Kindle Colorsoft Review: Amazon's Color E-Reader

Here’s my full review of the Kindle Colorsoft, Amazon’s more affordable 2025 color e-reader model, featuring 16 GB of storage and no wireless charging.

Note: I bought this e-reader myself to review it. I did get a promotional discount on Prime Days, but this is not a sponsored review.

Kindle Colorsoft video review

Here’s a short version of the test in video format:

Packaging and first impressions

The Kindle Colorsoft tested here is the 2025 version with a 7-inch color e-ink reader sold by Amazon.

It comes in a minimal, recycled cardboard box containing the device, a USB-C charging cable, and a quick start guide.

The Colorsoft reuses the same design as the latest 7-inch Kindle Paperwhite. That means it fits perfectly in the same protective cover.

The Colorsoft actually launched in late 2024 as a more expensive "Signature Edition" with 32 GB of storage, wireless charging, and automatic brightness adjustment. The 2025 model drops those extras to offer a lower price, but nothing essential to the reading experience is missing. Just note that there's no wireless charging and no auto-brightness.

The large display covers almost the entire front panel. The body is made of smooth plastic that feels a bit cheap in the hand though the same can be said of the Paperwhite. Apart from a metallic Amazon 'smile' logo, the exterior design is identical.

The Kindle Colorsoft is water-resistant (IPX8), which should also make it reasonably dust-resistant but not shock-proof.

At the bottom edge, there's a USB-C port for charging and file transfer (a full charge takes under three hours). The power button sits next to it, a placement I've never found convenient; I prefer when it'on the top or back like on Kobo readers.

The setup is simple: when you power it on, you're guided through configuration.

I used the Android Kindle app pairing option: enter a code from the device, and your Amazon account and WiFi are configured automatically. Super easy if you already use Kindle on your phone. Otherwise, manual setup is possible.

The first impression is excellent: color reproduction looks quite good. It's hard to judge precisely compared with other Kaleido 3 color e-ink screens, but this display seems solid. I'll compare it later with my Kobo and Pocketbook color readers.

The 7-Inch color E-Ink display is great

Let's start with the main reason to buy this device: the 7-inch 300 ppi color e-ink screen.

E-ink displays allow you to read for hours without the glare or eye strain of backlit LCD or OLED screens. The result is very close to reading real paper, with no reflections and that's the case here too.

That said, color e-ink always involves a trade-off. Because the color filter sits above the black-and-white e-ink layer, text appears slightly less sharp, with a faint haze. It's subtle and you'll only notice it when comparing side-by-side with a monochrome Kindle like the Paperwhite.

This is also a limitation of all color e-ink technology, not a flaw specific to Amazon and you can improve the contrast by turning the front-light up to around three-quarters.

The color display brings real benefits: colorful book covers, readable illustrations, graphs, photos, and even comics or manga look far more appealing.

Overall, the screen quality is on par with competitors like the Kobo Libra Colour, which also has a 7-inch panel.

Reading ebooks on the Kindle Colorsoft

As expected, the reading experience is very good but just slightly less crisp than the Paperwhite due to the color layer.

You get all the usual Kindle customization options:

• Font size
• Font choice (Amazon Ember, Bookerly, Caecilia, Helvetica, Palatino, Baskerville, Futura, OpenDyslexic, etc.)
• Bold adjustment
• Line spacing, paragraph spacing, word spacing, and character spacing
• Page orientation (portrait or landscape)
• Margin size and text alignment (left or justified)

Plus useful reading features:

• Bookmarks
• Notes and highlights
• Text search and dictionary
• Wikipedia lookup and translation
• "Dark mode" (white text on black background)
• Reading progress indicators (time left in book or chapter)

One small annoyance: you can't choose a highlight color when you first make a selection but you have to edit it afterward. Competing brands let you pick colors immediately; hopefully, Amazon fixes this in a future update.

The front-light is strong, and you can also adjust the warmth (yellow/orange tint) to reduce blue light at night.

Reading comfort is excellent, and the 7-inch size makes a big difference if you use large fonts because you still get plenty of text per page.

Software and interface

The Kindle OS is famously simple, and the Colorsoft continues that tradition.

Menus are clear and responsive, with onboarding screens for new users. This version does not display ads, unlike cheaper Kindles that include lock-screen promotions (you can remove those for a fee). That's good considering the higher price here.

The home screen shows your current books and recommendations.

Settings let you:

• Manage your account and WiFi
• Adjust screen and brightness
• Update firmware, set date/time, change language, manage storage, and enable PIN protection

There are fewer options than on Pocketbook devices, but everything essential is there.

Battery life is good: I used about 30 % in a week with Wi-Fi off and brightness low. Charging is via USB-C.

Comics, manga, and PDFs

With its 7-inch color screen, the Kindle Colorsoft seems ideal for manga and, indeed, manga reading is excellent. Pages display well without zooming, and color illustrations look great.

You can choose between two display modes for colors:

• Standard: faster refresh, decent colors
• Vivid: richer colors, slightly slower refresh

I didn't see a major difference, though color purists might. Either way, it's a pleasant experience.

For comics, the smaller page size and text bubbles sometimes require zooming making the experience less smooth than with manga.

The PDF color issue: no color ?

You can easily transfer documents using Calibre or by copying files manually via USB. EPUB and PDF both work but there’s a catch:

If you copy a PDF file directly on the Kindle Colorsoft, the colors won’t display.

To view them properly, you must use Amazon's Send to Kindle service: https://www.amazon.com/sendtokindle

That works well (even for large files, I tested a 40 MB one), but it means sending your files to Amazon's servers. For some professional or private documents, that's a confidentiality concern.

Once added through Send to Kindle, your PDFs display correctly in color and appear in your library.

Also note: EPUB covers show properly via Send to Kindle, while sideloaded ones via Calibre don't. Yeah, that's strange...

Conclusion: a good ereader, but too closed and too expensive

The Kindle Colorsoft is a good color e-reader held back by Amazon's closed ecosystem.

You must use Send to Kindle for EPUBs and PDFs to get full functionality, meaning you depend on Amazon's cloud system and the rules could change anytime.

By contrast, Kobo and Pocketbook devices are more open and flexible.

At $279, the Colorsoft is also more expensive than its competitors, offering less freedom.

Still, reading novels and manga on it is a delight.

So this is a great choice for readers who just want a simple, colorful Kindle and plan to buy books directly from Amazon, especially if you can find it for under $200 on sale.

Pros:

• Easy to use
• Beautiful 7-inch color e-ink display

Cons:

• Closed ecosystem (must use Amazon services for file transfers)
• Price much too high for what it offers

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