Amazon improves Kindle accessibility with new text spacing adjustments
Andrew Liszewski is a senior reporter who’s been covering and reviewing the latest gadgets and tech since 2006, but has loved all things electronic since he was a kid.
Amazon released a new software update for several recent Kindle models last week. The company’s release notes only mention “performance improvements, bug fixes, and other general enhancements,” but the update includes notable upgrades when it comes to adjusting text and line spacing, improving legibility and accessibility for many users, as spotted by The eBook Reader.
The 5.18.3 software update currently supports the Kindle Scribes, Kindle Colorsoft, and 11th and 12th generation versions of the basic Kindle and Paperwhite models. Amazon is slowly rolling it out through the Kindle’s automatic updates system, but if you don’t want to wait, you can download the specific update file for your e-reader, copy it over to your device, and perform a manual update using the instructions Amazon has provided.
Previously, these Kindles only offered three basic line spacing options found under the “Layout” section, including options for adjusting the size of margins. The new spacing options are now found by selecting the button for the “Font” section, which takes you to a dedicated page. There, you will now find four size options for adjusting line spacing, paragraph spacing, word spacing, and even character spacing, plus the option to reset them all to default settings.
Customizing the text and line spacing on Kindles has long lagged behind the options offered by some of Amazon’s competitors in the e-reader space. However, while the latest generation Kobo devices still offer more size adjustment options for font size, line spacing, and margins, they don’t offer specific controls for paragraph, word, and character spacing. With the latest software update, these recent Kindle models could be a better option for users with a visual impairment, or those dealing with dyslexia.
