There was a time when the Kindle line set an example for other e-readers, but looking at Amazon’s new 2024 Kindles, I’m sure those days are over. It now appears that Amazon is doing just enough to keep up with Kobo and this is especially true for the new Colorsoft Kindle.
The first ever color Kindle won’t arrive in Australia (where I’m based) until 2025 – date and price to be confirmed – so I haven’t even seen it yet, but I’m going by what my American colleagues have said at this subject. I’m not convinced it should cost as much as $279.99 / £269.99 (around AU$420).
In comparison, Kobo’s two 2024 color e-readers – the Libra Color and Clara Color – are more affordable, with the former actually offering much better value for money. Oh, and they’re both repairable too, which none of the new Kindles are as far as I know.
Show me the features
There were rumors (via Good eReader) that Amazon’s first color Kindle would support the stylus and might adopt the new E Ink Gallery 3 screen technology, which promised better saturation than the E Ink Kaleido 3 displays current ones used in other e-readers, including the Kobo Libra. Color and Clara Color.
As we now know, neither of these claims is true. The Colorsoft Kindle uses the Kaleido 3 panel and there are no writing features. While it shares the same screen size as the Libra Color (7 inches) and the same amount of internal storage (32GB), it lacks its Kobo counterpart’s ergonomic build as well as stylus support. Both also offer Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity, but the Kindle Colorsoft lets you charge wirelessly.
However, given how tricky wireless charging was to use on the 2021 Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, I’m not sure this feature alone should explain the higher price compared to the $219.99/199 £.99 / AU$359.95 from Libra Color.
I’m still not convinced
Without the asymmetrical thickness and page turn buttons, the Colorsoft instead appears to be in direct competition with the Kobo Clara Color, which costs $149.99 / £139.99 / AU$259.95. This price, however, is for a 6-inch e-reader using the same screen technology and with just 16GB of built-in storage.
Despite the color screen, the Clara Color is cheaper than the Kindle Paperwhite 2024 ($159.99 / £159.99 / AU$299) which, however, now sports a 7-inch E Ink Carta 1300 display. I’m really looking forward to seeing this display in action on the new Paperwhite, as I loved it on the Kobo Clara BW. It turned out not only did the pages turn faster, but I called it the best display on any monochrome e-reader to date in my Kobo Clara BW review. If Amazon managed to optimize it well for its new 7-inch e-reader, I could justify purchasing the Paperwhite 2024, but I struggle with the Colorsoft compared to the competition.
Even though the entire Kindle line (except the Scribe) really needed a facelift, I’m not entirely convinced by the new versions. That said, I haven’t seen – or tried – any of them in person yet and I’ll be happy to be corrected when I’ve done the usual in-depth testing I do for e-readers. Until then, if you need me to recommend e-readers, I’d probably say go for a Kobo.
Also, Amazon, where the hell is an updated Kindle Oasis? She was too good a reader to have been killed!