Awesome news, digital readers. Amazon on Tuesday announced it has updated its Kindle reading apps for iOS and Android with a new feature that lets you instantly switch between reading a book and listening to the companion audiobook from Audible.
This means you can start reading a book while you're at home and switch to listening on your commute. Even better, you can now do this with a single tap, without leaving the book.
The new feature is an extension of Amazon's Whispersync for Voice service. In the past, you could start reading on your Kindle or a Kindle app, and pick up listening with the Audible app on your phone or tablet — but you had to switch apps. Now, the audio is integrated right into the book so you don't have to leave the Kindle app to get to the Audible version.
"We're working hard to help customers find more moments each day to enjoy a great book," Amazon Kindle Senior Vice President Russ Grandinetti said in a statement. "Integrating professional narration into our Kindle apps means you never have to put down a favorite book — start reading at home, get in the car and simply tap a button to continue listening without losing your place."
At this point, professional narration is available for more than 45,000 Kindle books, including best-sellers across genres. You can easily add a professional narration to your Kindle books using Amazon's Matchmaker tool, which scans your library to find out which books have a companion version from Audible, which Amazon purchased in 2008.
Sadly, this won't come for free. Audio upgrades start at $1, but bestsellers like the Outlander series and The Hunger Games series will set you back at least $4.
"We continue to hear from a growing number of Whispersync for Voice converts who tell us the innovation has profoundly changed the way they read — in fact, switching back and forth between reading and listening has become their preferred way of experiencing stories," Audible founder and CEO Donald Katz said in a statement. "And the feature has gotten easier and easier to use."
The updated Kindle app is available for download from Apple's App Store, Amazon's Appstore for Android, and Google Play.