Evaluate Date: November 2024 – Evaluate unit bought from Amazon
Overview
The Kindle Colorsoft was launched on October thirtieth, 2024. It’s the primary Kindle to make use of a shade E Ink display screen, however different corporations have been utilizing comparable shade E Ink screens since 2020; Amazon is likely one of the final ereader corporations to leap on the colour E Ink bandwagon.
The Kindle Colorsoft shares the very same design because the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Version, and it contains all the identical options and upgrades because the Signature Version mannequin (wi-fi charging, auto brightness, no screensaver adverts, 32GB of inside storage).
One distinction with the Colorsoft mannequin, Amazon shouldn’t be providing three shade decisions just like the Paperwhite; it’s solely accessible in black.
The Kindle Colorsoft sells for $279.99 and there isn’t a less expensive ad-supported model like with different Kindles, and there’s no youngsters bundle package deal both (nevertheless it does assist youngsters mode).
Kindle Colorsoft Fast Evaluate
Professionals
- The colour display screen seems higher than comparable fashions with shade E Ink screens, with extra saturated colours and fewer ghosting, and total the display screen has a clearer look to it.
- Extra shade content material accessible than different ereader manufacturers.
- Quick, clean efficiency for E Ink.
Cons
- The frontlight has a delicate yellow band that Amazon is hopefully going to repair.
- Greater worth than comparable comparable fashions.
- All shade E Ink screens have some drawbacks in comparison with common E Ink screens due to the added shade filter layer (darker with the frontlight off, barely decrease distinction).
- Amazon’s walled backyard strategy and mindless limitations.
Verdict
The Kindle Colorsoft is sort of probably the perfect shade ereader on the present market, however you’d by no means realize it primarily based on all of the unfavourable opinions.
The factor that stunned me probably the most is how significantly better the display screen seems in comparison with comparable shade fashions. Amazon did a very good job of minimizing the shortcomings of shade E Ink and maximizing the colour high quality. It’s an evening and day distinction in comparison with the Boox Go 7 (for each shade and BW textual content), and Onyx has been making shade ereaders since 2020.
The display screen is sweet however I’m not an enormous fan of how they reused the Kindle Paperwhite’s design. For the value, I believe it ought to’ve had a premium construct just like the Kindle Oasis or the Kindle Voyage. $280 is some huge cash for what is basically a Kindle Paperwhite with a shade filter layer, particularly when you will get the bottom Paperwhite for under $159, and the Paperwhite presents a greater studying expertise on the subject of common textual content with out the added filter layer. Colour is sweet to have for covers and comics and such, nevertheless it’s definitely not price an additional $120 when you solely learn text-based ebooks.
Kindle Colorosft Video Evaluate
The Colour Display screen
The Kindle Colorsoft has a 7″ shade E Ink display screen, and it makes use of a Kaleido 3 display screen like most different shade ereaders available on the market, with 300 ppi for black and white content material and 150 ppi for shade. However Amazon did one thing to make the Colorsoft’s display screen look extra colourful and clear.
E Ink’s Kaleido screens are actually simply common black and white screens with a passive shade filter utilized excessive. That’s why shade decision is decrease, and is what provides the display screen a darker look when the frontlight is off as a result of it doesn’t let as a lot gentle by way of. You’ll be able to really see the filter layer when you look carefully—it’s a lot much less noticeable than it was on earlier generations of shade E Ink—nevertheless it does add a slight grainy texture to the display screen, which lowers the distinction barely and makes the display screen look rather less clear.
That’s why shade E Ink doesn’t look fairly pretty much as good as common E Ink on the subject of displaying black and white textual content—it’s all the time been that method—so when you’re new to paint E Ink you may wish to try this Colorsoft vs Paperwhite comparability evaluation for a more in-depth look.
The Frontlight
Truthfully, I can’t imagine how persons are turning the delicate yellow band on the backside of the display screen into such an enormous deal that they’re principally forcing Amazon to cease promoting the Colorsoft for a number of weeks. Yeah, it’s not supreme, however after utilizing the Colorsoft for a pair weeks it’s barely even noticeable, and I’m normally explicit about that sort of factor (a variety of gadgets have had comparable points through the years; in reality, older Kobos usually had uneven frontlights and I hardly ever heard anybody complain about them).
Regardless of the yellow band, the frontlight seems higher than the frontlights on comparable shade fashions I personal. Aspect-by-side with the Kobo Libra Color and the Boox Go 7, the Colorsoft’s gentle has a extra impartial shade temperature, giving the display screen a whiter look. The Libra Color’s gentle is lots yellower by comparability, with some brighter areas, and the Go 7 has a bizarre pink tinge. On their very own they appear advantageous, however subsequent to the Colorsoft they appear inferior.
I assume it’s all only a matter of perspective, and a variety of early Kindle Colorsoft customers appear to lack that.
Software program
The Kindle Colorsoft runs the identical software program as different Kindles so it has all the identical options, simply with shade.
There are a few delicate variations, nevertheless. First off, the Colorsoft lacks full Darkish Mode assist. It might probably invert the textual content whereas studying for white textual content on a black background, nevertheless it doesn’t invert all the interface like different Kindles. The menus, the library, and the homescreen all the time stay in gentle mode.
The Colorsoft provides the choice so as to add multicolored highlights to ebooks. There are 4 shade decisions to select from, and the coloured highlights additionally present up when utilizing inverted mode.
One wierd factor concerning the Colorsoft is the truth that it doesn’t present shade on PDFs which are sideloaded through USB. You need to use Ship to Kindle to get shade on PDFs.
Amazon additionally eliminated the Obtain and Switch Choice from newer Kindles, together with the Colorsoft. Kindles additionally use MTP now as a substitute of USB mass storage.
Extra Kindle Evaluations
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Kindle Paperwhite 6 Evaluate
2024 Kindle Evaluate
Kindle Colorsoft Specs
- 7″ Kaleido 3 Colour E Ink display screen.
- Frontlight with shade temperature management.
- 32GB inside storage.
- Wi-fi charging (charger offered individually).
- Auto-brightness sensor.
- Waterproof: IPX8 rated: examined to face up to immersion in 2 meters of recent water for 60 minutes.
- No screensaver adverts.
- WiFi: Helps 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz networks.
- Bluetooth for audiobooks and VoiceView display screen reader.
- USB-C port, charging cable included.
- Battery Life Estimate: as much as 8 weeks.
- Supported codecs: Kindle Format 8 (AZW3), Kindle (AZW), KFX, TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively; PDF, DOCX, DOC, HTML, EPUB, TXT, RTF, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP by way of conversion; Audible audio format (AAX).
- Dimensions: 127.6 x 176.7 x 7.8 mm.
- Weight: 219 grams.
- Worth: $279 at Amazon
