If there's one message Amazon's new Kindle Scribes send, it's that the company finally understands that people use its larger e-reader for more than just reading. The idea that people might want to use the Scribe for work is all over the new elements of Amazon's new lineup. Alongside redesigning the display architecture and introducing color E Ink, the company has also made big changes to the Scribe's software that suggest a legitimate new direction for the tablet.
What Amazon is adding to the Kindle Scribe
A new display stack, connections to Alexa+, and more
Amazon's updates to the Kindle Scribe, transform what was a singular device in the Kindle lineup to a family of devices at different price points and with different hardware features. There's the $430 Kindle Scribe Without Front Light (a feature that was standard on past Scribes), the $500 Kindle Scribe, and the $630 Kindle Scribe Colorsoft. All three new tablets feature a redesigned display stack that makes the Scribe ever so slightly thinner and lighter, and importantly, brings the actual E Ink display (whether it's color or not) closer to the textured front glass of the device.
Amazon's Kindle Scribe Without Front Light doesn't ship until 2026.
Other improvements, like rearranged mini-LEDs on the Scribes with backlights, and a more powerful quad-core chip, make the whole thing look better while you're reading, and run faster when you're taking notes and opening files. All of those improvements weren't just made to deliver the same plain notebooks and home screen full of books. They also power an "all-new Home" that makes every part of the Kindle Scribe more functional than before, whether it's through new integrations with Microsoft OneNote or Amazon's big foray into generative AI, Alexa+.
A Home screen for doing, not buying
The Kindle Scribe's new Home lets you take notes, too
The Kindle Scribe's home screen, or Home, as it's technically called in the tablet's menu, used to be a larger version of what you got on other Kindles. There's a row of notebooks, files, and books you opened recently, and then displays rows and rows of recommended comics and books you might like, and Amazon would of course enjoy you buying. It's not an unreasonable setup for a device that's technically an e-reader, and that Amazon likely sells for a loss, but it's also not great if you primarily use the Kindle Scribe for work. Like displaying ads on the lock screen, it makes a device that comes in at a premium price feel a bit cheap.
They also suggest that Amazon views the larger tablet as more of a work tool than ever before.
Amazon's new Home inverts those priorities. Half of the screen is devoted to recently opened files and a new Quick Notes system for quickly taking notes directly from the home screen. The company also says the new Workspace tab (which replaces Notebooks in the new Kindle Scribe software) will let you organize notes, files, and books in one place, a major departure from the siloed setup of existing Kindle Scribes. Both of these changes make the idea of using your Scribe primarily for taking notes more practical. They also suggest that Amazon views the larger tablet as more of a work tool than ever before.
If some of those features trickle down to existing Kindle Scribes, that new stance could retroactively apply to the whole lineup. More than just new display technology, this makes me hopeful for the future of Amazon's device. Past Kindles have been serviceable -- good enough to use for multiple years in a row, not because what you use them for is changing, but because displaying eBooks isn't that hard. These new Scribes suggest you won't need to upgrade because they've gotten more functional, and they might finally do everything I and other discerning note-takers need. Amazon has the resources to throw at both hardware and software, and it finally seems like it's doing it.
Amazon's making the Kindle Scribe the tablet it should have always been
This is one clear benefit of Panos Panay, Amazon's current head of Devices & Services
There's still no release date for the new Kindle Scribes or confirmation that their new software will come to older devices. They'll have to be put through their paces in a review to know if they change the calculus or perspective reMarkable or Supernote buyers, but it certainly seems like they might.
Kindle Scribe Colorsoft
- Storage
- 32GB, 64GB
- Brand
- Amazon
- Screen Size
- 11-inch glare-free display
- Resolution
- 150ppi
Amazon's Kindle Scribe Colorsoft is an 11-inch note-taking tablet and e-reader with a color display, faster quad-core processor, and new AI-powered productivity features.
A big E Ink tablet is still niche, but it seems clear that Amazon is taking the category seriously now, which is only a good thing. While we wait for the release of the new Kindle Scribes, there are plenty of other devices to consider. The reMarkable Paper Pro Move makes for a great portable note-taking tool and comes in at a similar price as Amazon's devices. Whatever E Ink tablet you choose, you'll also want to consider how you'll get your writing off your device, which means handwriting conversion is worth exploring.