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There's thing amended than settling into a bully book pinch nan sound of waves nearby, and today's reference tablets will make it easier than ever to bring an full room to nan formation this summer. These devices harvester glare-free displays, marathon artillery life, and user-friendly interfaces for those agelong sessions successful nan agleam sunlight.
Our apical picks from Kindle, TCL, Apple, and much see features for illustration waterproofing, adjustable brightness, speedy performance, and agelong artillery lives.
Best tablet deals of nan week
Deals are selected by nan CNET Group commerce team, and whitethorn beryllium unrelated to this article.
What is nan champion reference tablet correct now?
We compiled this database by extensively going hands-on pinch nan champion tablets for reference connected nan market, considering price, storage, and typical features successful our testing. We've named nan Kindle Paperwhite as nan champion reference tablet wide for its adjustable lighting, performance, and artillery life. But we besides see reference tablets from brands for illustration Apple and TCL truthful you tin find nan correct tablet for your needs and reference style successful clip for going backmost to school.
Also: Best inexpensive tablets: Expert tested models successful 2025
The champion reference tablets of 2025
Amazon's Kindle devices are good known for a reason, and nan caller Kindle Paperwhite released this autumn is our favorite. It has each nan acquainted features of a Kindle (300 ppi e-ink screen, agelong artillery life, and adjustable lukewarm light), on pinch noticeably faster capacity -- Amazon claims it features 25% faster page turns and 20% of an wide faster experience, whether you're browsing book titles aliases downloading an audiobook.
The Paperwhite besides gets up to 12 weeks of artillery life (compared to 10 weeks from nan erstwhile Paperwhite generation. Staff writer Maria Diaz tested nan Kindle for 2 weeks and ne'er had to complaint it. "After 2 weeks of regular reference connected a azygous charge, immoderate days for up to 3 hours a day, my Kindle Paperwhite's artillery is still astatine 32%," she wrote successful her review.
Review: One of nan champion E Ink readers I've tested isn't made by Boox aliases Kobo
The caller Paperwhite besides has a larger, 7-inch show (the erstwhile procreation was 6.8 inches) and is thinner, making it moreover much comfortable to clasp while reference for hours. It's besides waterproof (how galore tablets tin opportunity that?), truthful you tin publication by nan excavation aliases successful nan bath without worrying astir stray splashes.
There is still a Signature Edition to nan Paperwhite, and for $40 much it offers wireless charging, 32GB of retention alternatively of 16GB, and an auto-adjusting beforehand ray sensor.
Of course, this is decidedly much of an e-reader than a tablet, arsenic you can't really browse nan web and location is nary stylus compatible pinch it. Still, if your superior usage of a tablet will beryllium for reading, nan Paperwhite is simply a awesome option.
Amazon Kindle Paperwhite tech specs: Display: 7-inch 300 ppi e-ink screen | Storage: 16 GB | Colors: Black, raspberry, jade | Weight: 7.4 ounces | Dimensions: 7 x 5 x .30 inches | Connections: USB-C, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth | Battery life: Up to 12 weeks
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The TCL Nxtpaper 11 Plus is nan cleanable nexus betwixt a reference tablet and a regular tablet. TCL's Nxtpaper exertion lets you move from regular mode to colour insubstantial to ink insubstantial (the astir akin to what you tin expect from an e-reader). Its show helps trim oculus strain while reducing bluish light, omitting a accepted backlight, and eliminating flickering, making it easy connected nan eyes than accepted screens while displaying nan different types of contented you'd expect from a tablet or smartphone.
Diaz went hands-on pinch nan TCL tablet and said it was cleanable for mundane use, particularly for reducing oculus strain. "I usage my MacBook Pro and iPad each time for work, truthful I recovered a large quality erstwhile utilizing nan TCL Nxtpaper 11 Plus alternatively of my iPad each night," she wrote, adding, "By nan extremity of nan night, my eyes weren't straining aliases exhausted, and my hostility headaches moreover became milder, which is simply a large plus."
Review: TCL Nxtpaper 11 Plus
You tin besides group Reading Modes and alteration Adaptive Brightness to further trim nan chance of oculus fatigue. It comes built-in pinch Android 15, truthful you tin browse nan web, download reference apps, watch videos, and more.
The stylus (which is sold separately), has AI-powered handwriting recognition, and handwriting-to-text conversions.
TCL Nxtpaper 11 Plus specs: Display: 11.5-inch NXTPAPER 4.0 show | Battery life: 8000mAh | Weight: 17.28 oz | Storage: 256GB
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The Kindle Scribe is nan perfect action to fulfill your reference and note-taking needs. It has nan aforesaid functions you've travel to cognize and emotion successful a Kindle (like a 300 ppi glare-free screen, weeks of artillery life, and adjustable lukewarm light), but it's besides compatible pinch Amazon's Basic aliases Premium Pen, truthful you tin return handwritten notes aliases underline important quotations successful nan book you're reading.
Your notes are automatically organized successful 1 spot for each book truthful that you tin browse, review, and export them via email--an fantabulous characteristic for students or professionals citing aggregate sources. The Kindle Scribe besides comes pinch preset templates to thief you create notebooks, journals, and lists, and you tin create sticky notes successful Microsoft Word and different compatible Word documents.
Review: Amazon Kindle Scribe
ZDNET contributing writer Matthew Miller called nan Kindle Scribe "close to perfect" erstwhile he went hands-on during testing. "I usage my Kindle Scribe regular arsenic my superior note-taking device, and nan wont of carrying it has besides resulted successful maine reference much books than I person successful years," Miller wrote. "It's an fantabulous ebook instrumentality while besides serving arsenic a tin moving tablet."
The Kindle Scribe comes pinch nan Basic pen, but for nan much precocious features for illustration a dedicated eraser and nan shortcut fastener you'll request nan Premium pen, which costs $30 extra. However, Amazon customers who person reviewed nan Kindle Scribe opportunity that nan premium pen is worthy paying for, particularly since it has an eraser and a fastener that lets you move nan nib from penning to highlighting.
Kindle Scribe specs: Display: 10.2-inch 300 ppi Paperwhite display| Battery life: Up to 12 weeks (at 30 minutes per day) | Weight: 15.3 ounces | Storage: 16 GB, 32 GB, aliases 64 GB
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Of course, you don't person to get a dedicated e-reader successful bid to publication connected a tablet. The iPad Mini serves arsenic a awesome reference instrumentality successful summation to an app-toting tablet acknowledgment to its lightweight and crisp screen. It has an 8.3-inch liquid retina show pinch 326 ppi, which is simply a higher solution than nan Kindles. As a result, matter looks particularly crisp connected screen, and Apple's True Tone exertion (which adjusts nan colour and strength of your show to lucifer nan ambient light) ensures you person a earthy reference experience.
Review: Apple iPad Mini (7th generation)
Diaz besides tested nan Apple iPad Mini and said, "The iPad Mini 7 is compact and fast, and its Apple silicon processor is built to past for years." She recommended users to "buy nan iPad Mini 7 for nan intermezo tablet it is."
Apple's anti-reflective surface coating besides reduces nan likelihood of catching a glare erstwhile reference extracurricular connected a sunny day. And, since it's a accepted tablet, you tin publication articles aliases blog posts connected nan web, download nan Kindle app and publication traditionally, aliases download different apps to get room books aliases find independent authors.
With nan iPad Mini, you're besides getting Apple's powerful A17 Pro chip, an ultra-wide 12 MP beforehand camera, support for nan Apple Pencil Pro to return notes, Apple Intelligence capabilities, and more.
Apple iPad Mini specs: Display: 8.3-inch Liquid Retina show (326 ppi) | Battery life: 10 hours | Weight: 10.4 ounces | Storage: 138GB, 256GB, aliases 512GB
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Amazon's Fire HD 8 Kids tablet is an fantabulous kid-friendly reference device. It has a kid-proof lawsuit built to withstand usage by children aged 3 to 7, and comes pinch a free one-year subscription to Amazon Kids+. The subscription gives you entree to thousands of kid-friendly, ad-free books and movies, games, and different acquisition contented your kid will love.
Review: Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids Tablet (12th generation)
ZNDET writer Maria Diaz had her kids tested nan Fire HD 8 Kids tablet and called it "a cleanable first tablet" built pinch kids successful mind. "Endurance is nan main logic why immoderate genitor should bargain nan Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids," Diaz wrote. "I can't show you really galore times my preschoolers person dropped (or thrown) their [Amazon] tablets and stepped connected them 'by accident' complete nan past 3 years, yet nan screens person remained intact."
Parents tin usage parental controls built into nan tablet to power surface clip and group acquisition goals for their children, which ensures that your kid is really reference aliases learning thing during use. Plus, it has 2 MP beforehand and rear-facing cameras pinch 720p HD video signaling and nan expertise to adhd themed filters and nosy frames to photos.
Overall, 95% of customers who purchased this reference tablet astatine Best Buy would urge it to different parents, giving it an wide standing of 4.7 retired of 5 stars.
Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids Tablet specs: Display: 8-inch HD display, 1280 x 800 (189 ppi) | Battery life: Up to 13 hours | Weight: 1.14 pounds | Storage: 32GB aliases 64GB
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The champion reference tablet is nan Kindle Paperwhite, which has reading-specific features for illustration adjustable lukewarm light, awesome artillery life, and a surface that's easy connected nan eyes. Below is an overview of really nan champion reference tablets comparison based connected price, show size, and artillery life:
Reading tablet | Price | Display | Battery life |
Kindle Paperwhite | $160 | 7-inch 300 ppi e-ink surface | Up to 12 weeks |
TCL Nxtpaper 11 Plus | $249 | 11.5-inch NXTPAPER 4.0 display | Up to 20 hours |
Kindle Scribe | $340 | 10.2-inch 300 ppi Paperwhite display | Up to 12 weeks |
iPad Mini (7th gen) | Starting astatine $490 | 8.3-inch Liquid Retina show (326 ppi) | Up to 10 hours |
Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids | $140 | 8-inch HD display, 1280 x 800 (189 ppi) | 10 hours |
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While each these reference tablets are awesome options, it yet comes down to a fewer questions. Do you want your tablet to beryllium conscionable for reading, aliases do you besides want it for different things for illustration streaming and web browsing? How large do you want nan tablet to be? How overmuch retention abstraction do you need, and really overmuch are you consenting to spend?
Here is simply a look astatine nan unsocial features of each of these reference tablets:
Choose this reference tablet... | If you want... |
Kindle Paperwhite | The champion wide option. This reference tablet has IPX8 h2o resistance, a 12-week artillery life, and adjustable lukewarm light. |
TCL Nxtpaper 11 Plus | An Android tablet pinch a unsocial e-ink surface technology. You tin move from reference mode to browsing nan web successful regular mode successful seconds. |
Kindle Scribe | An e-reader that doubles arsenic a note-taker pinch an outstanding artillery life and an included pen. It's moreover compatible pinch Microsoft Word. |
iPad Mini (7th gen) | An Apple tablet that's powerful yet lightweight for reference pinch True Tone technology. The pixel-dense show besides makes for sharper text. |
Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids | A reference tablet pinch kid-friendly features for illustration an Amazon Kid+ subscription for 1 year. It's besides ace durable and comes pinch a two-year worry-free guarantee. |
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Whether you want to jot notes while reading, person a water-resistant tablet for poolside browsing, aliases put successful a kid-friendly option, we person you covered. ZDNET considered price, size, and typical features erstwhile making our last picks.
- Price: A decent e-reader tin scope from $100 to $500. You tin easy find an e-reader aliases tablet wrong your desired value scope that serves your reference purposes and offers ample memory, long-lasting artillery life, and a lightweight consciousness for eventual portability.
- Size: If you opt for an e-reader alternatively of beingness books, you want that instrumentality to beryllium lighter than those novels you're lugging around. We considered really overmuch these e-readers and tablets would measurement successful your book bag.
- Special features: Some e-readers are water-resistant for formation days aliases bathtime reads, while different tablets boast matte screens designed for easy reference connected a sunny day.
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The ZDNET squad chose each of nan tablets included successful this database based connected their capacity when tested successful nan existent world. When we trial tablets, we typically travel nan aforesaid regular for each 1 to spot which performs best.
- Display: We measurement nan brightness level successful different lighting conditions and measure colour accuracy.
We besides comparison nan display's capacity pinch what nan shaper promised, trial nan screen's responsiveness to touch, and measure nan capacity of immoderate other features, for illustration a manufacturer's stylus.
Performance: For real-world capacity metrics, our reviewers measurement really quickly nan tablet reacts to input, measure crippled capacity and framework rates, trial really nan tablet handles having aggregate apps moving simultaneously, measurement nan clip it takes to motorboat apps, and moreover measure nan tablet's somesthesia during intensive tasks.
- Battery life: We trial different scenarios for artillery life, including measuring really agelong nan artillery lasts while streaming, web browsing, utilizing productivity apps, and playing games.
- Camera and audio: For cameras, we measure features for illustration resolution, aperture, low-light performance, autofocus accuracy, move range, colour accuracy, image quality, sharpness, and video quality. For audio, we look astatine nan sound value and wide listening experience, including audio clarity astatine different volumes, stereo separation of near and correct audio channels, maximum measurement level successful various environments, and if location is perceived distortion.
For a deeper look into our testing process, cheque retired our broad tablet testing methodology.
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The mean size book is 6 by 9 inches, truthful tablets that person a 7 to 10-inch surface are astir nan aforesaid arsenic picking up and reference an existent book. However, please salary attraction to really overmuch a tablet weighs since you don't want it to beryllium excessively dense for its size.
Also: The champion mini tablets you tin buy
You tin besides trial retired what useful for you by visiting a section electronics retailer aliases bookstore.
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If you're superior astir reading, getting a Kindle complete your mean tablet is astir apt your champion stake since they travel pinch reading-specific features for illustration adjustable lukewarm light, waterproof designs, and page-turn buttons without nan distraction of internet-based apps.
Also: Which Kindle e-reader is correct for you? The apical models compared
However, if you want an all-in-one type tablet, you tin opt for a tablet for illustration nan iPad Mini aliases nan Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.4 for browsing nan web, streaming videos, taking photos, and reference books.
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Like each things, doing thing excessively overmuch aliases excessively agelong is ne'er good. If you want to usage a tablet for reading, beryllium judge to return predominant breaks to springiness your eyes a remainder from nan screen. It's besides a bully thought to put successful a brace of blue ray blocking glasses if you scheme to publication connected a tablet astatine night.
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It depends connected what you're looking for. A Kobo has galore options and a user-friendly interface, but we for illustration Kindle readers for its portability, performance, and artillery life. However, depending connected your preferences, a Kobo could fresh your needs amended than a Kindle.
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Other reference tablets we've tested
Tablets Reviewed & Compared
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