Amazon Kindle Scribe (2nd Gen) Review: Room for More

Amazon’s Kindle Scribe entered a saturated digital notebook market in 2022, competing with the likes of Kobo, ReMarkable, and Boox. However the first-gen Scribe had one leg over everybody else: It was additionally a Kindle. Its greatest flaw? You could not annotate straight on ebooks, a typical characteristic most individuals would anticipate on a digital e-paper pocket book.

This has been rectified on the second-generation Kindle Scribe, and there are a few different additions like generative synthetic intelligence options and a barely redesigned Premium Pen stylus, which is now included. However the remainder of the Scribe stays principally the identical. It is a terrific digital pocket book for anybody who likes jotting stuff down on paper, and because it pulls double obligation as an e-reader, you do not have to hold one other Kindle.

Sadly, the worth has jumped to $400, a $60 bump (technically, a $30 bump in the event you examine it on to the unique Scribe with the Premium Pen). However there is a large truth you should know: The primary-gen Scribe can entry all the brand new capabilities of the second-gen mannequin through a software program replace (you’ll be able to manually obtain it or await an over-the-air replace). It is good that current prospects do not should improve, nevertheless it leaves little incentive to spend extra on the most recent.

Clean and Supreme

The Scribe has the identical chassis as its predecessor. The again is a mixture of recycled aluminum and post-consumer recycled plastics, but it feels luxe. It is nonetheless not waterproof just like the Kindle Paperwhite and Colorsoft, which is unusual for a productiveness gadget that may inevitably be positioned subsequent to a espresso mug.

The entrance is dwelling to a ten.2-inch E Ink display screen with 300 pixels per inch (94 nits of max brightness). It might routinely regulate the brightness relying on the setting, and there is even adjustable heat lighting, which makes it a bit of simpler on the eyes in low mild. I take pleasure in utilizing the latter whereas journaling on the Scribe earlier than mattress. There is a darkish mode too, which turns the background black and the font white (additionally helpful at night time).

{Photograph}: Brenda Stolyar