If you're like one of the at least 200 million Amazon (AMZN) -) Prime members, chances are you've made more than a few purchases from the online retailer recently.
You may have even purchased one of Amazon's flagship products, such as an Echo smart speaker, a Ring camera, or a Kindle e-reader.
Related: Amazon is about to make a major price change to this popular service
Amazon makes it tempting to buy many of its branded products, especially during periods when it runs sales and promotions. Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days, which took place October 10 and 11, saw some of its products reduced to yearly lows.
Its Kindle, for example, which enables readers to store thousands of books on a tablet-sized device without the pesky glare or eye fatigue associated with regular screens, rarely goes on sale. But during October's Prime Days an 8GB Kindle Paperwhite, which typically retails for $139.99, was selling for $94.99 (and probably showed up at your door within the day if you ordered it).
Amazon's e-readers are popular. It's estimated that the retail giant has sold somewhere between 20 million and 90 million of the devices, making them one of Amazon's top-selling hardware devices on the market.
Here's a breakdown of some of Amazon's top-selling devices, post-Prime Days:
- Amazon Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote
- Echo Dot (5th Gen, 2022 release)
- Blink Video Doorbell
- All-new Echo Show 5
- All-new Blink Outdoor 4 (4th Gen)
- Echo Pop
- All-new Ring Indoor Cam (2nd Gen)
- Blink Mini camera
- Insignia 32-inch Class F20 Series Smart HD 720p Fire TV with Alexa Voice Remote
- Blink Outdoor (3rd Gen) cameras
- Amazon Fire 7 Kids Tablet (2022)
- Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (8 GB)
Amazon Kindle gets a refresh
The Kindle has come a long way since its first days in 2007. Complete with a tactile keyboard at the bottom, the e-reader retailed for $399 and sold out less than six hours after it was released.
Amazon needed five months to restock the devices, and since then it's been slowly iterating. The Kindle gets an update — or at the very least a refresh — roughly once a year. Amazon has introduced new e-reader types, each with its own quirks and capabilities, depending on how much you're willing to shell out for one.
Currently, Amazon offers the following Kindle models:
- Kindle: $99.99, 6" screen and battery life up to 6 weeks
- Kindle Paperwhite: $139.99, 6.8" screen, battery life up to 10 weeks, waterproof
- Kindle Paperwhite Signature: $189.99, 6.8" screen, battery life up to 10 weeks, waterproof, wireless charging, auto-adjusting light
- Kindle Oasis: $249.99, 7" screen, page-turning buttons, cellular connectivity option
- Kindle Scribe: $339.99, 10.2" screen, for reading and writing (wireless pen capabilities)
As a years-long Kindle owner and a recent adopter of the most-current Kindle Paperwhite, I can say that the new 6.8" screen and adjustable warm light make a difference. The screen is crisp and reading is a delight. That said, I want to outline some changes that came with the upgrade.
For one, it now uses the ever-popular USB-C charger (included), which is convenient. It also is a slightly different size than my old Paperwhite, so it required a new case.
And Amazon's latest change will affect all Kindles, not just the Paperwhite.
Starting Nov. 1 Amazon will no longer support MOBI files (via the .mobi, .azw, .prc format) in its “Send to Kindle” feature. MOBI files are used by readers to download e-books, typically on e-readers with lower or outdated capabilities.
"Amazon clarifies that MOBI is an older file format lacking support for the latest Kindle features, prompting a transition to modern formats that ensure prolonged compatibility with Kindle e-books," Good EReader writes. "Users are advised to resend files in new supported formats like EPUB (.epub) through the 'Send to Kindle for Email' feature."
Any existing MOBI files on a Kindle will remain untouched.
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