If you told me at the start of the year that I’d own an e-reader, let alone three, I’d laugh and tell you I’m a diehard paperback gal. I just like the feeling of a book in my hand, ya know? Well, that all changed when my besties got me a Kindle for my birthday.
At first, I was like, “maybe my friends don’t know me at all, because I’ve never mentioned wanting an e-reader.” But they knew me better than myself, clearly, because now I’m absolutely hooked. An e-reader is so much easier to commute and travel with, and I can still curl up with my book with the lamp off so I don’t wake my sleeping partner at bedtime.
After a few months of using the Amazon Kindle, I was very kindly gifted a Kobo Libra Colour. So, naturally, I thought it would be a great idea to write an article comparing the two.
Then Kindle threw a spanner in the works and released their latest e-reader, the Kindle Colorsoft. And you best believe I got my hands on that one as well. After all, what’s the point of an outdated review?
If you’re tossing up between models and brands, I’m here to help.
Here are my honest thoughts on the Kindle Colorsoft, Kindle Paperwhite, and Kobo Libra Colour.
Kindle Colorsoft
The Kindle Colorsoft has got to be my favourite of the three. It’s also the largest (and most expensive), repping a seven-inch display screen.
This is Kindle’s latest e-reader, the first from the brand that allows readers to experience their books in colour. It has the same glare-free, paper-like display as the other Kindles, but with the added bonus of an adjustable warm light. You can autoschedule it to change throughout the day, so it’s a cosier yellow light that’s easier on the eyes at nighttime. It’s pretty seamless, and after turning the automatic adjusting on, I haven’t ever had to go back and change the warmth.
You can also auto-schedule the brightness to change throughout the day. It’s pretty smooth, but I find that it occasionally was a little too dark during the day. I prefer to keep this setting off and just change it myself.
In terms of the Kindle’s colour, you get the choice of visualising your library, book covers and illustrations in two different colour options: standard (balanced colour for everyday reading) and vivid (enhances colour in less saturated images).
Personally, I love this, because although it’s not the end of the world for my e-reader to have a black and white cover, I love seeing the full spectrum. It’s not 4K quality or anything, but it’s a really nice touch.
If you’re one to annotate your books, you’ll be pleased to know that you can highlight quotes in colour, too. And while there’s no stylus to scribble notes, you can type them down and they’ll save to a folder in your Kindle library, so you can circle back to your annotations easily.
While I unfortunately haven’t been poolside to test it out, the brand claims the Kindle Colorsoft is waterproof. They also say it has up to eight weeks battery life from a full charge.
If you care about colour, I’d say this is absolutely worth the price. The colour screen brings an extra level of joy to e-reading.
Kindle Colorsoft Specs:
Size: Seven-inch display
Weight: 225 grams
Storage capacity: 16GB or 32GB
Price: 16GB – $329 (usually $399), 32GB – $379 (usually $449)
Rating out of 10: 9/10
Would be best for: People who read comics and anime, or anyone who wants to experience their books and library in colour.
Amazon Kindle (2024 release)
The 2024 Amazon Kindle was my first e-reader, my first love. It’s the most basic of Kindle’s range, but don’t let that deter you. It’s the only one that comes in matcha green, after all.
This is the smallest and lightest of the range, with a six-inch display screen. And while the Kindle Colorsoft isn’t laggy per se, the Amazon Kindle is noticeably quicker.
Yes, I did sit there, clicking to turn the page on all my e-readers at the same time to see which one came out on top. And the small but mighty 2024 Kindle did just that!
The device has Kindle’s signature anti-glare, paper-like screen, which is really easy on the eyes. And while it doesn’t have the adjustable warmth scale or automatic brightness like the more advanced models, my eyes weren’t straining when I was reading, even at night.
The brand says a single charge should last up to six weeks, which is less than the Kindle Colorsoft. However, when comparing both devices, I feel like I noticed the Amazon Kindle’s battery lasting longer than the Kindle Colorsoft.
I didn’t measure it to an exact science, I’m purely going off my judgement, but I was surprised to read this Kindle supposedly has a lower battery life. Not that the Colorsoft drains quickly, you can still use both devices for weeks on end without needing to charge either of them, but I thought this one stretched out its life a littleeee bit longer.
In terms of cons, the Amazon Kindle isn’t waterproof, unlike its Colorsoft counterpart. So, if you’re doing some bathtime or poolside reading, you’ve gotta be extra careful.
It also doesn’t have a colourful LED display. This is pretty obvious right off the bat, but something to consider if you’d rather experience your e-books in colour.
My only qualm I have with the Amazon Kindle is the position of its power button at the bottom of the device. Because it’s small, if I carelessly toss it into my work bag and don’t take the time to make sure the power button is facing up, the device will often turn on and I’ll then lose my page. Of course, this is easily remedied by either exiting the book once you’re done reading or by getting a foldover cover, but something to note.
All in all, I love my Amazon Kindle — it’s a great basic e-reader. It’s my go to for travelling, since it’s the smallest and lightest of the bunch.
Amazon Kindle Specs:
Size: Six-inch display
Weight: 156 grams
Storage capacity: 16GB
Price: $199
Rating out of 10: 7.5/10
Would be best for: People who just want a simple e-reader.
Kobo Libra Colour
The Kobo Libra Colour is one of Kobo’s colourful e-readers, and let me tell you, I was blown away by it when I first started using it. It comes in black and white, and has a seven-inch colour touch screen.
What fascinated me with this e-reader is its stylus ($119.95), and the extra features it unlocks. You need to purchase it separately, but trust me when I say you’re going to want to.
If you’re an avid annotator but don’t like typing your notes (a function which you can do on both the Kobo and Kindle), you can scribble them down. And because it’s a colourful e-reader, you can change the highlighter and pen colour, thickness, style of pen, etc.
I’m not a typical annotator (I felt like I was ruining my paperbacks and CBF typing out notes I’m never gonna revisit on my Kindle), but I found myself more inclined to scribble on my books as I was reading them since it was all digital. Only thing with this is your annotations don’t save in a separate folder, so they’re not as easy to access as if you were to type them. You’d have to flick through each page until you reach your notes agian.
The stylus also essentially turns your Kobo into a notebook, too. This feature isn’t available if you don’t have the pen, but if you do, you unlock a world where you can write down whatever you want. You can pick the type of page you want your notebook to have, spanning anything from ruled margins to storyboards.
You can literally plan out your fan film once you’re done reading your romantasy. How sick?!
Comparing the colour between the Kindle Colorsoft and Kobo Libra Colour, I’d say they’re pretty damn similar. I put both on maximum brightness and minimum warmth to compare the same book cover, and they came super close. I’d say the Kobo Libra Colour wins in terms of clarity and saturation by the tiniest smidge.
Now, the cons.
Don’t get me wrong, this is a great e-reader, but it doesn’t have the same paper-like screen that Kindle has mastered. I stare at screens all day long, so I noticed my eyes straining when I was reading after a long day at work. It does have an automatic warmth adjustor, but it just doesn’t hit the same as Kindle’s.
The Kobo Libra Colour is also the laggiest of the bunch, especially when using the screen. This e-reader comes with two page-turning buttons (odd considering it’s touch screen), which are a little less slow. But if you’re tapping the screen, it sometimes takes a couple goes to turn the page. You’ve gotta do a noticeable swipe.
Other than these couple hiccups, it’s a solid e-reader.
Kobra Libra Colour Specs:
Size: Seven-inch display
Weight: 201 grams
Storage capacity: 32GB
Price: $379.95
Rating out of 10: 8/10
Would be best for: People who enjoy annotating books or people who want a more advanced e-reader.
If you want your e-reader to be more than an e-reader, I’d 100 per cent go for the Kobo Libra Colour. But if you’re staring at screens all day long and want to minimise strain on your eyes, Kindle is definitely the one for you. Whether you want the advancements of the Colorsoft or want to stick to the basics of the Amazon Kindle is entirely up to you, but all are great options.
Image credit: Alyssa Forato / @lettersfromnathalie
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