I just switched from a first generation paperwhite to a kobo clara 2e. My kid has a last generation paperwhite so I can compare.

What I like: the small format, 6" is better than 7 imo. It's not Amazon. It works with overdrive (at least in Canada) so I can borrow books from library.

What I don't like: it doesn't have a "send to kindle by email" equivalent, that I was heavily relying on. Books sent by usb don't sync between devices, and have some quirks (they seem to work slower, you can't highlight across pages). Calibre web could give you that but in practice it is too buggy to be a sustainable option. It's overall not as polished as a kindle

Overall I'm ok with the move, it works sufficiently well, and I'm especially glad to reduce the cash I send to Amazon