But do you really need all of those features, or will the £109 Kindle Paperwhite be enough for you? We explore in our Kindle Voyage vs Kindle Paperwhite comparison. See also: Kindle Voyage vs Fire HD 7 vs Fire HD 6
Kindle Voyage vs Kindle Paperwhite: Price & availability
The Kindle Voyage is a whopping £169, which is much more pricey than many of the other Kindles on offer, including the Paperwhite. The Paperwhite is £109 (and it’s been known to go on sale for £99 or less), so represents a saving of at least £60. There’s also a WiFi + 3G model of the Kindle Voyage available for £229 which gets you free-for-life 3G to allow you to download new books wherever you are. The Paperwhite gets a free-for-life 3G, too, available for £169.
Kindle Voyage vs Kindle Paperwhite: Design
Both Kindles are lighter than your average paperback and virtually effortless to hold for long periods, so we don’t think you’ll be disappointed with the weight, size and thickness of either of these eReaders.
Kindle Voyage vs Kindle Paperwhite: Screen
That means you’ll get laser-sharp text, and we found it to be noticeably sharper than the Kindle Paperwhite’s 1024×768 (213ppi) 6in E-Ink display. The screen of both the Voyage and the Paperwhite is enhanced significantly by a backlight, which can be adjusted to the perfect level whether you’re indoors or outdoors. The Paperwhite misses out on the ambient light sensor found in the Voyage, though, which automatically sets the backlight for you. Another clever feature of the Kindle Voyage that the Paperwhite lacks is Night Light, which works with the Auto Brightness feature to gradually reduce the screen brightness over time as your eyes adjust to the dark.
Kindle Voyage vs Kindle Paperwhite: Hardware, specs & features
PagePress is a new feature found in the Kindle Voyage that involves the use of touch-sensitive buttons either side of the screen. It’s helpful for one-handed use, as it allows you to press the long line to go forwards a page and the dot to go back. The sensitivity of these buttons can be customised, as can the level of haptic feedback that you get when you press the buttons. Of course, you can also tap or swipe the screen to turn pages, too, which is the sole method of page turning on the Kindle Paperwhite. The Kindle Voyage has a speedy processor that makes a big difference with super-fast page turns and excellent responsiveness ideal for navigating menus or typing. The Paperwhite, while still faster than some other Kindles and eReaders, isn’t quite as speedy as the Voyage, but you shouldn’t experience too much lag. The Kindle Voyage has 4GB of memory, which will allow you to store thousands of books. The Paperwhite has half the storage, at 2GB, and with no microSD card (there isn’t one on the Voyage, either) there’s no increasing that storage space. You’ll still be able to fit hundreds of books on the Kindle Paperwhite, though, which should be enough for most.
Kindle Voyage vs Kindle Paperwhite: Verdict
The new Kindle Voyage is an impressive tablet that book-lovers will be impressed by, but for the more casual reader the Paperwhite, at £60 less, is a perfectly appealing option that will still do its job brilliantly. We love the added extras that the Kindle Voyage provides, but it’s really down to personal preference whether those features such as the improved, ambient backlight and the higher resolution screen are worth the bumped up price tag. Ashleigh is Tech Advisor’s Head of Affiliate. Providing expert buying advice you can trust is her forte, helping you to find the most reputable consumer tech products and services, and ensuring you don’t spend a penny more than you should.
