Amazon is giving the Kindle its most significant physical redesign in years, introducing a refreshed lineup of e-readers built around a deceptively simple idea: get rid of the raised bezel.
The redesigned Kindle unveiled Thursday replaces the traditional raised bezel around the display with a flush-front design, creating a cleaner, more seamless look. But bezels also give readers a place to rest their fingers without accidentally touching the screen and triggering a page turn or other touchscreen command. Amazon says it has developed around this problem.
At a press briefing, Kevin Keith, Amazon’s vice president of devices, said the company uses “cap” (capacitive) touch technology and haptics to create what he describes as a “dead zone.” As a reader grips the Kindle, the device detects where a finger is pointing and adjusts the touch-sensitive area accordingly.
“When you grab the Kindle, no matter where you put your thumb, it will automatically detect a dead zone in the cap touch. It will just readjust, and it will know that the finger is there,” Keith said.
In addition to the bezel-free redesign, the standard six-inch Kindle is now 6.8 millimeters thick and weighs 140 grams, making it thinner and lighter than its predecessor. Amazon positions it as the most pocket-friendly Kindle in the lineup.
Amazon said the new display is also 30% faster at opening the book than the previous generation. The lineup also introduces new colors including Ube, Alpine Sky, Seaglass Green, Graphite, and Fig.
The new Kindle starts at $149.99 and is available in Ube and Graphite. For the first time, Amazon is also offering an aluminum-backed version, with 32GB of storage and color options including Alpine Sky and Seaglass Green.
The redesign extends to the Kindle Paperwhite, which is also thinner and lighter than the previous generation.
Amazon describes the Paperwhite as the largest display in the Kindle lineup, along with the highest contrast ratio. The company says the combination is designed to deliver “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.”
The standard Paperwhite comes with 16GB of storage and costs $199.99 in Graphite. A 32GB Signature Edition costs $249.99 and is available in Graphite and Seaglass Green.
The Kindle Colorsoft, which Amazon introduced in 2024 as its first Kindle with a color display, also adopts the thinner, lighter, flush-front design used in the refreshed lineup. The standard Colorsoft has 16GB of storage and starts at $289.99 in Graphite. A 32GB Signature Edition is available in Graphite and Fig for $319.99.
The new Kindle and its aluminum version are available starting today in the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Ireland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Poland, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Australia.
The new Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Colorsoft are available for pre-order in the same regions.
Amazon also continues to offer its children’s lineup. The Kids Kindle is currently available for purchase, while the Kids Kindle Colorsoft is available for pre-order in the US, Canada, UK, Germany and Japan.
Correction: An earlier version of this article said the 6-in Kindle was 30% faster at page turns; it is 30% faster on book opening. The article has been updated to reflect the correct figure.
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