Important Takeaways

• The Kindle Scribe's e-ink display has the maximum resolution of any large e-ink notebook.
• It is nonetheless a Kindle e-reader.
• The Scribe will be available for purchase later this year.

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E-Ink is utilized for more than just e-readers such as the Kindle and Kobo. It is also used in supermarket shelf labels so that prices can be updated centrally, and one of its most innovative applications is in note-taking devices, such as e-readers that support markers and allow you to take notes and annotate PDFs. It's a niche use, but a popular one, and Amazonhas finally created the Kindle Scribe for taking notes.

"The Scribe's modern features make the classic Kindle appealing to both younger and older generations," Troy Portillo, director of operations at online learning platform Studypool, told Lifewire in an email. It is beneficial for students, writers, researchers, and historians. The Kindle Scribe is ideal for those who enjoy taking notes and annotating their reading. I cannot wait to get my paws on one!"

Write Up and Write Down

E-Ink screens are inferior to the displays on our smartphonesand iPads in several ways. They are typically monochrome (although color e-ink displays do exist), and their refresh rate is too slow to support the user-interface animation we are accustomed to.

In contrast, they operate on reflected light and only require power when altering the image or words, allowing them to be read in bright, direct sunlight, with a battery life measured in weeks, not hours. The primary purpose of ereaders is that e-ink is more comfortable to read than LCD or OLED screens for many individuals.

These benefits also apply to e-ink note-taking devices such as the Boox series and ReMarkable 2. They can be utilized similarly to paper and left on the desk without concern for the battery running out. Additionally, they are typically thinner and lighter than tablets.

You could always use paper, but paper notes cannot be searched and cannot be annotated like PDFs. Additionally, these e-notebooks are excellent e-readers.

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Kindle Scribe

Amazon's Kindle Scribe has a 10.2-inch, 300-dpi display, which is a higher resolution than the majority of e-notebooks. It also has a built-in front illumination with LEDs that illuminate the screen from the edges, allowing you to read in low light. The ReMarkable 2 lacks a front illumination, much less one with an adjustable temperature like the Scribe.

There are two alternatives for pens. Premium adds a virtual eraser and a shortcut icon to the functionality of Basic.

The Scribe is a significant deal because Kindle is the market leader in ebooks, so the addition of a notetaking device to the lineup could be instrumental in the growth of the industry as a whole. And if e-ink notebooks become more prevalent, perhaps the available options will increase, and we will have better devices overall.

The Scribe is also noteworthy because it does not directly compete with the Boox or the ReMarkable. These brands offer large devices devoted to notetaking, whereas the Scribe is considerably smaller, with notetaking as a secondary feature. The greatest pitfall is that syncing your notes to the desktop occurs via the Kindle app, which is already a dreadful app, even for keeping track of the books you have purchased.

Kobo vs Kindle

Therefore, the Scribe's direct competitor is Kobo's Elipsa. The Elipsa features a 10.3-inch screen with 227 dpi, a front illumination, and a stylus. The smaller Kobo Sage has a 300dpi screen, but the Kindle Scribe triumphs in this larger size category. Similarly to the Scribe, the Elipsa lacks tangible page-turning buttons.

The absence of page turning keys on the Kindle Scribe is a tragedy, according to technology writer Richard Holmes on Twitter. "Because you must do something to turn the page, the clickiness of page-turning buttons helps to simulate the physical page-turning experience."

Other than the screen, the primary difference between Kobos and Kindles is the software. After years of using the Kindle, I now prefer the Kobo due to its superior typography and user interface. However, the Kobo has one major advantage over other note-taking devices: It integrates with the Pocket read-later service, allowing you to read articles on your devices. Unfortunately, you cannot highlight them, and the Kindle's own read-on-Kindle service is cumbersome and does not sync.

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The Scribe could be the start of a surge in e-notebooks, or it could be just another mediocre Kindle from Amazon. If you are intrigued, you will be able to purchase one for $340 later this year.