Higher resolution, 62% more pixels, 25% higher-contrast, patented
built-in front light, 8 weeks of battery life and an even slimmer and
sleeker design — only $119
New Kindle Paperwhite Wi-Fi + 3G — the top-of-the-line Kindle with
free 3G wireless — only $179
New latest generation Kindle — small, light and even faster — now
only $69
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep. 6, 2012--
(NASDAQ:AMZN)—Kindle is the world’s #1 best-selling e-reader for five
years running, and tens of millions of readers are already reading on
Kindle. Today, Amazon is excited to introduce the fifth generation
Kindle e-readers: Kindle Paperwhite is the most advanced e-reader ever
constructed with 62% more pixels and 25% increased contrast, a patented
built-in front light for reading in all lighting conditions, up to 8
weeks of battery life, and a thin and light design for just $119; Kindle
Paperwhite Wi-Fi + 3G — never pay for or hunt for a Wi-Fi hotspot with
the all-new top-of-the-line Kindle e-reader with free 3G wireless for
just $179; and the new latest generation Kindle, the lightest and
smallest Kindle, now with new, improved fonts, faster page turns and an
even more unbelievable price: $69. Meet the all-new Kindle e-reader
family at www.amazon.com/kindlepaperwhite.
Kindle Paperwhite (Photo: Business Wire)
“Paperwhite is the Kindle we’ve always wanted to build — the technology
didn’t exist to build a display with this level of contrast, resolution,
brightness and battery life, so our engineers invented it,” said Jeff
Bezos, Amazon.com Founder and CEO. “62% more pixels, 25% higher
contrast, built-in front light, perfect for bed, perfect for beach, even
thinner, 8 weeks of battery life — this is a quantum leap forward and
the best Kindle we’ve ever built by far.”
All-New Kindle Paperwhite — The World’s Most Advanced E-Reader
Most Advanced E-Reader Display, 62% More Pixels, 25% More Contrast
Kindle Paperwhite’s display is the most advanced e-reader display ever
constructed. Featuring a 212 ppi display, Kindle Paperwhite has 62% more
pixels, making text in books and periodicals crisp and clear at any
size. Images are sharper, richer and show even more detail. Kindle
Paperwhite’s screen has 25% higher contrast — the blacks are blacker,
and the whites are whiter.
Innovative Built-In Light
Backlit LCD displays direct light up through the display into the user’s
eyes. Kindle Paperwhite’s patented front-lit display guides light
underneath an anti-glare layer and down toward the display, away from
the reader’s eyes. This means a reader can read for hours without eye
fatigue or strain. The screen brightness is easily adjusted for reading
in any light. The Paperwhite display provides an unparalleled experience
in the dark and in direct sunlight.
Breakthrough Battery Life
Kindle Paperwhite’s built-in front light is designed to be used at all
times — both in daylight and in a dark room — for the clearest, crispest
reading experience. In order to use the light at all times, Kindle
Paperwhite requires exceptional power management to maintain the battery
life that customers love about Kindle. Amazon’s light guide technology
precisely diffuses the light across the screen and only requires four
LEDs to light the entire screen (unlike LCD screens which can use up to
50 LEDs). The light guide is so efficient that Kindle Paperwhite has a
remarkable 8 weeks of battery life, even with the light on at all times.
Free 3G
Kindle’s free 3G connection means customers never have to hunt for or
pay for a Wi-Fi hotspot — they simply download and read books anytime,
anywhere in over 100 countries around the world. Amazon pays for the 3G
connection on Kindle Paperwhite Wi-Fi + 3G, so customers pay no monthly
fees and sign no annual contracts.
Built-In Wi-Fi
Kindle Paperwhite comes with built-in Wi-Fi, letting readers discover
new content at home or on the road. Kindle owners also enjoy free Wi-Fi
access at AT&T hotspots across the US.
New Touch Technology
Kindle Paperwhite’s new capacitive touch technology is uniquely
integrated into the Paperwhite display, allowing for a thinner form
factor for Kindle Paperwhite and even better touch accuracy.
Slim and Sleek Design
At just over a third of an inch thin and weighing 7.5 ounces, Kindle
Paperwhite is thinner than a magazine and weighs less than a typical
paperback. The bezel height between the side of the device and the
display itself is 77% thinner.
Hand-Tuned Fonts
Every font on Kindle Paperwhite is hand-tuned for maximum readability.
The Amazon typography team worked at the pixel level to ensure
consistency of stroke thickness and shape profiles across all individual
glyphs, aligning each size to the specific grid of the new Paperwhite
display. This allows for unprecedented sharpness of fonts. Kindle
Paperwhite’s higher resolution display also allows for new elegant
typeface options, such as Baskerville and Palatino, which use thin stems
that would not render well on any lower resolution display.
Time to Read
Time to Read is a new feature for Kindle Paperwhite that helps readers
know the amount of time it will take them to finish a chapter or a book.
This feature is smart — it personalizes the time for each customer based
on their reading speed and is constantly updated as the reader’s speed
and habits change. With Time to Read, it’s never been easier to decide
when to start a new chapter or finish the chapter you’re reading.
Explore the “Bones of a Book” with X-Ray
With a single tap, readers can see all passages across a book that
mention ideas, fictional characters, historical figures, places or
topics that interest them, as well as more detailed descriptions from
Wikipedia and Shelfari, Amazon’s community-powered encyclopedia for book
lovers. Amazon built X-Ray using its expertise in language processing
and machine learning, access to significant storage and computing
resources with Amazon S3 and EC2, and a deep library of book and
character information.
Whispersync for Voice
All Kindles use Amazon’s popular Whispersync technology to automatically
synchronize a customer’s Kindle library, including last page read,
bookmarks, notes and highlights, across the widest range of devices and
platforms. Now, Amazon is extending Whispersync to professionally
narrated audiobooks — customers can start reading a book on their
Kindle, and seamlessly switch to listening to their corresponding
Whispersync for Voice-enabled audiobook from Audible on their phone or
tablet, picking up exactly where they left off. With Whispersync for
Voice, customers can continue enjoying books during commutes or any
other time their eyes are busy. Whispersync for Voice is a solution for
the millions of Amazon customers who want to spend more time with their
favorite books. Customers can listen to their Audible audiobooks on
Kindle Fire, iPhone, Android phones and Windows Phones.
Beautiful Leather Covers with Auto Wake and Sleep
Covers for Kindle Paperwhite feature a premium textured leather exterior
and a subtle woven nylon interior to provide the lightest and thinnest
form of protection. The integrated magnetic clasp ensures the cover
remains securely closed while in a backpack, purse, or briefcase. The
cover automatically wakes Kindle Paperwhite upon opening and puts it to
sleep when closed, making it easy to dive right back into the book.
Latest Generation Kindle — Small, Light and Now Even Faster — only $69
Introducing the new, latest generation Kindle — the smallest, lightest
and most affordable Kindle ever is now even better, with new
improved fonts, 15% faster page turns and a new, unbelievably low price:
just $69. In addition, the new Kindle now supports children’s books and
comics, and includes new parental controls. Weighing just 5.98 ounces,
Kindle is small and light enough to fit easily in a pocket and take
everywhere, and still features the same 6-inch electronic ink display
that reads like real paper. At just $69, the new Kindle is the perfect
entry Kindle for young and adult readers alike.
Plus All the Features Customers Love About Kindle
All of the new Kindle e-readers come with instant access to the features
that have made Kindle the #1 best-selling e-reader in the world for five
years running:
Top-Rated, World-Class Customer Service
When a customer shops on Amazon.com, buys a Kindle, or buys Kindle
content, they know that they are also getting Amazon’s world-class
customer service. Amazon scored 86 — the top score — on the American
Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), and 89 on the ForeSee customer
satisfaction survey — the highest ever attained by a retailer. Amazon
has been rated #1 in the National Retail Federation Customers' Choice
Awards, has been awarded the top spot in the MSN Money Customer Service
Hall of Fame three years in a row, and is a JD Power and Associates 2012
Customer Service Champion. Customers have been shopping on Amazon for
over 15 years, and they continue to do so because of the unparalleled
end-to-end customer experience. So far in 2012, Kindle customer service
has received a 97.1% satisfaction rate from customers.
Read for Free with Kindle Owners’ Lending Library
With Prime, Kindle owners can read for free — choose from over 180,000
books in the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library, including all 7 Harry
Potter books in 5 languages and over 100 current and former New York
Times bestsellers, to borrow for free — as frequently as a book a
month, with no waiting and no due dates.
Unparalleled Interoperability — “Buy Once, Read Everywhere”
Customers can read their Kindle books on the largest number of devices
and platforms, including any Kindle as well as on iPhone, iPad, Android
devices, Mac, PC, BlackBerry, Windows Phone or in their web browser with
Kindle Cloud Reader.
Whispersync
Amazon’s Whispersync technology synchronizes a customer’s last page
read, bookmarks and annotations across all of their devices, so they can
always pick up where they left off.
Features Built Just for Readers
Each Kindle offers a variety of font styles and sizes, so customers can
easily customize their reading experience. Kindle also comes with a
built-in dictionary, instant lookup and translation of words, Real Page
Numbers, support for bookmarks and annotations, and more.
Sharing
Customers can share highlighted sections, notes and meaningful quotes on
Facebook and Twitter directly from Kindle without leaving the book.
Customers can also view the passages frequently highlighted by other
Kindle readers to discover interesting and meaningful passages in books
using Popular Highlights.
Massive Selection, Lowest Prices
Every Kindle has instant access to millions of books at the best prices,
including over 180,000 exclusive titles. Over 650,000 books are priced
at $4.99 or less; over 1.2 million are $9.99 or less. Millions of free,
out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books are also available to read on Kindle,
and Kindle customers can borrow Kindle books from their public library
and have them delivered to their Kindle via Wi-Fi.
No Setup Required, Simple and Easy-to-Use
Kindle comes automatically pre-registered so customers can immediately
start enjoying their existing Kindle library or shop for new content,
with no set-up required.
Parental Controls
Parental Controls allow parents to restrict access to the Kindle Store,
Cloud Archive and the Experimental Web Browser so they can give their
Kindle to a child worry-free.
Worry-Free Cloud Storage
Customers’ Kindle books are automatically backed up in the cloud, so
they never need to worry about losing their books. Customers can
re-download their books wirelessly anytime for free.
Pricing and Availability
The new Kindle Paperwhite is only $119. Kindle Paperwhite is available
for pre-order starting today at www.amazon.com/kindlepaperwhite
and ships October 1.
The new top-of-the-line Kindle Paperwhite Wi-Fi + 3G is only $179.
Kindle Paperwhite Wi-Fi + 3G is available for pre-order starting today
at www.amazon.com/kindlepaperwhite3G
and ships October 1.
The new $69 Kindle is available to customers around the world at www.amazon.com/kindle
and begins shipping today.
For high resolution images and video of the all-new Kindle family, visit www.amazon.com/pr/kindle.
About Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle,
opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth’s
Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most
customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything
they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the
lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of
unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books;
Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home
& Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health &
Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web
Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to
in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end
technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any
type of business. Kindle Paperwhite is the most-advanced e-reader ever
constructed with 62% more pixels and 25% increased contrast, a patented
built-in front light for reading in all lighting conditions, extra-long
battery life, and a thin and light design. The new latest generation
Kindle, the lightest and smallest Kindle, now features new, improved
fonts and faster page turns. Kindle Fire HD features a stunning custom
high-definition display, exclusive Dolby audio with dual stereo
speakers, high-end, laptop-grade Wi-Fi with dual-band support and
dual-antennas/MIMO for 40% faster throughput than other tablets, enough
storage for HD content, and the latest generation processor and graphics
engine — and it is available in two display sizes — 7” and 8.9”. Amazon
and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com,
www.amazon.co.uk,
www.amazon.de,
www.amazon.co.jp,
www.amazon.fr,
www.amazon.ca,
www.amazon.cn,
www.amazon.it,
and www.amazon.es.
As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include
Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates
otherwise.
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning
of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly
from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve
risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to
competition, management of growth, new products, services and
technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international
expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center
optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and
strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption,
inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More
information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's
financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual
Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=50399397&lang=en
Source: Amazon.com, Inc.
Amazon.com, Inc.
Media Hotline, 206-266-7180
www.amazon.com/pr
