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    Amazon releases software update for $79 Kindle with improved reading font, other additions

    Amazon releases software update for $79 Kindle with improved reading font, other additions

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    Amazon has released a software update for its $79 Kindle that includes an improved reading font among other features.

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    Amazon has released a software update for its base-model $79 Kindle that includes an improved reading font with higher contrast and clarity. We didn't notice any obvious legibility issues when we reviewed the e-reader last year, but the company says this latest font offers the same "paper-like reading experience" that you'll find on its other E Ink-based hardware.

    Aside from the updated typeface, version 4.1.0 of the Kindle software includes parental controls that let you restrict access to the device's web browser (which we recommend avoiding altogether, really) along with your archived items and the Kindle Store. Further, the $79 model is now compatible with books featuring "complex" layouts and those utilizing Amazon's Kindle Format 8. If that's not enough, the refreshed software also packs in support for children's books with Kindle Text Pop-up and comic books that offer panel-by-panel reading — two types of content set to arrive in the store "over the next few weeks." That doesn't even cover all of it, so hit the source below for the full release notes and update file.