The Kindle Colorsoft
… 7 Months Later!
Seven months.
That’s how long I’ve been using Amazon’s Kindle Colorsoft — their first attempt at colour E Ink. This anrticle isn’t a hands-on or a first impressions piece. It’s about what it’s actually like to use this thing day in, day out.
Let me start by answering the question I think a lot of people have had since it came out:
I’ve already got a recent Kindle Paperwhite or Signature Edition, is there any reason to upgrade?
To simply answer that question let me start with this: The basics haven’t changed. The Colorsoft doesn’t reinvent the Kindle — it just adds colour. And while that’s interesting, I don’t think it’s enough on its own to justify the upgrade.
But, here’s the thing, I’m a tech YouTuber, a Kindle addict, and someone who likes to live somewhere near the bleeding edge of new releases. So I bought it. And I’ve used it every day since launch.
So here’s what’s good, what’s annoying, and who this is actually for.
What Even Is the Colorsoft?
Let me be very clear. The Colorsoft is basically a Kindle Paperwhite with a 7-inch colour E Ink screen. You can’t write on it. There are no page-turn buttons and there’s no stylus support like you’d get with the Kindle Scribe.
It’s designed entirely for reading. That’s it.
It even has the same features as the Signature Edition — 32GB of storage, auto-brightness, USB-C and wireless charging, warm light adjustment, waterproofing, and weeks-long battery life. It also supports audiobooks via Audible over Bluetooth — but so do all the recent Kindle models since 2024. (Happy to be corrected if I’m wrong.)
What sets the Colorsoft apart is, of course, the colour. Amazon’s using a Kaleido 3 panel in the Colorsoft (still muted compared to a tablet), but this is as good as it gets for E Ink. It’s the same panel used in Kobo’s Libra Colour, though Amazon claims to have customised the display stack (the layers that make up the screen) with brighter LEDs and special coatings to improve colour clarity and contrast.
What It Gets Right
So — is it actually good?
Yes, for the most part.
Book covers now show in all their colourful glory, this might sound trivial, but it genuinely makes your Kindle library feel more alive. For me it makes the books feel … more like real books. Browsing the store or flicking through your current reads, it’s all more engaging with colour. I even smile a little when one of the lovely new lock screen covers appears — Amazon have clearly put some effort into them. It’s also really nice seeing your current book cover on the lock screen, if you turn that feature on. It’s just a shame you can’t tap the screen to briefly turn on the LEDs and actually appreciate all that colourful goodness in less well lit rooms and situations.
Where it really shines is with illustrated books, children’s books, and comics. If you read anything visual — charts, maps, diagrams — it’s obviously a step up from black-and-white. And unlike a glossy tablet, this is one of the only ways to read full-colour content outdoors without much glare.
The multi-colour highlighting of texts in books is another welcome addition. You can now highlight in four colours: yellow, pink, blue, and orange. And when you export your highlighted notes they can be grouped by colour. It’s genuinely useful if you like to organise your highlights thematically or visually.
What about comics?
I wouldn’t go so far as to say this replaces a tablet for digital comics — it doesn’t. But if you want to read comics or manga on something you can actually use outside, it’s the best Kindle for the job. The colours aren’t punchy, but they’re more than good enough for casual reading.
That said, I haven’t read quite as many comics on the Colorsoft as I thought I would. Maybe it’s the slightly faffy way of getting them onto the device — which I covered in a Shorts video on my YouTube channel about how to access your Comixology library — or maybe it’s just that comics still look so much better on a tablet such as the iPad.
Zooming and panning around comics is better than expected. The resolution temporarily drops while you move, then snaps back into focus. It’s not instant like an iPad, but for E Ink, it’s fairly smooth.
And crucially — it’s still a Kindle.
Black and white text is sharp, the front light is excellent, and the battery lasts for weeks. The colour layer doesn’t ruin what Kindles have always done well — it just puts some colourful icing on the cake!
Where It Falls Short
Let’s talk about Dark Mode.
On every other Kindle I’ve used, Dark Mode inverts everything — menus, text, backgrounds. Great for reading in bed or in low light.
Not here.
The Colorsoft doesn’t have a proper Dark Mode. You can invert book pages, but menus and settings stay bright. Maybe, like me, you like to read in bed. You’re reading happily with white text on black when you need to open the menu — maybe to change books — and boom! A sudden white-ish flash to the face.
Amazon says it’s due to how colour E Ink works — full inversion would mess up colour rendering. This is fair enough. But I still think they could figure out a consistent night mode. If I recall correctly with my Signature Edition, it would remember my light and dark settings — just a few taps and I was back to reading comfortably. With the Colorsoft, I find myself having to fiddle with the brightness and warmth sliders every single time I change modes.
The Trade-Offs
You have to accept some compromises.
This isn’t a glossy, high-contrast display. It’s more like a matte magazine. Colours are soft — almost newspaper-like. And maybe that’s actually part of the charm for some people, but it’s not going to wow you with vibrancy.
The colour resolution is effectively 150ppi, since the colour layer sits on top of the black-and-white panel. Black text still looks sharp (to my eyes), but fine colour details — like small colourful text in diagrams — can look a bit fuzzy.
The 7-inch screen is fine for books, but small for comics and cramped for dense PDFs. You’ll be zooming and panning a fair bit and if you regularly read anything with small text or complex layouts, you might wish for a bigger display. A 10-inch colour Scribe would make more sense for that.
You also don’t get physical page-turn buttons. Depending on what you’re used to, that might feel like a downgrade. I didn’t think I’d miss them as much as I do, having had them on my previous model the Kindle Oasis, but I do. If you turn on Kindle’s “tap to turn” feature you can firmly tap on the back of the device to turn a page. This does bring back a bit of tactile control … sort of.
And finally, as mentioned earlier, no stylus support. So if you were hoping for a colourful note-taking device, this isn’t it. Typed notes only.
Yellow-Gate: The Kindle Colorsoft Debacle
In the first few weeks of people getting their hands on the Colorsoft, there was a fairly widespread issue which quickly became apparent: a yellowish tint was showing up on devices across the bottom or sides of the screen. It showed up mostly when the front light was on, and it wasn’t subtle.
Mine had it. Not as badly as some, but enough that I sent it back. We shouldn’t have to accept issues like this when a device is this expensive (I’ll talk about that in the next section).
Amazon didn’t make a big deal publicly, but clearly something was up. Reports were everywhere, and they quietly paused shipments. From what I’ve read online (which may or may not have some truth), it was a mix of display layering, adhesives, and front-light inconsistencies. They claim to have fixed it with a combination of hardware adjustments and software tweaks.
The replacement I received might still have a trace of it, but it’s nowhere near as obvious — barely noticeable, in fact I may be imagining it! So I think it’s fair to say this should no longer an issue with newer batches. Still, if you’re buying second-hand or from old stock, it’s something to check. Amazon has said they’ll replace affected units.
“Yellow-Gate” happened — but it’s over. Probably. Just don’t expect perfection if you’re buying from the back of a warehouse.
The Price Problem
At the time of writing, the Colorsoft is about £270. That’s £80 more than the Signature Paperwhite — which also gives you warm lighting, auto-brightness, and wireless charging.
You’re paying a premium for colour. And if colour isn’t something you actively need, it’s hard to justify.
Remember, the Colorsoft is a Paperwhite with a different screen. The colour’s nice — but it’s not transformational. Is it really worth the extra cash?
Final Thoughts
I really like the Colorsoft. I enjoy using it. I like seeing book covers in colour, and I’ve appreciated the occasional comic or illustrated book more than I would on a monochrome screen.
But it hasn’t changed the way I read. And that, really, is the point.
If you mostly read text-based novels, which, let’s be honest, is what most people do on Kindles, this isn’t an essential upgrade.
If you’ve already got a recent model, especially the Signature Edition, you’re not missing out on much by skipping this one.
But if you love comics, read a lot of illustrated or reference-heavy books, or if you’re the kind of person who highlights everything and likes organising your notes by colour, you might just love it. Especially if you can grab it on sale.
If you’re thinking about purchasing a Kindle Colorsoft, as of the time of publishing this article, Prime Day means you can get it for only £185 which is a nice discount from £270! Please support my work and use these affiliate links:
Kindle Colorsoft - https://amzn.to/3YqVyPn
Kindle Scribe - https://amzn.to/3YbjLI8
Kindle Paperwhite - https://amzn.to/3NtMSRP
Kindle Basic - https://amzn.to/3NsOs6x
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