Amazon has just released a new firmware update for the 7th generation Kindle to the 11th generation Kindle Paperwhite and the Signature edition. The new update is version 5.16.2.1, and it should be ready to download and install by visiting the settings menu and checking for an update. If unavailable in your region, it should be pushed out sometime in the next few weeks.
The change log for the update says, “performance improvements, bug fixes, and other general enhancements.” However, many people who looked at the firmware files found some exciting things. Various Kindle Scribe features, such as drawing, notebook handling, and sticky notes, are included in the update. However, these features are turned off and are inactive.
Why did Amazon include almost all the unique Scribe features on the Kindle Paperwhites? This is so Amazon does not have to have a separate code base for their e-readers and the Kindle Scribe. Whenever they release an update for one model, they can update all of them at once. Ever since the Scribe was released, it has received 3-4 updates, meant to stabilize existing features and introduce bug fixes and enhancements. During this time, no other Kindle was updated, this should all change going forward.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.