5 Kindle options I would like to see in 2026

After solely trickling out new gadgets for ages, Amazon lastly introduced a serious {hardware} refresh in September, as an example placing out up to date Blink cameras and Echo audio system. For readers, the massive 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 lots of 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 accustomed to 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 following era. A few of these modifications 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 probably 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 lots of advantages past buying elsewhere, or accessing titles you already personal with out paying a second time for a Kindle copy. It might additionally broaden sharing, notetaking, and illustration prospects, and probably 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 electronic mail.

For Joe Public, the one critical draw back to that is optimization. An OS like Android needs to be scaled again for e-ink gadgets, which implies some apps will not run effectively or in any respect — making an attempt to look at a YouTube video on a Word 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 simple 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’s miles simpler to hit a button repeatedly than swipe the identical variety of instances, or swap to a guide’s progress slider. The purpose of any Kindle is to calm down greater than I might with a telephone or pc.

The percentages 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 reduce manufacturing prices alongside the way in which. 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 form of grassroots marketing campaign that persuades it of the gross sales potential.

A built-in kickstand

Palms-free when you could be

This concept is one thing I hadn’t truly 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 gadgets, it is true — however whenever you’re studying for an prolonged time frame, even the lightest Kindle can turn into tiring. Though I’d be capable of bench press practically 250 kilos on the gymnasium, simply half a pound goes to turn into 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 turn into rather a lot simpler whenever you’re not resting a pill in your lap. You should purchase a canopy that folds right into a stand, if you happen to want too — but when the Nintendo Switch 2 can ship with a kickstand, there is not any purpose a Scribe cannot additionally. It is likely to be a minor motivation for somebody to improve from a less expensive Kindle mannequin.

A number of person 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 father or mother with an iPad can attest. It is an arbitrary barrier, seemingly supposed to drive us to purchase a number of gadgets when one would in any other case do. You would not tolerate a Mac or Home windows PC that blocked your companion 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 foremost objective is studying, and it might be unusual certainly if you happen to had a bodily copy of a guide however advised 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 enticing to prospects in the event that they knew two individuals may cut up one — for the price of two Scribes, you would possibly as effectively purchase a MacBook Air or Floor Professional.

Extra visible customization

This is not 2007 anymore

Actually, 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 lately that 16GB turned a regular capability. Previous to the primary Colorsoft, there wasn’t even a lot visible attraction to what was onscreen. I did like a few of the ad-free lockscreens on my outdated Paperwhite, but principally, they had been simply higher than a clean display.

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