{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","contentId":"00000186-38b7-d867-a59f-bcfffe810000","url":"https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/devices/how-to-use-kindle-paperwhite","headline":"How to use a Kindle Paperwhite","description":"If you’ve recently purchased a Kindle Paperwhite and are ready to start putting it to use, we’re here to help.","datePublished":"2023-02-10T14:37:54.970Z","dateModified":"2023-02-10T14:37:54.970Z","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Dave Johnson","url":"https://www.aboutamazon.com/author/dave-johnson","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://assets.aboutamazon.com/dims4/default/9d40ea9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/536x536+0+0/resize/84x84!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aboutamazon.com%2F4e%2F2d%2F3636e3104bad8c4d5b9bfc3126b6%2Fdave-johnson.jpg","width":"84","height":"84"}}],"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://assets.aboutamazon.com/dims4/default/b187db3/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1620x1080+150+0/resize/300x200!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aboutamazon.com%2F39%2F5d%2Ffecd31c9434a913d40a92c55dd0b%2Fpaperwhite-hero-v1.jpeg","width":"300","height":"200"},"articleBody":"![Kindle Paperwhite.](https://assets.aboutamazon.com/dims4/default/b187db3/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1620x1080+150+0/resize/300x200!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aboutamazon.com%2F39%2F5d%2Ffecd31c9434a913d40a92c55dd0b%2Fpaperwhite-hero-v1.jpeg)\n\n# How to use a Kindle Paperwhite\n\n*If you’ve recently purchased a Kindle Paperwhite and are ready to start putting it to use, we’re here to help.*\n\n[*Lee este artículo en español*](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/devices/como-usar-kindle-paperwhite)*.*\n\nThe [Kindle Paperwhite](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08KTZ8249) is a mid-priced favorite among e-reader fans. It’s waterproof, which makes it equally great for reading at the beach and in the bath; the screen is crisp and sharp with a display that’s easy on the eyes; and the 10-week battery means you can generally go months without having to charge it. It also has Bluetooth, which means you can pop in earbuds to listen to an Audible version of your book in privacy.\n\nBelow you'll find everything you need to know about using a Kindle Paperwhite.\n\nYour Paperwhite only has a single button, located at the button of the tablet near the USB-C charging port. If the Paperwhite is completely off, press and hold the button for several seconds until the screen turns on, and let it boot normally.\n\nAs a general rule, though, you can leave the Paperwhite powered on all the time, and tap the button to wake the screen or put it to sleep. The tablet draws very little power and should last for months on a single charge, so you may not need to power it off completely after each use.\n\nWhen you turn on the display, the Paperwhite should return to whatever screen it was on the last time you used it. If it’s not on the Home screen and you want to go there, **tap the top of the screen** and then **tap the back button** to return Home or to the Library.\n\nHere you can browse books in your own library as well as eBooks on Amazon that are recommended for you. If you see a book you like, you can tap it and purchase it. Alternatively, you can use the **Search Kindle** field at the top of the page to search for a specific book to buy.\n\nTo get to additional options, **tap the three-dot menu** at the top right. Here you can get to your reading lists, settings, and other options.\n\n![Prime Student](https://assets.aboutamazon.com/dims4/default/84b6e74/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1350x900+125+0/resize/300x200!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aboutamazon.com%2F93%2F98%2F6b4f877441aa99dcd13974f5629e%2Fheres-everything-you-get-with-prime-student-beyond-the-regular-prime-membership-inline-v2-kindle-unlimited.jpg)\n\n- [How to buy and borrow Kindle books](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/devices/how-to-buy-kindle-books)\n\nThe other tab on the main screen is the Library, which, not surprisingly, contains all of your purchased books. **Tap the Library** tab to browse your eBooks. Not all of these books are necessarily installed on this Kindle, but it should show you all the books you have purchased using your Amazon account.\n\nThere are a few handy icons to help you navigate your library. If you’re in the middle of reading a book, you should see the percent read at the top right of the book cover. Newly downloaded books will bear a “New” banner, while books you’ve finished will say “Read.” And books that are downloaded to your Kindle will have a checkmark at the bottom left.\n\nYou might have a lot of books in your library, so you can tap the three line menu on the right, above the book list, to change the way the books are presented. You can change the sorting, for example, as well as view the books in grid or list form, or arranged by your collections, if you’ve organized them that way.\n\nWhen you’re ready to read a book, you can tap it in the library. If it’s already installed, it’ll open right away. Otherwise, it’ll take a few seconds for the book to download to your Paperwhite before it opens.\n\n![Kindle Paperwhite.](https://assets.aboutamazon.com/dims4/default/85a57cd/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1600x900+0+0/resize/767x431!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.aboutamazon.com%2F08%2Fde%2F87dc7f18477495c8fc18f4e530c5%2Fpaperwhite-inline-v1.jpeg)\n\nYour Paperwhite tries to make the screen look like you’re reading a real paper book, so there’s no interface getting in the way. To go to the next page, tap almost anywhere on the page; to go back to a previous page, tap on the left edge of the screen.\n\nYou might also notice your reading progress status at the bottom of the page—depending on how it’s set, you might see your location in the book, as a page number, how many minutes of reading are left in the chapter, or even nothing at all. To change the way your Kindle shows your reading progress, **tap repeatedly in the lower left corner**.\n\nWant to get back to the Home screen or Library? **Tap the very top of the page**. This pop-up menu also lets you change details like layout and font (**tap the Aa** for that), zoom to a different part of the book (that’s the three lines that look like a TOC), bookmarks, and more.\n\nThere are a few handy tools at your disposal when reading a book on your Kindle Paperwhite.\n\nFirst and foremost: the dictionary. Not sure what a word means? Tap and hold a word for a second, then release; after a moment you’ll see the word is underlined, then the dictionary opens to define the word. Swipe to the left to see the word’s Wikipedia entry and even get a translation.\n\nMany books also have X-Ray, a reference tool that helps summarize and provide context for the book you’re reading. X-Ray lists characters, locations, themes, and more from the book, which can be handy to stay on top of the action. To get there, just **tap the top of the page** and then **tap the three-dot menu**. The **choose X-Ray**.\n\nFinally, you might be the sort of person who enjoys keeping notes or highlighting passages within a book. You can do that when reading with your Paperwhite as easily as when using paper books—**just tap and hold a word** or **tap and drag your finger** to select a phrase. Then, when the dictionary window pops up, you can use the Highlight and Note buttons to mark up the story. You can even export these notes to your computer afterwards.\n\nNext, check out our [Kindle buying guide](https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/devices/which-kindle-to-buy).","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"About Amazon","url":"https://www.aboutamazon.com","sameAs":["https://x.com/amazonnews","https://www.linkedin.com/company/amazon","https://www.instagram.com/amazonnews"],"logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://assets.aboutamazon.com/bd/8f/88e7b0314cc2bd05b9de3155a0fe/amazon-news.svg"},"parentOrganization":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Amazon","url":"https://www.amazon.com","sameAs":["https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3884","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amazon_(company)","https://x.com/Amazon"]}}}