Best ereader 2023: Kindle paperwhite, Kobo, Oasis and more | The Independent

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The first ebook readers were clunky and simplistic, but even so, they changed everything. Now, with better displays, clever navigation and lots of extra features, they almost come close to the brilliance of, you know, real books.

Sure, you can’t match the feel of paper, or the way you can know how far you are through your latest book just by how it feels in your two hands, instead of relying on a percentage indicator. But for convenience, ebook readers can’t be outdone.

You can read in a darkened bedroom without disturbing your significant other, thanks to the lights that can now even be found on entry-level models. And because it’s light directed at the screen, rather than the backlighting from a tablet that shines at you, ebook readers don’t tire your eyes. Some even have lights that can change colour from a cool blue to a warmer orange to make them more comfortable to read at different times of the day.

There’s the simplicity of buying a book in seconds, and battery life is measured in weeks, not hours, because e-ink only consumes electricity when changing from one page to the next. Once you’re on the page you want to read, there’s no power draw.

Two brands dominate the market: Amazon with its Kindle range, and Kobo. Most ebook readers have 6in displays, but some are bigger. Many, though not all, have a screen resolution of 300 pixels per inch (ppi) which is very sharp and easy to read. The lowest-priced Kobo still looks sharp with its 212ppi screen.

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Note that both Amazon and Kobo have bookstores with millions of books available. The future for ebook readers looks rosy – colour screens will come, though don’t expect them for a year or two at least, and some models already have screens that let you annotate pages with notes, though we’d say this technology is not yet fully formed.

How we tested

We tested for comfort in the hand, even over long reading sessions, ease of navigation, screen quality, battery life, breadth of access to the books you want, and the simplicity of purchasing your next title.

The best ereaders for 2023 are:

• Best ereader overall – Amazon Kindle paperwhite: £129.99, Amazon.co.uk
• Best ereader for note-taking – Kobo sage: £259.99, Kobobooks.com
• Best ereader for maximum storage – Amazon Kindle paperwhite signature edition: £179.99, Amazon.co.uk
• Best premium ereader – Amazon Kindle oasis: £229.99, Amazon.co.uk
• Best mid-range ereader – Kobo clara HD: £119.99, Kobobooks.com
• Best value Kindle ereader – Amazon Kindle: £84.99, Amazon.co.uk
• Best budget ereader – Kobo nia: £94.99, Kobobooks.com
• Best kids’ ereader – Amazon Kindle kids edition: £104.99, Amazon.co.uk
• Best ereader for audiobooks – Kobo libra 2: £169.99, Kobobooks.com