Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (2024) vs Sony Portable Reader System PRS-500

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Kindle Paperwhite (2024) compared with Portable Reader System PRS-500

	AmazonKindle Paperwhite (2024)	SonyPortable Reader System PRS-500
Overview
Released
Released	October 2024	October 2006
Screen
Screen size
Screen size	7″	6″
Sharpness
Sharpness	300 pixels per inch	–
Colour
Colour	No	No
Front light
Front light	Yes, adjustable warmth	No
Display detail
Display detail	Glare-free Paperwhite display, 16-level grey scale; flush front; dark mode	E Ink electronic paper; approximately six-inch diagonal and four greyscale levels reported by The Gadgeteer
Front light
Front light	Adjustable front light with adjustable warm light	No integrated illumination
Page turns and refresh
Page turns and refresh	Amazon says page turns are 25% faster than the previous Paperwhite	Physical page controls, three text sizes and portrait or landscape orientation; numbered menu selection buttons
Reading and writing
Stylus
Stylus	No	No
Page-turn buttons
Page-turn buttons	No	Yes
Audiobooks
Audiobooks	Yes	Yes
Storage
Storage	16 GB (better)	64 MB
Software
Software	Kindle	Other
Formats
Formats	Kindle Format 8 (AZW3), Kindle (AZW), TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI and PRC natively; PDF, DOCX, DOC, HTML, EPUB, TXT, RTF, JPEG, GIF, PNG and BMP through conversion; Audible (AAX)	BBeB, PDF, TXT and RTF; Word converted to RTF; JPEG, GIF, PNG and BMP; EPUB and Adobe DRM supported with later firmware 2.0.00.09180 and compatible desktop software
Book store
Book store	Kindle Store	Computer-based CONNECT eBooks purchases offered at launch; memory-card file transfer also supported
Note taking
Note taking	–	Bookmarks; no touchscreen annotations
Connections and battery
Battery life (maker's claim)
Battery life (maker's claim)	Up to 12 weeks	–
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Up to 12 weeks at half an hour of reading a day with wireless off and the light at 13; Audible streaming over Bluetooth shortens it	Maker claims approximately 7,500 pages with a fully charged battery
Charging
Charging	USB-C; full charge in under 2.5 hours with a 9 W USB power adapter	Supplied 5.2 V mains adaptor or computer USB; fully depleted battery requires mains charging
Connectivity
Connectivity	Wi-Fi (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz; WEP, WPA, WPA2, WPA3 and OWE)	USB; shared Memory Stick/SD card slot; approximately 64 MB user-available storage
Audio
Audio	Bluetooth audio for Audible and the VoiceView screen reader	Headphone output; unprotected MP3 and AAC audio only; playback while reading supported
Design
Weight
Weight	211 g	–
Water resistance
Water resistance	IPX8	–
Materials
Materials	Made from 29% recycled materials; internal frame of 90% recycled magnesium	–
Water resistance detail
Water resistance detail	Tested to withstand immersion in 2 metres of fresh water for 60 minutes	–
Size
Size	176.7 × 127.6 × 7.8 mm	Maker maximum dimensions 6.9 × 4.9 × 0.5 inches without soft cover; approximately 8.8 oz without cover
Colours
Colours	Black, Raspberry, Jade	–
In the box
In the box	Kindle Paperwhite, USB-C charging cable, Quick Start Guide	Reader, protective cover, mains adaptor and cable, USB cable and Windows CONNECT Reader software