--- source_url: "https://goodereader.com/blog/kindle/amazon-kindle-colorsoft-16gb-full-review" title: Amazon Kindle Colorsoft 16GB Full Review - Good e-Reader mirrored_at: 2026-08-25T01:02:44.634Z host: goodereader.com cited_in_42a: true mirror_canonical: "https://index.42a.ai/goodereader.com/blog/kindle/amazon-kindle-colorsoft-16gb-full-review" --- > **Original source:** https://goodereader.com/blog/kindle/amazon-kindle-colorsoft-16gb-full-review The Amazon Kindle Colorsoft 16GB model was released a couple of weeks ago, marking the second color e-paper e-book reader from the company. This device is very compelling for people who want to read comics, graphic novels, magazines, and webtoons. There are a few important things to know if you are considering buying this device. It has the same body as the Kindle Paperwhite 12th generation. It utilizes the second-generation screen technology that the 2025 edition of the Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition employs. This results in a greyer background and sharper fonts. It lacks the quick charge system, since it doesn’t have charging coils, and it also lacks an ambient light sensor to automatically adjust the front-lit display. ### Hardware The Kindle Colorsoft 2025 edition features a 7-inch E Ink Kaleido 3 color e-paper display with a black and white resolution of 1264×1680 and 300 PPI, as well as a color resolution of 150. The screen is flush with the bezel and protected by a layer of glass. A Kaleido 3 screen is typically capable of displaying over 4,096 different colors. Amazon uses different screen tech than its competition, such as Kobo and Pocketbook. Amazon uses a custom-formulated coating between the display layers to enhance color, a light guide with micro-deflectors to minimize stray light, and an ultra-thin coating in the display stack to improve optical performance. They built the display on an oxide backplane for sharper contrast and better image quality. Amazon utilizes a front-lit display and color temperature system that provides both warm and cool lighting. They use a total of 25 LED lights, comprising 12 white LEDs and 13 amber LEDs. You can control the screen’s brightness with a slider bar and mix both lights to create a warm screen effect. There is also no ambient light sensor to automatically adjust the brightness. However, the Kindle has the best lighting system in the e-reader industry by far; the screen is very bright, without being overly saturated. Under the hood is a dual-core 2GHz MediaTek processor, 1GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage for storing your digital content. Amazon does not include SD cards on their e-readers to enhance the storage further; instead, they rely on cloud storage. Bluetooth 5.1 will enable you to pair wireless headphones or an external speaker to listen to Audible audiobooks purchased from Amazon. It is important to note that Audible audiobooks are only available in select countries due to licensing issues. The Kindle Colorsoft is rated IPX8 and can withstand immersion in up to 2 meters of fresh water for up to 60 minutes and 0.25 meters for 3 minutes in seawater. If you get it wet in the pool or ocean, it is very important to run it under tap water for a couple of minutes; otherwise, many of the internal components will corrode. A USB-C port is available for transferring sideloaded content to the device, utilizing an MTP file system, which may not be compatible with most computers without the installation of specific drivers. You can bypass this by installing Kindle for PC from the Amazon website or Kindle for MAC from the App Store. It is powered by a 2310 mAh battery, the same size as the one in the Signature Edition, which is expected to last 8 hours on a single charge. Amazon is using a different color scheme for this device, black, whereas the existing Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition has a metallic black finish. I noticed that the new Colorsoft tends to attract fingerprints more easily than the more expensive version. However, the 16GB model is slightly lighter, weighing 7.6 oz, while the Signature Edition weighs 7.7 oz. The decreased amount of weight is due to the absence of a quick charging coil on the back plate. ### Software Amazon has always used Linux as the operating system for the Kindle, and every generation has relied on it. There are several significant reasons for this choice. Linux is highly stable, allowing for the use of smaller batteries since it has no background processes. E-reader features efficiently consume less power. E Ink does not generate power independently; it only draws power when the state changes. For example, if you navigate the Kindle, access the settings menu, or click on Goodreads, power will be used. However, when you are simply reading what is displayed on the screen, no additional power is consumed. The UI is straightforward; you have a home screen comprising the last three books you bought or read. A giant search bar at the top allows you to find books in your library or online. Amazon. Next to the search bar is a shopping cart icon, and clicking on it brings you to the Amazon Bookstore; if you live in a supported country, the bookstore will have two tabs when it’s opened: “Bookstore” and “Audiobook Store.” Three little dots are next to the shopping icon, which covers the settings menu. This is where the Goodreads link is, alongside many other options such as the settings menu, setting up the screen timeout, screensaver, and generation reading settings. Above the search bar is a downwards tab, where you can establish a WIFI connection, adjust screen brightness, turn the device into airplane mode, or sync. One of the good things about this e-reader is that everything is in full glorious colour. At the bottom of the UI are two options: home and library. Between is a small piece of cover art from the last book you opened; clicking on it lets you dive right into the story, making it easier to get started. The Library menu hasn’t changed much over the years; it lists your books on the device. You can sort them and make folder collections for better organization. Some people like the cover view, which makes sense on Colorsoft since all the cover art is in full colour. The Amazon bookstore is one of the main reasons for investing in Kindle Colorsoft. They have the largest selection of books in the world. You will find all the same bestsellers by well-known authors that will be promoted at your local Barnes and Noble, Waterstones, or Chapters Indigo. There is also a slew of content from small and mid-range publishers specializing in one genre, such as TOR with fantasy and science fiction. Amazon has imprints, where they invest in established and up-and-coming authors and publish the books themselves. There is also Kindle Direct Publishing, which allows anyone to publish and sell books on Amazon. If you like to read a lot, there is the Kindle Unlimited Program, where you can read millions of comics, books, and manga for a low monthly fee. If you have a child who uses your device, consider the Kids+ subscription, which offers family-friendly content from publishers like Disney. There is something for everyone on the Amazon bookstore, along with a variety of optional programs. You will find more content on Amazon than its rivals, such as Barnes and Noble Nook or Kobo. Audible is one of Amazon’s secret weapons, a feature they have been leveraging on Kindle e-readers, starting with the 10th generation series and moving into the 11th and now 12th. They all had secret Bluetooth functionality and, once paired with headphones or a wireless speaker, allowed you to listen to audiobooks right on the Kindle. The audiobook player is polished. Connecting your Bluetooth device and adjusting playback speed from various settings are options. You can skip chapters, view chapters, look for similar audiobooks, see the cover art, and more. It is very similar to using the Audible app on Android or iOS. So, if you regularly listen on your phone, the same options are available on Kindle. ### Reading You would buy Kindle Colorsoft for many reasons besides reading a typical e-book. Sure, reading is fine; the text is sharp. However, the real power lies in non-fiction titles with many images, magazines, manga, comics, and more. Magazines are primarily found on Kindle Unlimited, but you can buy graphic novels, comics, and manga individually or purchase the entire series at the Amazon bookstore. Webtoons can be read on an internet browser, which underwent a major upgrade a year ago. There is a current bug with the Kindle Colorsoft, specifically with PDF files. PDF files [do not show up in colour](https://goodereader.com/blog/kindle/sideloaded-kindle-colorsoft-pdf-files-do-not-show-up-in-color), no matter how you sideload them. They will only be in black and white. The only way to get them in colour is to use the [Send to Kindle](https://amzn.to/4fmokXh) web link, Send to Kindle for PC, or Send to Kindle for Email. We used Send to Kindle for Web, since it supports a 200MB document.  This is what we did in our YouTube review, and it worked fine_._ When buying e-books from Amazon, most customers don’t worry about the book format. This only applies if you are downloading free books from the internet or sideloading your collection. The Kindle Colorsoft supports Kindle Format 8 (AZW3), Kindle (AZW), TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively; PDF, DOCX, DOC, HTML, EPUB, TXT, RTF, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP through conversion; Audible audio format (AAX) The Kindle reading system includes a profile section where you can save your settings, such as line spacing, margins, font size, and font type. You can share the Kindle with multiple family members, each with their custom settings. One feature I enjoy about the e-reading experience is the option to disable the time remaining in a chapter or the current page number. The ability to hide the status bar or turn it off completely is genuinely excellent. You can configure this in the Aa menu. You can pinch and zoom to increase the font size when reading a book. This is useful since you no longer must do this exclusively on the AA menu. You can do some options while reading, such as long-pressing on a specific word or body of text. This will provide options like making notes or annotations. You can look up words in the built-in dictionary and check what Wikipedia says. The Kindle also uses Bing Translations on all its e-readers so that you can translate a specific word or a body of text from one language to another. If you highlight a block of text or a single word, you can share it via Facebook, Twitter, GoodReads, or email instead of looking it up. Highlights in books are nothing new on the Kindle, but highlighting in colour on an e-reader is. You get six different primary colours when holding your finger on a specific word or a body of text. Highlights are saved on your device and then synced to the cloud. This is good since if you view the same book on the Kindle app for Android, iOS, or a Fire tablet, all highlights will be preserved. The [Amazon Kindle Colorsoft](https://goodereader.com/blog/kindle/the-amazon-kindle-has-a-new-spacing-system#) e-reader has a new feature that will enhance the reading experience of e-books, which was issued in June 2025.  It is called “Spacing,” and this new system includes: Paragraph Spacing, Word Spacing, and Character Spacing. These new options will provide users more flexibility and control over the e-book experience. This new system is available not only for books purchased from Amazon but also for sideloaded ones. The spacing system has been relocated slightly and is no longer displayed on the front page of the font menu. To make changes, navigate to the font menu and tap SPACING. There are four spacing options available for each, and they feature a small slider bar to control the text easily. All Kindle models have a system called X-Ray. If you have never used it, it breaks down people, places, and things. It will tell you the book’s major and minor characters, let you know on what page they were referenced, and give a quick character biography. The Kindle 11th generation has an option in X-Ray called “Images,” which will show you all the images in a book you read. Most books have cover art, but there are many genres, such as autobiographies, that have dozens of covers. Viewing all of this in colour on an e-reader is tremendous. ### Wrap Up Amazon has finally fixed the dreaded yellow band issue at the bottom of the screen. This was very pronounced with the Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition 2024 model when reading with the front-lit screen turned on. Amazon attempted to resolve the issue with multiple firmware updates, but none were successful. Amazon finally solved this issue by making changes to the screen assembly and the motherboard. The Kindle Colorsoft 16GB was the first new e-reader with all these fixes, making reading e-books more enjoyable. The background is as grey as a Paperwhite, and the fonts are deeper and blacker. However, when just reading e-books, the Colorsoft [kinda sucks at it,](https://goodereader.com/blog/kindle/the-kindle-colorsoft-is-not-good-at-reading-books) no matter how many changes they make. The 12th generation Kindle Paperwhite or the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition does a way better job at just reading books. Amazon is really [bullish about color e-paper](https://goodereader.com/blog/kindle/amazon-is-going-all-in-with-kindle-color-e-readers) and has launched the Color e-paper 16GB in Australia, Canada, the USA, and the United Kingdom, in addition to other European countries. It is way easier to buy this model than the more expensive Kindle Color e-paper Signature Edition 2025. This model is only available in the UK, Netherlands, and Japan. If you want to save a bit of money, consider buying the Colorsoft 16GB. It also comes with a color screen, which is useful for buying stuff from the Kindle Store or comics. Magazines are only available via Kindle Unlimited, so you have to take out a subscription to read them. You will not want to buy too many audiobooks, as 16GB is insufficient for downloading many, especially when considering all your other purchases and downloads. $249.99 4.25 ### Industrial Design 4.5/5 ### Software 5.0/5 ### Sound 3.5/5 ### Audiobooks 4.0/5 ### Reading 4.3/5 ## Pros - Revised Color Display - Can Play Audiobooks - Good For Comics and Magazines - E-book Cover Art looks good - Available in lots of countries ## Cons - 16GB is not very much - B&W e-reader better for pure e-books - Siideloading is difficult - $30 less expensive than Signature Edition - For Casual Readers ![](https://goodereader.com/blog/wp-content/litespeed/avatar/c4220b691ed223f47c3559b96d68c424.jpg?ver=1787068782) ##### [Michael Kozlowski](https://goodereader.com/blog/author/michael-kozlowski) Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.