Fall Asleep Reading On Your Side With This Hands Free Kindle Stand

I solved one of the most annoying bedtime reading problems, and now I actually look forward to falling asleep with a book.

Every night before bed, my wife and I read on our Kindle Paperwhites.

She's got a case on hers. I run mine bare, no case, like a heathen. We both like to read until we basically pass out. It's our routine.

The problem is that for the longest time, we were both just lying there in bed, holding our Kindles up with our hands.

And that sounds fine until you try to actually fall asleep like that.

Hands get tired. Wrists get sore. You shift a little, the Kindle slips, you lose your spot, or it clonks you in the face. Not exactly the relaxing bedtime vibe I was going for.

We even bought those little Bluetooth page turn remotes (affiliate link to the one we use here) so we wouldn't have to tap the screen. Those are great, but we still had to hold the Kindle itself. So now I had a fancy page turn remote and the same old problem.

Why All The Existing Kindle Holders Kind Of Suck In Bed

Once I realized this was stupid and avoidable, I did the usual thing and went hunting online for a solution.

There are a bunch of Kindle and tablet stands out there, but almost all of them are designed for sitting up in bed, laying on your back, or using a desk or tray.

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None of that helps me when I want to lay on my side, get completely under the blanket, and slowly drift off with a book.

I saw those big squishy pillow stands with a wide base, heavy desktop-style stands with a big triangle footprint, and huge articulating arms that clamp onto the bed or stand on the floor.

Now, some of those would technically work. Especially the giant robot arm ones. But honestly, they look ridiculous.

What happens when you're not reading? You just have this giant metal arm lurking next to your bed like the Cybertruck windshield wiper of e-readers. Overkill, in the way, and not something I want permanently attached to my nightstand.

What I Actually Wanted

I finally stopped looking for a pre-made answer and started thinking about what I actually needed.

For me, the perfect setup looks like this: I am laying on my side, head on the pillow. My hands are completely under the blanket. The Kindle is hovering right in front of my face at the exact angle my eyes want. I can tap the remote to turn the page without moving anything else. If I fall asleep, nothing falls over, nothing crashes to the floor, nothing wakes me back up.

I also wanted it to be stable but not huge, adjustable because sometimes you have one pillow and sometimes two and your head angle changes, reversible so you can use it on your left side or right side, and compact so my wife and I can both use one, side by side, facing opposite directions.

Designing A Stand Just For Side Reading

So I did what I always end up doing.

I designed my own.

This is the Kindle Bed Holder, a side reading stand for the Kindle Paperwhite that is built specifically for reading on your side in bed, completely hands free.

Instead of some giant base that eats up half the mattress, this stand has a compact footprint that you can set on the mattress or even tuck slightly under your pillow for extra stability. Each stand is 3D printed from durable PLA plastic that holds up to nightly use without getting wobbly or loose.

The real magic, though, is in the angle adjustment.

I wanted the Kindle to be aligned exactly with my eyes, not "close enough." So the stand is adjustable to match different pillow situations and head angles. Whether your head is at roughly 20 degrees with one flat pillow or closer to 70 degrees with a big stacked setup, you can dial in the position so the screen is right in your natural line of sight.

No craning your neck. No twisting your wrist. Just look straight ahead and read.

And if you want to switch from your left side to your right side? Just rotate the whole thing 180 degrees. The design is symmetrical, so it works perfectly either way.

Works With Or Without A Case (And With Page Turn Remotes)

In our house, we immediately had two use cases: my wife with her cased Kindle and me with my bare Kindle.

So I built two versions of the holder.

One fits a Kindle in a case. The other fits a bare Kindle snugly without it wobbling around. When you order, just pick the version that matches how you use your Kindle. If you've got a case on it, grab the cased version. If you run it naked like me, grab the bare version.

I also made sure it works with those little page turn remotes. If you use one of those, the stand gives you all the structure and support, and the remote lets you flip pages without lifting a finger.

My nightly routine now looks like this: get in bed, settle in on my side, slide the stand into position, pop the Kindle into the holder, grab the remote, start reading, and eventually fall asleep.

Later, I'll usually wake up just enough to take the Kindle out of the stand, set it back on the nightstand, and then crash for real. No dropped device. No sore wrist. No "where did my place go."

Yes, We Actually Use It Every Night

I always say this, but it matters: we actually use this stuff.

My wife and I both use these stands every single night. It has gotten to the point where if I fall asleep without reading, it basically means I was wiped from hockey or something, because normally this is my favorite way to wind down.

Sometimes we're both lying on our sides, facing the middle of the bed, each with our own stand in the same spot in between our two pillows, just pointed opposite ways. The stands take up so little space that they play nicely together.

If You Love Falling Asleep While Reading, This Is For You

If you are like me and you love to fall asleep while reading, prefer laying on your side instead of your back, and are tired of holding your Kindle up until your hand goes numb, then this side reading stand for the Kindle Paperwhite is probably exactly what you've been wanting without quite knowing how to search for it.

It holds your Kindle where you need it, keeps your hands warm under the blanket, plays nice with page turn remotes, and quietly does its job while you drift off.

No giant arm. No ugly contraption bolted to the bed. Just a simple stand that solves a very specific, very real problem.

If you're tired of choosing between comfortable hands and a good book, this stand finally lets you have both. Check out the Kindle Bed Holder / Side Reading Stand for Kindle Paperwhite on the shop and get your hands back under the blanket where they belong.