Amazon just announced a fresh lineup of Kindle devices ahead of the Christmas shopping rush.
There’s a new entry-level Kindle (£134.99), Kindle Paperwhite (£184.99), and Kindle Colorsoft (£259.99). All three models boast faster performance, an aluminium case, and eye-catching new colours.
There’s a look of shared DNA across these new e-readers, but the pricier models in the lineup — Kindle Paperwhite and Colorsoft — also sport a thinner, lighter design to make reading for extended periods more comfortable.
Amazon has also launched new accessories, including a Bluetooth remote control and a protective case with physical page-turn buttons. All of the new devices are available for preorder today, although you might want to hold off until Black Friday as Amazon has increased prices across the board with this top-to-bottom redesign.
Amazon says its engineers “redesigned the new family of devices from the ground up, beginning with a newly designed reverse stack display construction — a first for the e-reader category” that results in a “seamless edge-to-edge display for an uninterrupted page and thinner, more portable device”
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According to Amazon, Kindles are more popular than ever before.
It has seen double-digit growth worldwide for the last three years, with more than 720 billion pages read in 2025 alone. Writing in a blog post about the new Kindle lineup, Amazon Vice President of Devices, Kevin Keith wrote: “With notifications, texts, and emails competing for our attention, distraction-free reading isn’t slowing down — it’s accelerating.”
Here’s a quick rundown of all three new devices, which Amazon executive Kevin Keith says were “rethought at every level to deliver the best Kindle experience yet”.
The most affordable Kindle is available in Graphite or a new Ube, pictured above
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Amazon Kindle
If you’re looking for the most affordable (and most compact) of these new-look devices, Amazon Kindle is the best choice for you. Described by its Vice President of Devices as “the most pocket-sized Kindle we’ve ever made,” this new model arrives with a six-inch black-and-white touchscreen e-ink display, up to 6 weeks of battery life between charges, and 30% faster book opening powered by a new chipset.
The base model is built from plastic — just like its predecessor — and ships in either Ube (a light purple) or Graphite (that’s black, to you and me). However, for the first time, Amazon is offering a model built from aluminium for a “premium feel you notice the moment you pick it up”. Built from 80% recycled aluminium with a matte finish, this should offer a sturdier design that brings the Kindle closer to what you’d expect from a modern smartphone or tablet.
Available in Alpine Sky Aluminium or Seaglass Green Aluminium, this optional upgrade also ships with 32GB of storage, twice what you’ll find on the more affordable model. Either way, you’ll have more than enough space to keep thousands of books in your pocket.
The lighter, thinner chassis is consistent across all new Kindle models in the 2026 lineup, unifying the design of these e-readers
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The flush design — lower-cost Kindle models used to have a sizeable lip where the case met the screen — is thinner and lighter than its predecessor. The entry-level Kindle is 6.8 millimetres thick and tips the scales at 140 grams.
While Kindle Paperwhite used to be the only model with a backlit screen, that’s no longer the case. The entry-level Kindle arrives with an illuminated e-ink screen, so you can read in the dark. The glare-free, paper-like display is designed to keep text sharp at any brightness. Unlike pricier models, there’s no auto-adjusting front light sensor, and the temperature of the screen won’t adjust to match your environment either.
The new Kindle starts at £134.99 and is available in Ube and Graphite. The upgraded aluminium model costs £169.99 and is available in Alpine Sky and Seaglass Green. You can trade in an existing Kindle to save up to 20% on that price, though, and Amazon will even honour that discount if your device is broken.
If you want the Seaglass Green finish, you’ll need to spend extra for the aluminium-built Signature Edition of the Kindle Paperwhite
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Kindle Paperwhite
Like its cheaper cousin, the new Kindle Paperwhite boasts a thinner, lighter design than its predecessor. While its name remains a hangover from when it first introduced a backlight, something that’s now consistent across the lineup, Paperwhite upgrades this feature to an adjustable warm light that matches the ambient light around you.
Amazon Vice President of Devices Kevin Keith says this refreshed device sports “the largest Kindle Paperwhite display with the highest contrast ratio — delivering deep blacks and crisp text, and images that pop off the screen, whether you’re reading in bright sunlight or under the covers at night.”
Amazon is confident that more readers are choosing its devices because of the distraction-free experience — compared with the endless stream of notifications on most smartphones and tablets — and lack of glare on the glass display thanks to its e-ink technology
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Kindle Paperwhite has a seven-inch screen, which is one inch bigger than the standard Amazon Kindle. But it ships with the exact same amount of base storage — 16GB — as the latter.
Despite the thinner and lighter design, Amazon has squeezed enough battery to last up to 12 weeks on a single charge. The new-look remains waterproof too, with an IPX8 rating. This industry-standard endurance test means the new Paperwhite can withstand total immersion in at least one metre of water for a prolonged period. That means reading a page-turner in the bath, pool, or sunlounger on the beach won’t be a problem.
This slimmed-down new Paperwhite starts from £184.99. It ships with a plastic case, one colourway (Graphite), and 16GB of built-in storage.
Amazon has created a separate model, Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, that doubles the storage, switches to an aluminium case, adds a sensor to automatically adjust the brightness of the screen based on your surroundings, a double-tap gesture to turn pages, and a new Seaglass Green colour. That costs £229.99, an extra £45.
Even if you’re not reading graphic novels or travel guides, Colorsoft will display the cover of your next novel or autobiography in full colour
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Kindle Colorsoft
Rounding out the refreshed lineup, Amazon has updated its Colorsoft with the same slender redesign. It arrives with the same glare-free, seven-inch screen as the Kindle Paperwhite, but with support for full colour.
Whether you want an accurate recreation of a book cover when the device is asleep, want to better see diagrams and maps, regularly read graphic novels or travel guides, or want to highlight passages in a variety of shades, this paper-like colour screen should offer a more immersive reading experience. You’ll still benefit from the other perks of an e-ink display, including none of the distracting reflective glare you’ll experience with smartphones and tablets.
Kindle Colorsoft is available with a plastic chassis or an aluminium case, if you’re willing to spend an extra £30 for the Signature Edition
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According to Amazon Vice President of Devices Kevin Keith: “Our latest Kindle Colorsoft has a completely redesigned display, using the reverse printing technology we applied across the lineup for edge-to-edge colour.”
That should result in better clarity across black-and-white and colour content, the company says. The Kindle Colorsoft also relies on new micro-deflectors to “minimise stray light and improve uniformity” across content.
The screen has a built-in backlight with adjustable warmth, letting you move from crisp white to warm amber, so everything on-screen better matches the ambient light around you. Like the Paperwhite before it, this new Colorsoft is IPX8 rated, so splashes, rain, and even an accidental drop in the tub or swimming pool won’t ruin your reading.
Like the Kindle Paperwhite, the Kindle Colorsoft is IPX8-rated. This industry-standard certification means it can survive a drop into at least a metre of water for a prolonged period, meaning there’s no need to worry about an accidental plunge in the bath or swimming pool
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The standard model comes with 16GB of built-in storage. While that’s plenty for books, it won’t go as far if you’re loading up your Kindle Colorsoft with graphic novels, travel guides, or other books with detailed illustrations and colour drawings. Kindle Colorsoft starts from £259.99 and only ships in Graphite.
Like the Paperwhite and entry-level Kindle, there is a premium version with additional storage and more exciting colourways. The Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition is available in Graphite and Fig at £289.99. For that extra £30, you’ll benefit from double the built-in storage (32GB), an aluminium case, an auto-adjusting front light, double-tap page turning, and dock charging via pogo pins. There’s also a Fig colour alongside Graphite in this version.
New Accessories and Kids Models
If you’re shopping for younger readers, you’ll be pleased to know that all three of these redesigned, lighter, thinner Kindle models come in dedicated Kids versions. These boast covers designed by artists and ship with an annual subscription to Amazon Kids+.
The latter is aimed at children between the ages of 3 and 12, and offers unlimited access to thousands of age-appropriate books, games, videos, and apps. Younger Kindle owners can download new books included in the subscription and start reading without intervention from a parent… and no risk of accidentally adding charges to a linked credit card when visiting Amazon’s enormous digital bookstore.
Dedicated Kids versions of all the new Kindle designs arrive with colourful cover cases and an annual subscription to Amazon Kids+, which is aimed at children between 3 – 12 years-old and provides unlimited access to thousands of age-appropriate books, games, videos, and apps
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The Kindle Kids starts at £159.99 and offers three cover designs — Bookman, Pirate Adventure, or Lakeside Retreat. For the Paperwhite Kids at £209.99, you can choose between Twilight Towers or Whisker World. The Colorsoft Kids, priced at £274.99, comes with either Enchanted Woods or Desert Dash covers.
Amazon has also launched several accessories you might find useful.
One of several new accessories announced with the redesign is the Kindle Click. This £31.99 remote uses Bluetooth to turn pages hands-free, and works with all the new models and any Kindle from 2024 onwards
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The Kindle Click at £31.99 is a compact Bluetooth remote that lets you turn pages hands-free, working with all the new models and any Kindle from 2024 onwards. There’s also a Page-Turn Cover at £74.99 with physical buttons, a Charging Dock at £49.99, and various protective covers from £39.99 in materials including knit fabric and leather options.