Amazon Makes it Easier to Read its Fire Tablets at Night

A new feature called 'Blue Shade' lowers sleep-disrupting blue light.

Soon you'll be able to fall asleep with Amazon's Fire tablets and still get a restful night's sleep. Starting today, Amazon is rolling out a new "Blue Shade" feature that turns down blue light on its tablets' screens, making them more comfortable to read at night. And honestly, it's about time. Scientists have been saying for some time that the blue light emitted by our devices' screens wreaks havoc on our sleep habits (some are calling for similar night modes for phones). It's for that same reason that I can't even use a computer these days without installing something like Flux, which warms up screen colors at night. Amazon says you'll be able to tweak Blue Shade's color settings as you see fit, and it also lets you read at an "ultra-low" brightness level.

Comfortable night reading is one big advantage Amazon's Kindle e-reader still have over its tablets. While they sport lighting now, the effect is pretty subtle, and it doesn't emit blue light at all. But given that most people won't end up buying both an e-reader and a tablet, it makes sense for Amazon to try and offer a solution for Fire tablet users.

Additionally, Amazon is also bringing a kid-friendly browser to Fire tablets, and it's also giving parents more tools for controlling how their children use their slates. This holiday season, many kids will likely end up with a cheap $50 Fire tablet, or one of the more durable "Kids Edition" Fire slates, so Amazon's updates come just in time.