Amazon Kindle Bugs Fixed with a New Software Update?

Today, Amazon released an update for the 10th and 11th-generation Kindle e-readers. This includes the basic Kindle, Kindle Paperwhite, and Paperwhite Signature Edition, but the Scribe did not get an update today. The 5.16.21 software update states that it solves bugs and software enhancements, which is par the course. Amazon hardly ever discloses what they have fixed, but hopefully, all of the glitches, crashes and general chaos that the previous update (5.16.10.0.1) caused.

The previous update caused millions of Kindle e-readers to experience several bugs. Battery life took a notable hit; users generally had to charge their devices every few days instead of weeks. Often, the Kindle became unresponsive and had to be rebooted to work, and even custom fonts reverted to the default Bookerly instead of the one you wanted. The issues with the Kindle’s firmware are just the tip of the iceberg. Kindle Unlimited titles are vanishing from libraries, and sideloaded books are being deleted when in Airplane mode for extended periods. Opening a book now takes twice as long, and Voice View’s functionality is erratic, starting and stopping at random.

It is hard to test if the update that just dropped today for the Kindle solves any or all of these issues. Generally, Amazon does not push out software updates simultaneously but does so in a staggered release. If you want to update your Kindle manually, head over to the Kindle update page, choose your model, download the update, and copy the file to your Kindle via the USB cable and reboot.

Please comment below if you installed the update, and let me know if new bugs have appeared or if existing ones have been fixed.

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.