What was the first Kindle model to feature a built-in light?

The Kindle Paperwhite was the first Kindle model to feature a built-in light.

Amazon announced the first-generation Paperwhite in September 2012 and released it on October 1. Its six-inch E Ink display used four front-facing LEDs to illuminate the screen, allowing readers to read in dim conditions without an external lamp. The light level could be adjusted manually.

Earlier Kindles, including the Kindle 3, could be used with cases that contained a pull-out reading light, but those lights were accessories rather than part of the reader itself. That distinction is why the Paperwhite—not the Kindle 3—is the canonical answer.

The Kindle Voyage, released in 2014, also had a built-in front light and added an adaptive light sensor that automatically adjusted brightness. It was therefore more advanced, but it came after the Paperwhite. The Paperwhite name refers to the screen’s high-contrast appearance, not to a backlight: E Ink screens are front-lit so light shines across the display rather than through it.