Amazon has unveiled its new Kindle range, with pre-orders now open for delivery from 11 November. The new devices include the Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Colorsoft, alongside an updated entry-level Kindle.
The changes are both stylish and technical, with aluminium backs and sleek new colourways, as well as advances in screen technology, resolution, front lighting and colour displays. As The Standard's contributing technology editor, David Phelan, explains: “Amazon continues to dominate the ereader market because of exactly the kind of redesign that's happening now.”
Entry-level Kindle gets a flush front design
“This is the first time the entry-level Kindle has a flush front design, adding a classy sheen to the most affordable model,” David says. The new blue colourway of the entry-level Kindle is available, along with vibrant purple, sage green and black.
However, the basic Kindle remains without waterproofing, unlike the Kindle Paperwhite and Colorsoft. Readers who want to take their device to the beach, pool or bath will need to look further up the range.
Price and ecosystem
Price remains central to Amazon's Kindle popularity. The company has historically positioned its ereaders competitively against rival devices, making it relatively inexpensive to get started with digital reading. But the hardware is also part of a wider ecosystem. Amazon can undercut competitors because “once you've bought the hardware you have to come back to Amazon to buy the books to read on it,” David says.
“In some ways, Amazon is catching up to rivals here with the launch of the page-turner accessory, the Kindle Click (£31.99, Amazon.co.uk),” David explains. “This comes a long time after the brilliant Boox Tappy, which looks like an adorable tiny two-key typewriter and means you can turn the page without touching the device – handy if you're reading while running on a treadmill.”
Kids editions and gifting
Amazon's kids editions continue to offer another point of differentiation, from the Paperwhite (£209, Amazon.co.uk) and Colorsoft (£274.99, Amazon.co.uk). These versions use the same essential design but add child-focused features. “You pay more for the same hardware, but with a year's worth of content supplied,” David says, meaning parents are paying extra for the accompanying ecosystem rather than a radically different, inferior device.
Rather than reinventing the format, Amazon is refining the familiar Kindle formula – and in time for Christmas gifting. You can pre-order each new Kindle ereader now, for delivery from 11 November.
