5 Kindle options I would like to see in 2026

After solely trickling out new units for ages, Amazon lastly introduced a serious {hardware} refresh in September, for example placing out up to date Blink cameras and Echo audio system. For readers, the large deal was a brand new set of Kindle tablets, led by the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft — Amazon’s reply to e-notebooks just like the Boox Note Air4 C and the reMarkable Paper Pro. It appears poised to draw numerous followers, not less than those that may afford its hefty $630 pricetag and do not thoughts being locked into the Kindle ecosystem for purchases.

I have been testing Kindles since 2012. I am fairly aware of them at this level, so it isn’t laborious in any respect to provide you with a wishlist that extends past the Scribe into the subsequent era. A few of these adjustments are unlikely, but others are very possible if Amazon needs to take a swing.

An open working system

Android, right here we come?

This one might be essentially the most far-fetched, for a quite simple purpose: ecosystem management. Functionally, there’s nothing the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft does that may’t be replicated in Android. However as a result of Amazon needs you shopping for books from the Audible and Kindle shops, and ideally paying for a number of of its subscriptions, it has each incentive to dam entry to exterior platforms like Kobo or Google Play Books.

An open OS would offer numerous advantages past procuring elsewhere, or accessing titles you already personal with out paying a second time for a Kindle copy. It will additionally increase sharing, notetaking, and illustration prospects, and doubtlessly flip a Kindle right into a do-it-all gadget for individuals who do not have heavy work or leisure calls for. Think about with the ability to take heed to Spotify on a Kindle when you examine your e-mail.

For Joe Public, the one critical draw back to that is optimization. An OS like Android must be scaled again for e-ink units, which implies some apps will not run properly or in any respect — attempting to observe a YouTube video on a Be aware Air4 C is fairly pointless. Even some artwork and notetaking apps would possibly want further consideration from Amazon to behave in addition to first-party software program.

Buttons, buttons and extra buttons

The best way forwards is backwards

The absence of bodily buttons is probably going a non-issue for many Kindle house owners, since Amazon’s gestures are straightforward to be taught, and its touchscreens are responsive sufficient. There may be, nevertheless, a diehard contingent on the market that would like buttons for turning pages, adjusting quantity, or returning to the homescreen. I get it, personally — if I must flip ahead a number of pages, it is simpler to hit a button repeatedly than swipe the identical variety of instances, or swap to a e book’s progress slider. The purpose of any Kindle is to chill out greater than I might with a cellphone or pc.

The chances of Amazon re-introducing buttons are solely marginally higher than it switching to Android. Dropping most buttons has allowed the corporate to shrink its tablets, and presumably lower manufacturing prices alongside the best way. Asking it to decrease revenue margins additional when it is already dealing with excessive tariffs could also be a non-starter, except maybe there’s some type of grassroots marketing campaign that persuades it of the gross sales potential.

A built-in kickstand

Palms-free when it is advisable to be

This concept is one thing I hadn’t really thought of till now, however the second it popped into my head, it made an excessive amount of sense to disregard. Kindles are sometimes finest used as handheld units, it is true — however once you’re studying for an prolonged time frame, even the lightest Kindle can grow to be tiring. Though I’d have the ability to bench press almost 250 kilos on the health club, simply half a pound goes to grow to be an issue if have to carry it up for an hour or two.

A kickstand is all of the extra logical for the Kindle Scribe, a tool designed for sketches, annotation, and notes. These issues grow to be lots simpler once you’re not resting a pill in your lap. You should purchase a canopy that folds right into a stand, in case you want too — but when the Nintendo Switch 2 can ship with a kickstand, there is no purpose a Scribe cannot additionally. It is perhaps a minor motivation for somebody to improve from a less expensive Kindle mannequin.

A number of consumer profiles

Let’s hope Apple is listening too

Most non-Home windows tablets are constructed on the belief that just one individual will ever use them. Whereas that is typically the case, there are too many exceptions, as any mother or father with an iPad can attest. It is an arbitrary barrier, seemingly supposed to power us to purchase a number of units when one would in any other case do. You would not tolerate a Mac or Home windows PC that blocked your associate from setting their very own app and desktop preferences.

Talking of {couples} and households, it nearly makes extra sense to place a number of profiles on a Kindle. Their principal function is studying, and it could be unusual certainly in case you had a bodily copy of a e book however instructed your spouse they’d to purchase their very own copy simply to make use of a bookmark. I’m wondering additionally if the Scribe would not be extra engaging to clients in the event that they knew two individuals might break up one — for the price of two Scribes, you would possibly as properly purchase a MacBook Air or Floor Professional.

Extra visible customization

This is not 2007 anymore

Definitely, there wasn’t a lot level to UI customization on Kindles for a very long time. The primary mannequin had 250MB (that is proper, megabytes) of storage, and it is solely not too long ago that 16GB grew to become a typical capability. Previous to the primary Colorsoft, there wasn’t even a lot visible enchantment to what was onscreen. I did like a few of the ad-free lockscreens on my outdated Paperwhite, but largely, they have been simply higher than a clean display screen.

Now that Amazon has a number of colour units, it must lean full-tilt into personalization. I ought to have the ability to rearrange menus, and select from all kinds of system fonts, even deciding on completely different colours if they do not create any usability complications. If nothing else, it must be useless easy so as to add customized lockscreens on ad-free fashions. Customers have discovered a means round Amazon’s limits through the use of customized “books” paired with the Present covers on the lock display screen choice, however it could be so a lot better if I might add information to an Amazon Pictures folder and have them mechanically synced and formatted. Google permits one thing comparable with its Nest Hub good shows.