Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition

What

A dedicated e-reader with a 7-inch glare-free screen, adjustable warm lighting and protection against splashes. The Signature Edition adds automatic brightness, wireless charging and 32 GB of storage for a considerable travelling library.

Without covers, it weighs 214 g, less than half the 464 g of an 11-inch iPad Air, and measures roughly 18 × 13 cm rather than 25 × 18 cm. That is a useful difference in a beach bag, and in the hand.

Why

I want to take a good book to the beach, not negotiate the use of a tablet. A screen that can play games and videos has other interested parties, particularly when travelling with children.

The Paperwhite makes sense to me: comfortable reading in sunlight, a light for the terrace after dark, and less worry about the occasional splash beside a pool or the sea. Plenty of books, too, without packing their weight. I can decide what I feel like reading when I get there.

Its inability to entertain anyone with cartoons is a feature I particularly appreciate. There is no game to install and no video to put on. My reading need not compete with somebody else’s screen time.