GlowLight 4e. Nevertheless, you do get one thing extra essential: snappier responses. On a lot of the different entry-level book readers I examined, together with the GlowLight 4e, I needed to wait a couple of seconds after tapping the display screen for the web page to show. The Kindle, compared, supplied no perceptive lag.

There are different tradeoffs. There’s no water resistance, in contrast to the Paperwhite, and battery life is nice, however it’ll final you three weeks tops — not months, just like the Paperwhite. And since it’s an Amazon book reader, you’re additionally locked into the Amazon ecosystem and should pay additional to do away with advertisements. But when you are able to do with out all of that, the Kindle delivers the necessities for underneath $100.

Dimensions: 7.6 x 8.94 x 0.30 inches / Weight: 390 grams / Display space and determination: 10.3-inches, 227ppi decision / Storage: 32GB / Different options: Handwriting to textual content conversion, magnetic stylus, Bluetooth audio help 

Of all the massive book readers I examined, the Kobo Elipsa 2E stood out essentially the most due to its glorious note-taking talents. You’ll be able to instantly write on pages, and the notes won’t disappear, which makes for a extra intuitive note-taking expertise than the Kindle Scribe, which solely helps on-page notes on choose Kindle titles. In any other case, you’re restricted to creating annotations on playing cards which can be like disappearing sticky notes. 

You can even sync your notes with Dropbox or view them on-line, and Kobo may even convert handwriting to typed textual content. Amazon rolled out the same functionality for the Kindle Scribe, however it may well solely convert handwriting to typed textual content while you export notebooks and never as precisely. Against this, Kobo allows you to convert your handwriting not simply whereas exporting but additionally from inside a pocket book itself.

The Elipsa 2E additionally presents different useful note-taking instruments. Just like the Kobo Libra Color, it’s succesful, for instance, of fixing math equations for you. You can even insert diagrams and drawings, and it’ll routinely snap them into one thing that appears cleaner and nicer. There’s additionally an amazing number of pen varieties and ink shades. 

True, the Kindle Scribe begins at $60 much less, however the Kobo Elipsa 2E comes with twice the storage. You can step as much as the 32GB Kindle Scribe in order for you the identical storage capability, however that places it at primarily the identical value because the Kobo. I like to recommend simply forking out the cash on the Elipsa 2E as an alternative.

I additionally suggest the Elipsa 2E over the Onyx Boox Be aware Air 2 Plus, although it, too, presents significantly better writing instruments than the Kindle Scribe. That’s as a result of it prices a whopping $449 and likewise isn’t as available within the US market. The Onyx Boox Be aware Air 2 Plus additionally comes with too many distracting extras, like an easy-to-access music participant and the Google Play app retailer preinstalled so you may obtain a number of studying apps, together with each the Kindle and Kobo apps. Nevertheless, Kindle and Kobo notes didn’t present up on the Onyx Boox Be aware Air 2 Plus — and you’ll’t annotate their books wherever as simply as you may on their respective units.

Be aware-taking capabilities apart, the Kobo Elipsa 2E can also be a great e-reader, however it comes with the identical strengths and weaknesses as different Kobo e-readers. There’s help for a variety of file codecs, however you may’t simply learn Kindle books with out changing them first. Its 227ppi show can also be barely much less sharp than the 300ppi display screen discovered on the Kindle Scribe and the Kobo Libra Color. Nevertheless, the ten.3-inch display screen does steadiness issues out a bit and makes textual content simpler to learn, so it’s not likely a noticeable downside.

There are another book readers I examined that I didn’t characteristic above however are nonetheless value highlighting. Listed below are essentially the most notable:

If you happen to’re in search of a non-Amazon various that’s extra reasonably priced than the Kobo Libra Color, the brand new Kobo Clara Color — the successor to the Kobo Clara 2E — is value a glance. At $149.99, the ad-free e-reader prices greater than the Kobo Clara 2E (which you’ll be able to nonetheless purchase), however I feel it’s value the additional $10. It continues to supply the identical six-inch show and IPX8 waterproof design, however the e-reader now presents shade. Plus, it’s noticeably sooner — one thing I used to be joyful to see, contemplating the occasional lag on the Clara 2E generally obtained on my nerves. You don’t get the Clara Color’s bodily buttons or stylus help, however that’s a good tradeoff at this value level.

In 2023, Barnes and Noble launched the brand new Nook Glowlight 4 Plus. If you happen to personal lots of digital books from Barnes and Noble, this might be a great Kindle various. In any other case, I’d nonetheless suggest the Kobo Libra Color to all people else. The $199.99 Nook Glowlight 4 Plus is an effective e-reader with quite a bit to supply, together with a stunning 300ppi display screen, waterproofing, bodily page-turning buttons, and even a headphone jack. Nevertheless, it’s simply not as snappy, which makes setting it up, shopping for books from the gadget itself, and navigating the interface a sluggish ordeal. It didn’t assist that the display screen generally froze, too, which meant I needed to restart the gadget whereas in the midst of a e-book.

Lastly, I didn’t point out the Kindle Oasis, which has bodily page-turning buttons, a bigger display screen, and was thought of a high-end gadget when it launched in 2019. Amazon now not lists the getting old e-reader in its official Kindle lineup, nevertheless, and it lacks some options even the bottom mannequin presents, together with USB-C. That makes it much less interesting at $249.99 — that’s, assuming you may even discover it in inventory. If you happen to’re keen to pay that a lot for a high-end reader, I’d check out the Kobo Libra Color as an alternative.

I’ve simply gotten my arms on the next e-readers from Boox: the note-taking Go 10.3, the Go Shade 7, and the pint-sized Palma. I’ve solely simply began testing the Go 10.3, however up to now, I’ve loved utilizing it. I’m a fan of the slate’s crisp, 300ppi show, which is even sharper than that of the Kobo Elipsa 2E. Writing on it feels extra akin to writing on paper, whereas its slim design makes the e-reader really feel extra like a conventional pocket book.

I’ve but to check the latter two, although my colleague David Pierce is a giant fan of the $280 Boox Palma after spending a while with it. The smartphone-sized, 6.1-inch book reader runs on Android and may entry the Google Play Retailer, which means you may obtain a wider number of apps, from Amazon’s personal Kindle app to numerous note-taking apps. That stated, it’s too sluggish to essentially use apps that might be distracting, like TikTok or Instagram, so that you in all probability don’t want to fret about shedding focus or distractions in the identical you’ll with a pill or a extra succesful gadget. I’m curious to see the way it holds up in opposition to different e-readers I’ve used, even when I haven’t examined many small-screen fashions.

Replace, August thirtieth: Up to date to say my preliminary impressions of the Boox Go 10.3, Go Shade 7, and Boox Palma, in addition to to accommodate varied value modifications.