Five years ago, I bought a Kindle Paperwhite on a whim. During those 5 years, it has become one of my most cherished tech devices, rivaling only my iPhone or my AirPods.
It’s nothing fancy. I haven’t felt the need to upgrade to a newer model. It does one thing and does it well. It lets me read books anytime, anywhere, without hurting my wrists or triggering my OCD when it sits unevenly in my hand like actual books tend to do.
For as long as I’ve owned it, there’s been only one complaint I’ve ever had with it – the battery life.
There’s a funny thing with battery life. Make it too short, and you are constantly worrying about charging a device. Make it too long, and you’ll notice you’re in the same boat because you forget to charge it. That’s my problem with the Kindle. The battery life is so good, I never think to charge it, so whenever I pick it up, it’s telling me the battery’s about to die.
I recently picked up an Anker wireless charging pad for my iPhone X so that I could mindlessly throw my phone behind me to charge on those nights I want to use my phone late into the wee hours. That charger happens to sit right next to where I also mindlessly throw my Kindle before bed.
The Kindle seems like the perfect device for wireless charging,. Surprisingly, Amazon hasn’t added it to any Kindle on their line, but it turns out I can.
For $13, I picked up a Qi wireless charger receiver, plugged it into my Paperwhite, and plopped my case back on it. (For those wondering, you’ll want the “Micro USB narrow-side” variant). I wasn’t sure if it would work through my case, but sure enough, it worked!
For $13, my 5-year-old Kindle now has wireless charging, and I couldn’t be happier.
According to Andrea 
What case do you have? Is it leather or plastic on the back?
Hi Jesse,
The case I used is linked to in my post. It’s a faux leather on the back.
appreciate info. My Kobo Arc was my wonderful reader et al and then charging port broke. Contact with Kobo help didn’t help. Senior and not techhy but will viist Staples, etc. to see if wireless charger would work. But figured out how to add ‘Overdrive’ library free borrowing to my Iphone and now use that and less hand numbness too. Thanks again & Merry christmas!
Hi Chris,
Thanks for stopping by. Overdrive is fantastic. I appreciate being able to use it on my phone as well when I’m without my Kindle! It’s a great option for those who prefer phones or don’t have an e-reader. Plus who doesn’t love free books!
-Andrea
Boom! This is exactly what I was looking for, and for exactly the same reason, thank you!
Your description is missing one important key word though, regarding which variant to get. Do I want micro usb, narrow side up or narrow side down?
Hi Peter,
The one I linked to above in this post, narrow side up, is the one you want.
Thanks for stopping by!
Thank you so much! I found the charging cradle makes it easier at night to just plop it in versus aligning it.
This is on the new 10th generation Paperwhite for those wondering.
Hi Stephanie! I’m so glad you found it helpful. I have a mix of wireless chargers around my house as I also found that docks or charging pads work better in some cases. Thankfully there are plenty of options to choose from.
Thanks for stopping by!
Will this work for Kindle 8?
I can’t see why it wouldn’t, but I also don’t have a Kindle 8 to test, so maybe browse some reviews first.
Hey, I know this is old now but just did this and has made life a lot easier, thank you for the great article! A shame Amazon has not caught on this and made it a included thing for the latest Kindle, or usb type c but your work around has saved me time
I’m also surprised Amazon hasn’t added this to the Kindle yet, but for now, this is an easy workaround that I still enjoy the benefits of every time I use my Kindle. I’m glad you found it useful as well. Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks for the article. I just got a Paperwhite for my son, who has a tendency to kill his device charging ports, and I decided I wanted to do this. The link for your case is dead. Is there anything special about it. I was thinking about one of these: https://smile.amazon.com/Fintie-Slimshell-Case-Kindle-Paperwhite/dp/B01M8LKA87/ref=sr_1_3?_encoding=UTF8&dchild=1&keywords=kindle%2Bpaperwhite%2B2013%2Bcase&qid=1613185418&sr=8-3&th=1
Hi Matthew,
Thanks for stopping by. There’s nothing special about my case. It’s just the only one I have experience with, so I didn’t want to speak for whether others would work. What you’ve linked to looks similar to my case which you can see in the photo on this post.
-Andrea
Turns out it worked perfectly! Thanks for the advice!
Fantastic!