If you’re having a hard time finding the perfect but affordable (think under $100/ £ (opens in a new tab)100) for family, friends and kids, let me point you to my favourite: the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite e-reader. This season of Black Friday deals has resulted in savings of up to 45% on this purpose-built digital reading device (in fact, some of the best deals ever). Honestly, there are plenty of good reasons to put one in someone’s stockings.
But first, let’s take advantage of the best Kindle Black Friday deals available right now.
The best Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Black Friday deals in the US
The best Amazon Kindle Paperwhite UK Black Friday deals
Let me start by saying that I’ve been using Amazon Kindle e-readers since the second edition (it had cute, physical buttons on the side for turning pages). I have owned many Kindles since then, and mine has been in my hands for at least four years. In other words, I am a user and a fan.
None of this makes my observations any less valid. I think if anything it adds credibility to all the reasons why I think the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite is in the perfect spot between affordability and wow making it a near-perfect Black Friday buy.
Built on purpose
In a world where every handheld device tries to get the most out of it, where watches measure our blood pressure and smartphones sense a car accident, Amazon’s Kindle line of e-readers do exactly one thing: they’re designed for reading.
It’s a bit obvious, but it means that every upgrade since the earliest Kindles has been aimed at improving the reading experience and pretty much nothing else. The 300 ppi Paperwhite screen is designed with lettering and reading in mind. Also, it’s called “Paperwhite” because the E Ink screen has been refined to offer as white a background as possible on an electronic inkjet display (true, you can also read in dark mode, which puts “white” text on a black background).
8 GB of storage space may not seem like much, but e-reader files are incredibly small. You can fit thousands of books and magazines (even black and white graphic novels) on a single Kindle Paperwhite. Again, the system is built for reading and you’ll never need more space for, say, video files or photos.
Easy to use
Amazon Kindle are generally simple devices. Almost the entire face consists of a 6.7-inch display. Along the bottom edge there is only one button for power and sleep. The touch screen means that the gesture used to turn pages in physical books works just as well on the Kindle Paperwhite.
There are plenty of screen controls to enhance and customize your reading experience, including reducing and increasing the font size with a pinch and zoom gesture (what’s easier than that?) and a slider to increase and decrease the highlight.
Basically, you can hand the Kindle Paperwhite to even the most tech-averse person and they’ll quickly figure out how to use it.
No disturbances
Spend five minutes reading on your iPhone, iPad or Galaxy S22 and at least a couple of times you’ll be interrupted by a notification or even a pop-up on, say, a website where you’re trying to dive into that long read.
There are no such interruptions in the Kindle Paperwhite. You can read for hours without a single text message or alert, except for the person next to you to gently interrupt you from reading.
Lightweight and portable
Fun fact: although the Kindle Paperwhite is much larger than Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro, it weighs a gram less (205g vs. 206g). It’s also so thin – just 8.1mm – that the Kindle Paperwhite will fit in any bag, coat pocket or even back pocket.
I usually carry mine everywhere in my backpack. And when there’s no cellular network or internet, I can pull out my Kindle, which doesn’t need an internet connection unless you’re browsing or downloading a book, and start reading.
Durable
Although the Kindle has a glass-covered screen, it is not prone to cracking. I dropped or even threw a Kindle and the display barely scratched. The housing is also virtually drop-proof.
What’s more, all of these Kindle Paperwhites for sale are water-resistant, making them perfect beach and poolside companions.
Incredible battery life
I challenge you to find another category of gadgets that will give you weeks of work on a single charge. The Kindle Paperwhite can last up to 10 weeks on a charge. Prolonged use of the built-in light will reduce this time, but you can still expect at least several weeks of reading per charge.
The thing is, when you want to read, the Kindle is almost always ready. This is one of my favorite things about this device.
Read for free
Do you remember libraries? I haven’t entered one in years, but I still use my local library. In the US, we have the Libby app, which allows you to log into your local library and then browse ebooks just like physical books.
This way I read everything – even bestsellers – for free on my Kindle Paperwhite. However, there is one caveat here. As with a regular library book, your checkout will expire after 14 days. The good news is that if you don’t close the book, you can keep reading until you’re done.
There are, of course, plenty of other portable gadget deals in our roundup of Black Friday deals. Check it out before they all disappear.
More US Black Friday Deals
- Amazon: 50% off TVs, Apple Watch, Apparel, Vacuums and Toys (opens in a new tab)
- Apple AirPods 2: on sale for $234 at Amazon (opens in a new tab)
- Best offer: up to $700 off TVs, laptops, home appliances and more (opens in a new tab)
- Cheap TVs: Smart TVs for $79.99 from Best Buy (opens in a new tab)
- holiday decor: up to 54% discount on trees, garlands and wreaths (opens in a new tab)
- Dell: laptops from $299.99 (opens in a new tab)
- Gift Ideas: 40% off Christmas gifts for family from Amazon (opens in a new tab)
- Home warehouse: 50% off tools, large appliances and holiday decorations (opens in a new tab)
- Lowe: up to $750 off home appliances, holiday decorations and tools (opens in a new tab)
- Overstock: 70% discount on Christmas decorations, furniture and Christmas trees (opens in a new tab)
- Nectar: save up to $500 on mattresses and $499 on free gifts (opens in a new tab)
- Nordstrom: up to 50% off UGG, makeup, Nike, jewelry and more (opens in a new tab)
- SAMSUNG: TVs, large appliances and smartwatches worth up to $2,500 (opens in a new tab)
- Objective: 45% off toys, holiday decorations, coffee machines and more (opens in a new tab)
- Toys: up to 50% off the best-selling toys at Walmart (opens in a new tab)
- Verizon: get iPhone 14 Pro for free in return (opens in a new tab)
- Walmart: toys, TVs, vacuum cleaners and laptops starting at $19.99 (opens in a new tab)
- Passing: up to 80% off sofas, rugs and more plus free shipping (opens in a new tab)
More UK Black Friday Deals
- Amazon: up to 60% off TVs, laptops and more (opens in a new tab)
- Sneakers: up to 50% off shoes and clothing (opens in a new tab)
- AO: deals on household appliances, TVs, laptops and more (opens in a new tab)
- Argos: cheap TVs, headphones and tools (opens in a new tab)
- Boots: half-price perfumes and make-up (opens in a new tab)
- Box: up to £1,000 on TVs, laptops and PCs (opens in a new tab)
- Currys: 40% discount on TVs, laptops and vacuum cleaners (opens in a new tab)
- Dell: up to 45% off on laptops and desktops (opens in a new tab)
- Dyson: save £100 on the Dyson Cyclone V10 (opens in a new tab)
- uh: get a 200GB sim card for £23 a month (opens in a new tab)
- Game: PlayStation and Xbox games from £4.99 (opens in a new tab)
- john lewis: up to £400 on TVs and home appliances (opens in a new tab)
- Ninja: save up to £90 on fryers and pans (opens in a new tab)
- Reebok: up to 50% discount on sports clothing and footwear (opens in a new tab)
- SAMSUNG: up to £250 on phones and tablets (opens in a new tab)
- Shark: up to £220 on cordless vacuum cleaners (opens in a new tab)
- Very: deals on TVs, Lego and fashion (opens in a new tab)
- Virgin: broadband deals from £25 per month (opens in a new tab)
- Wayfair: offers of furniture, lighting and mattresses (opens in a new tab)