Kindle Update v5.7.2 Adds Open Dyslexic Font, New Home Page (Screenshots)
Amazon is rolling out a major software update for its ereaders this week.
The v5.7.2 update is available for all current models, including the basic Kindle, the Voyage, and all the latter two Paperwhites. The update adds a new optional home screen layout, a new Open Dyslexic font, improved book recommendations, a tweaked sharing menu, and a new quick actions menu.
The update is going to be rolled out to Kindle owners over the next month, but you can also go download it manually. I did, and I have a few screenshots to share.
First up is the home screen. You now have the option of a more stylized home screen with book recommendation on the bottom, your most recently opened books in the upper left, and a list of reading lists on the right. The reading lists draws on your Amazon wishlist, as well as any list you may have created on Goodreads.
Here’s the new home screen option, along with the other two options:
As you can see, the menu bar across the top has changed. It now features a quick action menu icon third from the left, and a search bar.
That quick action menu lets you adjust the frontlight, enable airplane mode, sync your Kindle, or open the settings menu:
And last but not least, Amazon has also added a new dyslexic font as your 8th font choice.
This font is intended to help those with reading disabilities by emphasizing parts of each character and so make the characters easier to recognize. There is some dispute among experts whether this helps or not, but as you can see the font does look distinctive.
The menu inside the book looks a little different from before, and it also offers a new browse option I haven’t seen before. (Is it new? Edit: No.)
OverDrive offers a similar font in its reading app, and you can also download a open dyslexic font for free and use it with your preferred reading app.
The update can be found on the software update pages on the Amazon website.
image by gminguzzi
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