Amazon Kindles fit in your hand and turn reading into a portable library. Whether it’s the basic Kindle, the sleek Paperwhite, the premium Oasis, or the expansive Scribe, each Kindle holds thousands of books in its black design, with the option to store more in the cloud. Despite its simple appearance, Kindles have adjustable lighting, are waterproof in some models, and can even help you track your reading time. For a better experience, try pinch and zoom for visibility, switch to airplane mode to save battery, and personalize your dictionary settings. Explore our advanced tips for an even better Kindle experience.
Contents
List of 12 Essential Tips Every Kindle Reader Should Know
1. Take a Deeper Dive With X-Ray
Kindle’s X-Ray feature makes reading more interesting by giving extra information about characters, places, and ideas in a book. When you have a book open, tap the top of the screen, select the three-dot menu and select X-Ray. If the book supports it, you can find extra information about key people, places, and ideas, and see a timeline of important sections. It’s like having a helpful guide while you read. If you want to know more about a character or why a place is important, X-Ray helps you understand it better. It’s an easy way to connect with the story and learn more without leaving the book. So, Kindle’s X-Ray makes reading a fun and interactive adventure, helping you enjoy books even more.
2. Create Highlights and Notes
If you fondly remember marking your textbooks with neon-yellow highlights and notes, you’ll love this feature on the Kindle. Simply touch the text you want to highlight or write a note on, then move your finger to include more or less text. The highlighted text appears grayed out on the screen. Tapping the selected text offers options like notes, highlights, and sharing to Goodreads. All your highlights and notes are saved on the Kindle Highlights page and in a book titled Your Clippings, added to your Kindle library. It’s a convenient way to organize and revisit important sections in your books.
3. Store a Book Series
To keep your series of books organized on your Kindle, go to Settings, then Device Options, Advanced Options, Home & Library, and enable Group Series in Library. This will display all the books in a series together on your home screen, with the first book’s cover shown, along with the total number of books in the series. If you can’t find this option, update your Kindle software in Settings. If you change your mind, simply toggle the feature off, and the books will be shown individually in your library.
4. Extend Battery Life
To save battery on your Kindle during a long trip, adjust the brightness using the slider or + and – buttons in Quick Actions. If your Kindle has Auto Brightness, uncheck the box next to it. Turn on Airplane Mode by swiping down and tapping the airplane icon, but remember, this disables syncing, so your reading progress won’t update across devices. While in Quick Actions, ensure Bluetooth is turned off. These steps help conserve battery life, especially useful when you’re away from a power source.
5. Join a Virtual Book Club
Goodreads, owned by Amazon, is like a convenient book club without the hassles of coordinating schedules or cleaning your home. On Kindle, access Goodreads by tapping three dots on the top-right of the home screen. Sign in or create a Goodreads account to sync your Want to Read list with your Kindle homepage. Easily discover what books your friends are reading and their opinions. However, it’s important not to negatively review books you haven’t actually read, avoiding unnecessary conflicts.
6. Lock Up Your Kindle
For privacy enthusiasts, add a passcode to your Kindle. Go to the home screen, tap the three dots in the upper-right, select Settings > Device Options > Device Passcode, and set a numerical code up to 12 digits long.
7. Create a Home Library
Create a Family Library on Kindle to share books with your Amazon Household. Open Menu, select Settings, then go to Household & Family Library. Add a new person by choosing Add Adult, enter their Amazon email and password, and authorize payment sharing. Share all books or pick specific ones. For adding a child, select Add Child, enter parental control password, and provide child’s name, birthday, and gender. Choose books for the child’s library, tap Next, then Done to complete the setup.
8. Borrow Library E-Books
If you use ebooks, you can still use your local library by borrowing books through the Libby app. Just have a library card or student ID. Open the Libby app, go to Shelf > loans > Read With… > Kindle. It will take you to Amazon, where you sign in, choose the device, and tap Get Library Book.
9. Create Collections to Organize Your E-Books
To avoid a cluttered Kindle, organize your apps or books by creating a Collection. On your Kindle, tap Menu, choose Create a Collection, name it, and tap OK. Select the books you want in the collection, then tap Done. Amazon offers three viewing options for Collections. In Settings, go to Device Options, Advanced Options, Home & Library, and Collections. Choose to display only in Collections view, show favorites in the Library, or show all in the Library.
This helps keep your device tidy and makes it easier to find what you’re looking for.
10. Read Your Kindle Without Your Kindle
If you forgot your Kindle but want to continue reading on your phone, just download the Kindle app (Android, iOS) and ensure sync is enabled on both devices. On your Kindle, go to Quick Actions > All Settings > Device Options > Advanced Options > Whispersync for Books, and make sure it’s enabled. In the Kindle app, click More, go to Settings, and confirm Whispersync for Books is on. This ensures your devices stay synchronized, allowing you to seamlessly continue reading where you left off.
11. Change Your Kindle’s Fonts
If you don’t like the default font in your e-book, you can change it easily. Just go to the top of the screen, tap the Aa icon in the toolbar while reading the book, and select Font. Then, choose Font Family to pick a different font, and adjust the size and style as you prefer.
12. Take Kindle Screenshots
To capture your screen on a Kindle, tap the upper-right and lower-left corners at the same time or the other way around. A flash confirms the screenshot. Connect your Kindle to a computer to view the saved image in the root folder as a PNG file.
Conclusion
Incorporating these tips will transform your Kindle experience, making it not just a device but a personalized reading haven. Happy reading!