# Paperwhite Light not always coming on?



## dordale (Nov 24, 2013)

Just wondering if anyone else has seen this...my PW2's light doesn't always come on when I open my smart cover--(it's a generic smart cover, not the amazon one).  About once in every five or ten times when I open the case, the reader turns on, but the light doesn't.  If I shut the PW off and turn it back on using the switch, the light will come on.  Also using the slider to adjust the brightness of the light either up or down turns the light on.  I don't know if it's something I should be concerned about since so far I've when it happens I've always easily been able to get the light to come on.  Also, I'm a little suspicious it might have something to do with the no-name smart cover I'm using.  

I also have an Amazon smart cover--I'm going to switch covers to see if that helps.  But, I really do like the no-name cover I have.  Like the design on it and the fact that it's much lighter than the Amazon branded cover.


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## readingril (Oct 29, 2010)

Very rarely this happens with my 'official' Amazon cover, too. The first time I panicked, since then I've just seen it as an annoyance.


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## stevene9 (Nov 9, 2008)

Happens once every 2 or 3 months with my official PW cover. I usually just close it and open it again and it works. If that doesn't work I go to the light bulb symbol and change the level by one - that always gets it back on.

Steve


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## dordale (Nov 24, 2013)

Thanks for the replies--it's good to know that it happens to others and doesn't mean that my Kindle is in imminent danger of failing 

I've switched to the official Amazon case to see if that changes the problem.  Even though I knew the case was quite a bit heavier, I was surprised at how noticeable the extra weight was to me.  Even if using the official case helps my "no light" problem, I'm not sure if I'll keep using it.  I really like my non-Amazon case a lot and turning the Kindle off and then back on to get the light working again isn't that big of an inconvenience.


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## mlm525 (Jan 7, 2010)

This has happened to me occasionally too with the PW1 and the Amazon cover.  I have only needed to either close the cover and open again or to adjust the brightness to correct.  Just a minor hiccup.


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## telracs (Jul 12, 2009)

oddly enough, it happened this morning and i thought of this thread.  i think that if the cover slips a bit and isn't make clear contact, the PW doesn't come on when opened.  i just close it and reopen and viola.


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## kansaskyle (Sep 14, 2010)

I've seen this without the Amazon cover.  I just did a reset (i.e., held down the power button for about 20 seconds), and that cleared it up.


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## JuliMonroe (Apr 25, 2011)

telracs said:


> oddly enough, it happened this morning and i thought of this thread. i think that if the cover slips a bit and isn't make clear contact, the PW doesn't come on when opened. i just close it and reopen and viola.


I think you meant "voila." Unless your Kindle is particularly musical.


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## telracs (Jul 12, 2009)

JuliMonroe said:


> I think you meant "voila." Unless your Kindle is particularly musical.


it was a test to see how many people would catch it and comment on it.
and my whole life is a musical.


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## dordale (Nov 24, 2013)

Hasn't happened since I put my PW back in the Amazon cover.  Only been two days, though.  I was getting it pretty frequently with the non-Amazon cover so this will be a good test.  Even if the light works better with the Amazon case, I still may switch back to the non-Amazon one, as I really like the fact that it's so much lighter.  I wish the PW had a way to turn off the "smart" function like my iPad does.  If it did, I'd use my non-Amazon cover without the "smart" feature and turn the PW on and off with the switch.


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

JuliMonroe said:


> I think you meant "voila." Unless your Kindle is particularly musical.





telracs said:


> it was a test to see how many people would catch it and comment on it.
> and my whole life is a musical.


*giggle* I e-mailed her yesterday within minutes of her posting and she told me she knew exactly what she typed. We are now ending every conversation with the name of some instrument. I'm amazed it took that long for someone to comment, Juli!

My DH has had a PW1 since they were first released, it's in an Amazon cover, and he has been fortunate enough to never have a problem with the light coming on or turning off. I'm glad it's an easy fix if it does happen.


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## JuliMonroe (Apr 25, 2011)

telracs said:


> it was a test to see how many people would catch it and comment on it.
> and my whole life is a musical.


Guess I just proved my copy editing skills.


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## readingril (Oct 29, 2010)

Good to know I'm not the only one that misspells that word deliberately.


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## SandyLu562 (May 8, 2010)

This happens all the time to me; my PW1 is in an unofficial Kindle cover sold by Amazon <giggles>
Usually just opening and closing the cover will get the light to come on. If not, swiping to turn on the Kindle as if to read and then touching at the top of the page for the little light bulb icon and adjusting the light will also turn on the light.

Getting a stubborn light to turn off is more difficult. I usually have to manually turn off my Kindle. I don't restart it any more after accidentally hitting "RESET"! They look so similar when I'm sleepy


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

SandyLu562 said:


> This happens all the time to me; my PW1 is in an unofficial Kindle cover sold by Amazon <giggles>
> Usually just opening and closing the cover will get the light to come on. If not, swiping to turn on the Kindle as if to read and then touching at the top of the page for the little light bulb icon and adjusting the light will also turn on the light.
> 
> Getting a stubborn light to turn off is more difficult. I usually have to manually turn off my Kindle. I don't restart it any more after accidentally hitting "RESET"! They look so similar when I'm sleepy


You know there's a control for the lighting when you tap near the top and bring up the menu. Any time my light hasn't turned on or off as expected, accessing that control has allowed me to fix it. Don't need to keep playing with the cover.


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## dordale (Nov 24, 2013)

Just thought I'd report back...switched back to the official Amazon PW cover, and haven't had a problem with the light not coming on since.  But, just yesterday, I decided to go back to my unofficial cover.  I really like the lighter weight of it, and figure I'll put up with the light not coming on every once in a while.  After all, it's easy to get it turned on--by adjusting the light slider or turning the PW off and back on.  One thing I'm still not sure of--with the unofficial cover, I have a feeling that my PW may be turning on and off in my purse once in a while, the cover doesn't stay closed as well as the official cover.  I'm going to pay more attention to how quickly my battery drains now, and then maybe transfer back to the official cover to compare.


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