Amazon's next Kindle could be full-colour but still easy on the eyes

When it comes to Kindles and tablets that also double up as e-readers, the tablets may look shinier and slicker but I will always choose the Kindle for reading a book digitally. 

That's because even though it may look fairly no frills, the E Ink display on the best Kindles is much easier for me to look at and focus on for long periods. It's the next best thing to real paper (sadly without that new book smell) whereas the thought of staring intently at a tablet display has a headache already forming in my mind. As a concession for this paper-like display, however, Kindles haven't yet embraced colour screens. That could be set to change. 

According to renowned tipster Min Chi Kuo Kindles from 2025 will "likely use E Ink’s color e-paper, Advanced Color ePaper (ACeP)". Kuo believes that we will see this technology on 7-inch and 10-inch Kindle models. 

Apparently, Amazon's adoption of the technology is in response to some e-readers from rivals (including Kobo and reMarkable) that will be released later this year and also have colour displays. There's no doubt that Kindles are the dominant brand in e-readers so Amazon staying up to date is essential. Keeping the e-paper look with added colour would be a brilliant upgrade. 

The widespread introduction of colour into e-readers could the way we read on them. In black and white, things like comic books and children's picture books aren't particularly ideal. A colour-enabled Kindle could become the perfect tool for bedtime stories. 

There is one area for concern, however, price. Kuo reports that "The unit price of ACeP is significantly higher than Kaleido and monochrome e-paper, thanks to better specs/performance." In fact, he estimates that the unit price could jump from as much as 40-60%, hopefully that's not fully translated to customers. 

It would also create a two-tiered system in the Kindle store. Will those without colour devices be able to choose from the same titles as those who do have a newer one? Will they cost the same price to download?  I guess we'll find out in the next chapter.