The lacking hyperlink in Amazon’s ereader lineup

Nicely, it lastly occurred. After years of ready and requests, Amazon debuted the $280 Kindle Colorsoft, its first ereader with a shade show. The corporate’s ereaders have dominated this area because the unique Kindle got here out 17 years in the past, however on this case, it appears like Amazon is enjoying catch-up. Coloration E Ink shows aren’t novel: we’ve examined and reviewed quite a few shade ereaders and E Ink tablets from Kobo, Boox and reMarkable in recent times. However Amazon is basically attempting to tug an Apple with the Colorsoft: with claims that shade E Ink expertise simply wasn’t ok to place right into a Kindle till now, Amazon’s promising the Colorsoft will get this implementation proper thanks partly to the customized tweaks it made to the show. And, unsurprisingly, Amazon’s able to cost you a premium for it. So is all of it it’s cracked as much as be? As you may suspect, the reply isn’t so simple as sure or no.

Display expertise and comparisons

Let’s get the tech particulars squared away first. The Kindle Colorsoft’s seven-inch display relies on E Ink Kaleido 3 expertise, however a consultant from the Kindle group defined to me that they developed a customized show stack for this system. Meaning they made fairly a number of modifications to the tech in an effort to obtain issues like higher-contrast pigments and improved speeds total. The Colorsoft’s customized oxide backplane makes use of 24 driving volts to maneuver pigments round extra rapidly and it helps these pigments seem with higher distinction. Nitride LEDs improve colours and brightness, and a customized coating in between the show’s layers helps focus gentle by way of every pigment so there’s much less shade mixing. A few of the identical tech helps make page-turns faster and supposedly reduces excessively noticeable display refreshing while you go from one shade web page to a different, or pinch-and-zoom on a picture.

That’s all to say that Amazon would really like you to consider that this E Ink Kaleido 3 display shouldn’t be like the opposite women on this area, and whereas I don’t doubt the Kindle group’s efforts, the variations usually are not as dramatic because the story would recommend. Till Kobo updates the Sage with shade, the closest competitor to the $280 Kindle Colorsoft is the $220 Kobo Libra Color (in dimension, platform and total expertise), so I did numerous side-by-side comparisons of the 2.

The largest distinction I noticed was that the Kobo’s display skews hotter than the Kindle’s; I kicked the brightness as much as the utmost and turned all heat/pure gentle settings all the way down to zero on each gadgets and the distinction was noticeable, no matter if the shows have been exhibiting shade photographs, black-and-white textual content or a mixture of the 2. This may recommend that the Kindle will present extra correct colours extra usually since there’s much less of a heat lean to its show.

However on the flip aspect, the Kindle display’s blue tint was simply as noticeable, significantly in low-light conditions (like a darkish workplace or a dimly lit front room). At max brightness with heat all the way down to zero, the Kindle’s display was borderline uncomfortable to learn in these environments — however all it took was a slight adjustment to heat degree 4 (out of 24) to get it to match the Kobo’s show in heat virtually precisely (a minimum of to my eyes). That made it extra comfy to stare at in darkish areas. I additionally in contrast the Colorsoft’s display to my private Kindle Paperwhite (earlier technology) and the blue skew was noticeable there too.

In the end, how a lot heat or cool gentle you like whereas studying is as much as private style. My preferences would lead me to regulate the heat on the Kindle to be a bit greater than zero, mimicking that of the Kobo. In an unscientific ballot of the Engadget employees, each in individual and with system pictures, everyone most popular the display on the Kobo. I feel the slight added heat in Kobo’s display makes colours seem a bit extra saturated and extra inviting total. It additionally will get near mimicking the look of precise bodily pages (as a lot as one among these gadgets might, a minimum of), and that’s the expertise I’m going for once I learn just about something. However I might perceive why some hardcore comedian followers would wish to begin off with essentially the most color-accurate baseline as doable, after which regulate from there to suit their preferences.

Along with adjusting the nice and cozy gentle, the Kindle Colorsoft has vivid mode, which “enhances color in less saturated images.” For the sake of efficacy, most of my time was spent in normal mode when testing the Colorsoft. However in attempting out vivid mode, I seen that its enhanced saturation was most noticeable in warm-toned photographs: reds appeared ever-so-slightly extra placing, whereas oranges and yellows had a extra bronze impact and the like. However I needed to flip vivid mode on and off a number of occasions to clock the impact as a result of it’s fairly refined.

Then there’s the query of really studying phrases on the Colorsoft. Even the Kindle group consultant I spoke with acknowledged that, because of the further bodily layer within the display that permits shade, one may discover a bit much less sharpness and distinction in black-and-white textual content on the Colorsoft’s display. That’s not distinctive to this specific Kindle — each shade ereader could have this subject to some extent.

When evaluating the text-only expertise of the Kindle Colorsoft to that of the Kobo Libra Color, I discovered each to be fairly good and comparable to 1 one other. The place there’s an even bigger chance for discrepancies is in a comparability of the Colorsoft to, say, the brand new Kindle Paperwhite. I didn’t have the latter system to match to, however I did have my private, previous-generation Paperwhite, and the distinction was ever so slight, with the usual Paperwhite having the (small) higher hand within the distinction and sharpness departments.

Studying expertise

The colour display is essentially the most consequential factor concerning the Kindle Colorsoft, and likelihood is when you’ve had a Kindle prior to now, the studying expertise on this new system will really feel fairly acquainted. The Kindle UI hasn’t modified a lot, nonetheless dividing the principle display into Dwelling and Library choices. The previous is principally an area for Amazon to serve you personalised ebook suggestions and promote new Kindle releases, whereas the latter reveals your total digital library together with books, paperwork, Audible audiobooks and library loans. The Library web page is placing in shade and there’s something undeniably satisfying about seeing all your title covers in full-color glory.

Whereas studying a ebook, you possibly can nonetheless customise and save totally different themes with fonts, font sizes and web page layouts that finest fit your preferences. You continue to have the choice to rapidly navigate inside a title by web page, location, chapter and even standard highlights. Web page turns are speedy and can seemingly be an enchancment for anybody coming from an older Kindle or different ereader.

Annotations and your individual highlights are collected in the identical place for straightforward reference, and with the latter, you possibly can filter by spotlight shade as properly. You’ve got 4 colours to select from on the Colorsoft — orange, yellow, blue and pink — so when you use the yellow highlighter to mark favourite quotes, you possibly can then filter by simply that shade. Be aware that every one highlighting and note-taking should be completed along with your fingers as a result of, in contrast to the Kindle Scribe, the Colorsoft has no stylus assist.

The pinch-to-zoom function on the Colorsoft is nice for many who learn numerous graphic novels and comics. Amazon developed a customized algorithm to make this movement as clean as doable, and it’s a reasonably good expertise, albeit not a singular one. You may also pinch to zoom on the Kobo Libra Color, which largely helps get in nearer to comedian panels to learn small textual content or higher see minute particulars.

On each gadgets, there are full-screen refreshes while you pinch to zoom on shade photographs and the pace of completion is roughly the identical. I additionally discovered picture high quality to be fairly comparable as properly, and it’s value noting that artwork fashion can skew your impression of a picture’s high quality. A comic book that employs clear, distinct strains in comparison with one which’s extra grungy and watercolor-like will at all times come off extra crisp.

The Colorsoft, just like the common Kindle Paperwhite Signature Version, additionally has an auto-adjusting entrance gentle that guarantees to light up the show excellent relying on when you’re studying outdoors on a sunny day, at midnight cabin of an airplane or wherever else. It’s a pleasant {hardware} perk to have and, with the function turned on, removes a lot of handbook fiddling that some may discover annoying to do after they take their Kindle into totally different environments.

The competitors

Whereas we already went by way of the display comparisons for the $280 Kindle Colorsoft and the $220 Kobo Libra Color, there are many different variations between the 2 that you need to think about when choosing your subsequent ereader. I’ve added a spec record beneath to interrupt down the fundamentals, and essentially the most consequential to me are the truth that the Kobo has page-turn buttons and stylus assist.

The previous is known as a matter of desire — you both love bodily buttons otherwise you discover no use for them — however the latter is pure added worth even when you do must buy the $70 Kobo stylus individually. It basically lets you flip the Libra Color right into a makeshift Kobo Sage or Kindle Scribe, which might be helpful for anybody in academia (college students and educators alike) or anybody who simply loves the sensation of placing pen to “paper.” In the meantime, the Kindle has the higher hand in its wi-fi charging capabilities and its barely cleaner flush-front design.

In terms of precise content material accessible on Kindle and Kobo gadgets, the libraries you should buy from on each are huge: each have ebooks and audiobooks accessible, and each the Colorsoft and Libra Color assist Bluetooth, so you possibly can hearken to audiobooks immediately from the system along with your wi-fi headphones. On the time of penning this evaluation, the entire prime 5 New York Occasions bestseller titles have been accessible on each platforms on the identical costs, with the one discrepancies being one which was on sale as a Kindle e-book and one which was accessible to learn at no cost for Kindle Limitless and Kobo Plus subscribers. Each of these month-to-month subscriptions provide you with limitless studying entry to 1000’s of titles, however I might give the benefit to Amazon on this one since Kindle Limitless has been round for for much longer. Amazon additionally has Prime Studying and Youngsters+ subscriptions that work with Kindle gadgets and supply much more content material to paying subscribers.

So far as borrowing ebooks out of your native library goes, it is likely to be a draw. Kobo integrates elegantly with Overdrive, making it almost seamless to get borrowed books in your ereader. Merely join your Overdrive account and library card within the settings menu and you’ll then both browse your library’s choices immediately on system, or use the Libby cellular app to borrow titles and people will seem routinely in your Kobo. My solely gripe with this method is that it really works finest in case you have only one library card, since you possibly can solely join one after the other. I’m a singular case the place I’ve a minimum of three library playing cards and I swap amongst them in Libby relying on which has the title I’m on the lookout for.

These like me may favor the “send to Kindle” choice in Libby, which simply takes a pair extra clicks to get any ebook from any library community to your Kindle system. The largest draw back right here is that my Colorsoft evaluation unit didn’t present all of my library ebook covers in full-color glory on the lock display. After troubleshooting with a consultant from Amazon, it was decided to be a title-specific subject. In line with Amazon: “For library books, the lock screen is taken from the designated marketing cover for the book used by the library, which may not be the same as the actual book cover.” So simply know that when you get most of your studying materials out of your native library, there’s an opportunity a number of the covers could not show correctly on the Colorsoft.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out the $250 Boox Go Coloration 7, which earned a spot in our finest ereaders information after my colleague Amy Skorheim examined it. First, it’s crucial to know that Boox gadgets require a bit extra tech-savvy than a Kindle or a Kobo, in addition to a willingness to experiment. They’re full-blown Android tablets in spite of everything, and that is likely to be precisely what you’re on the lookout for when you get your studying materials from many alternative sources, because it gives entry to the Google Play Retailer and all of its apps. As for specs, the Go Coloration 7 has a seven-inch Kaleido 3 show with 300 ppi in black and white and 150 ppi in shade (just like the Colorsoft), together with a heat gentle, page-turn buttons, a splash-resistant design and 64GB of storage (and a microSD card slot for extra space!). It’s much more just like the Kobo Libra Color in function set and value, so it’s an alternative choice for anybody keen to suppose a bit outdoors the usual ereader field.

The choice between Kindle, Kobo and Boox is infinitely extra sophisticated than selecting between the Colorsoft or the usual Kindle Paperwhite — and that’s exactly due to the stark value distinction. The Colorsoft is $120 greater than the common Kindle Paperwhite ($100 extra when you pay to take away the lock display advertisements from the Paperwhite, and $80 greater than the Signature Version) and except for the colour panel, it solely provides wi-fi charging, the auto-adjusting entrance gentle sensor and doubles the storage. Take away shade from the equation, and arguably essentially the most helpful of all of these is the additional storage however, make no mistake, 16GB of area on the Kindle Paperwhite is nothing to scoff at and might be simply tremendous for most individuals. Until you’re 100-percent sure that shade will make an enormous distinction in your day-to-day studying expertise, the usual Paperwhite is the higher worth.

Wrap-up

Whereas it’s very late to the colour E Ink get together, the Kindle Colorsoft is a stable premium ereader that gives a superb expertise each in shade and black and white. I targeted quite a bit on comparisons on this evaluation as a result of most individuals won’t have the chance to have the Colorsoft and any of its contemporaries aspect by aspect (until you’re my dad, who buys virtually each ereader and small pill beneath the solar). However to be clear, the Colorsoft is an effective Kindle, and in some ways, Amazon did pull an Apple right here. When you’re already closely entrenched within the Kindle ecosystem and have been holding out for a shade ereader, that is the system to get — simply be ready to pay a premium for it.

Additionally, like Apple and its varied working programs, there’s one thing to be mentioned concerning the comfort and ubiquity of the Kindle ecosystem. The library is seemingly limitless (with reductions galore), supplemented by Prime Studying and Kindle Limitless, so it’s straightforward to get sucked in while you’re already purchasing on Amazon for family items and vacation presents. However with regards to worth to your cash (and a pure spec breakdown), you may get extra from Kobo and Boox gadgets. Kindle isn’t the one identify on the town anymore for ereaders, and it hasn’t been for a very long time, and that appears to be a extra pronounced reality now with the introduction of the Colorsoft. If nothing else, Amazon has lastly crammed a obtrusive gap in its ereader lineup with this system.

Amazon Kindle Colorsoft vs. the competitors