Kindle Scribe: Amazon finally enters the e-note segment
Amazon's release of Kindle Scribe is surprising considering its device strategy
I previously dismissed the idea that Amazon would release a larger e-note device. The rationale behind the judgement was Amazon’s record of not releasing productivity devices. Fire tablets and Kindles are locked into Amazon’s eco-system and designed to deliver its content and services. As a result, I speculated the rumoured e-note would be an updated high-end Kindle Oasis with extra note-taking capabilities to differentiate it from other Kindle models. However, it would be primarily an e-reader similar to Kobo Sage rather than the productivity-focused Kobo Elipsa.
It turns out Amazon was planning to release a device with a productivity focus. The release of Kindle Scribe is surprising considering Amazon’s device strategy. With reMarkable’s success, maybe e-notes are not as niche as assumed, and Amazon is willing to make an exception to its strategy by entering this growing market. In any case, below are some pertinent points that are raised with the release of Kindle Scribe:
With Amazon entering the e-note space, other big vendors might follow too. Consequently, e-note devices might become more mainstream and thus push prices down. Overall, with Amazon entering the market, we can expect the e-note segment to be transformed in terms of pricing, hardware and software features.
Kobo Elipsa is better priced than Kindle Scribe. Other than the more advanced stylus, Elipsa is bundled with a case and has twice the storage of the similarly priced Kindle Scribe base model. It should be noted Kindle Scribe has a higher resolution and night lighting that Elipsa lacks. However, Amazon could slash the price of Kindle Scribe during its sales.
As Amazon markets their stylus to operate without needing batteries, it seems Kindle Scribe uses EMR technology. After experiencing the sluggish writing latency of Elipsa’s battery-powered stylus, using EMR technology is the right decision, as they are better optimised for E Ink screens. Additionally, with Lamy, Staedtler and others selling their own EMR pens, finding a third-party alternative is easier.
Kindle Scribe is the first 10 inches e-note to have a 300 PPI screen. We have had 227 PPI screens in this size for a while, so other vendors might be forced to increase the screen resolution of their devices.
Like Kobo Elipsa, Amazon advertises the screen will have a textured matte finish. Applying a rougher matte texture for writing isn’t new, with Onyx BOOX, reMarkable and Boyue releasing devices with similar functionality.
Amazon’s Kindle software is user-friendly while not compromising on features. It will be interesting to see how they combine the writing and reading features. Further, syncing and wireless sharing of content have been another strong aspect of Kindle e-readers, and it will also be interesting to see how Amazon has adapted the device to support these features with PDF documents and notebooks.