Accessibility for Kindle e-readers

Kindle e-readers now come with new and improved accessibility features so that many more customers can enjoy their books.

  • Introducing VoiceView, our new screen reader for the blind and visually impaired
  • User preferences, including ability to adjust reading speed and volume
  • Earcon sounds to provide quick audible feedback

Supported Kindle E-readers
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Viewing accessibility features on a Kindle e-reader

Blind and Visually Impaired

VoiceView screen reader

Our new screen reader, VoiceView, provides spoken feedback to describe the actions that take place on your screen.

VoiceView activates on the all-new Kindle E-reader when a Bluetooth audio device is connected using an accessible gesture on any screen, including during device setup. (Go to "Kindle VoiceView over Bluetooth Setup Instructions" below "Reading on Kindle" section)

The Kindle Audio Adapter activates VoiceView on the Kindle Paperwhite E-reader when plugged into the Micro-USB port. Just plug your headphones or speakers into the audio jack on the Kindle Audio Adapter to use your e-reader with an audio interface.

Touch exploration

Explore content and navigate your Kindle e-reader using VoiceView’s accessibility gestures. You can navigate item-by-item as well as by touch.

Adjustable reading speed

Control how fast VoiceView speaks. The rate at which VoiceView feedback is spoken can be set to one of eight different speeds of your choice.

VoiceView tutorial

The VoiceView tutorial helps you master operating your Kindle e-reader.

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Other features

Larger font sizes & user-requested OpenDyslexic font

Read easily by increasing the font size of book content on your Kindle e-reader. You can choose from eight font sizes as well as eight font faces including OpenDyslexic.

Spacing, margins, font, and brightness

Your Kindle also offers the ability to adjust line spacing and margins to format the text in a fashion that is comfortable to read. Unlike tablets, there is no screen glare, even in bright sunlight. Select Kindle e-readers have a built-in light with adjustable brightness to increase contrast and enable reading in the dark.

 Kindle font selection screen
Reading on Kindle

Fire tablets, the Kindle Reading App for iOS/Android, and the Kindle for PC offer accessibility features that enable you to:

  • Read aloud over 6 million titles available in the Kindle Store using screen reading technology.
  • Navigate within your library or within a book, with consistent title, menu and button names.
  • Read character-by-character, word-by-word, or continuously, as well as move forward or backward in the text (not available for Kindle for PC).
  • Search for a book within your library or search within your book and navigate to specific locations.
  • Look up words in the dictionary and Wikipedia (not available for Kindle for PC).
  • Customize the reading experience including changing the font, text size, background color, margin, and brightness.
  • On the Kindle Reading App for iOS also use accessibility features like Zoom, Assistive Touch, and Stereo to Mono, as well as peripheral braille displays.
  • The Kindle store property “Screen Reader: Supported” on the e-book product page details indicates that an e-book title is supported by many popular screen readers: VoiceView on Fire Tablets and Kindle E-readers, VoiceOver on iOS, TalkBack on Android, and NVDA on Windows. Functionality may vary across titles and screen readers. If you find a title is not working as you would expect with your screen reader of choice, please let us know. On Windows, only books purchased and downloaded using Kindle for PC version 1.19 or higher are supported. Please contact customer service to request updates for books purchased and downloaded with previous versions.

Kindle Reading App for iOS

> Download Kindle for iPad
> Download Kindle for iPhone
> Visit help

Kindle for PC

> Download now
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Other Products

Learn about accessibility features on other products:

Feedback

We want to hear about your experience using accessibility tools with Kindle products. Please email us at kindle-accessibility@amazon.com to provide feedback.

Kindle VoiceView over Bluetooth Setup Instructions

Please read all instructions before starting setup, then reference them as needed. There will be no audio announcement or feedback until the last step.

  1. Press the Power button once to turn on your Kindle. The Power button is located on the bottom of the device next to the Micro-USB/power port.
  2. Wait 45 seconds.
  3. Put your Bluetooth audio device into pairing mode.
  4. Press and hold the Power button for 7 seconds.
  5. Hold two fingers spaced apart on the screen for 1 second, then wait up to 2 minutes to hear audio.
  6. When you hear audio from your Bluetooth device, hold two fingers spaced apart on the screen.

Troubleshooting: If you do not hear audio from your Bluetooth device within 2 minutes of completing step 5, confirm your Bluetooth audio device is in pairing mode and repeat steps 4 and 5.

Once your audio device is connected and VoiceView is enabled for the first time, the VoiceView tutorial will begin. You will also be prompted to complete setup, including connecting to a wireless network and registering your Kindle.