The Kindle Scribe Is A Reader And Note Taker's Dream Device

ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• The Amazon Kindle Scribe is connected waste for $259 for nan 16GB version, aliases $299 erstwhile bundled pinch nan folio lawsuit and adapter.
• It combines nan acquainted features of nan Kindle e-reader pinch a agleam show and a suite of premium note-taking features.
• The aforementioned features person a spot of a learning curve to afloat return advantage of.

Amazon's latest Kindle Scribe tin beryllium considered a 2-in-1, arsenic it's some a note-taking tablet and a dedicated e-reader. It does some well, and it stands retired from nan crowd because of really it combines these 2 features. Right now, each 3 configurations are 19% off, bringing nan guidelines 16GB type down to $325, 1 of nan lowest prices we've seen. 

The Scribe's beingness shape facet is sleek and light, pinch a heavy grip that allows it to beryllium easy held by either your correct aliases near hand, arsenic turning it upside down realigns nan perspective. Along pinch its satisfying shape facet is nan Scribe's entree to Kindle's already-massive room of e-books. 

Also: I tested nan Kindle astir group should buy. Here's why it's nan champion e-reader retired of nan lineup

The Kindle Scribe's standout feature, however, is its "Active Canvas," which allows you to return notes and scribble your thoughts straight onto nan pages of your book -- thing that resonates pinch maine personally arsenic an avid note-taker. 

The newest Scribe comes pinch a pen that allows you to alteration your brushwood size and style from a pen for separator scribbling to a highlighter if you'd alternatively stress definite parts of nan text. The cool creation constituent present is that nan notes you tie pinch nan cookware beryllium connected different "layer" than nan book text, allowing you to edit what you constitute without messing pinch nan matter successful nan book. 

Also: The champion Kindles you tin bargain successful 2025

In practice, nan progressive canvas appears arsenic a blank abstraction successful betwixt nan matter wherever you tin jot down your thoughts. I tin spot this functionality being useful for definite texts, but it mightiness beryllium a spot distracting for others. I really recovered that I preferred utilizing nan sticky notes function, which drops a mini icon connected nan matter that, erstwhile tapped, opens up a floating model pinch your notes that tin past beryllium closed. 

The pen is 1 of nan Scribe's champion features, however. It delivers a soft and lag-free penning acquisition connected par pinch high-end tablet/stylus devices for illustration nan ReMarkable Paper Pro, which is 1 of my favourite all-time devices. 

The extremity of nan pen is soft and textured, resulting successful a silky, silent penning acquisition that feels precisely for illustration a "real" pencil. It's weighty, feels premium, and attaches to nan broadside of nan instrumentality pinch a magnetic snap, though you do person to align it conscionable correct to get it to stick. 

Note-takers who don't person nan astir elegant penmanship tin easy construe their handwriting into matter and past edit nan font and size further. This is simply a awesome measurement to cleanable up and shape hastily taken notes that you tin prevention for further reference, peculiarly if your penning leaves thing to beryllium desired.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

The on-board AI is very bully astatine parsing moreover nan astir illegible chickenhearted scratch, though it does get a small dodgy if your handwriting approaches complete illegibility. 

The show connected nan Kindle Scribe is rather nice, if alternatively akin to different Kindle models. It has 300 pixels per inch, which results successful good and crisp text, moreover pinch nan tiniest fonts. The surface tin besides get rather bright, making it easy to spot outdoors. You tin besides set nan warmth of nan display, going each nan measurement to a much sepia-toned image connected 1 extremity aliases a cool achromatic connected nan other.

Also: Why nan Kindle Paperwhite is my favourite E Ink scholar correct now - beating Boox and Kobo

Regarding artillery life, Amazon advertises up to 12 weeks connected a azygous complaint if you publication for astir 30 minutes a day, but that number starts to spell down if you usage Scribe for tons of penning and note-taking. In my testing complete nan people of a fewer weeks, I only bothered charging nan instrumentality a fewer times, and pinch intermittent, mean use, you'll astir apt get aggregate weeks retired of a azygous charge. 

The instrumentality itself comes pinch either 16GB, 32GB, aliases 64GB of on-device storage, which is rather a batch of abstraction for e-books. In practice, this is capable abstraction to clasp thousands of books, capable for a veritable integer library.

The instrumentality is geared to shop much than conscionable e-books, however. If you're utilizing nan Scribe, you're astir apt going to beryllium taking tons of notes. You shape them by keeping them successful notebooks, which, for illustration beingness ones, are books pinch aggregate pages.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

Notebooks are past further organized by folders, which you tin sanction and categorize, allowing you to support your contented streamlined. Even amended is nan myriad of "paper" selections you tin take to constitute your notes on, including checklists, regular and play planners, trackers, and moreover storyboard templates. 

This opens nan instrumentality up to beryllium a tin note-taking tablet successful its ain right, pinch conscionable capable creation devices to let for a robust characteristic group without each nan bells and whistles of different high-end tablets. In different words, location whitethorn beryllium a constricted number of brushes and marker functions, but nan ones person worked smoothly, pinch zero lag aliases mendacious inputs.

The Kindle Scribe besides features immoderate AI functions, of course. The on-device AI tin summarize up to 15 pages successful a notebook, extracting cardinal takeaways from nan matter successful a neat summary that, successful my testing, is astir connected par pinch commonly utilized AI services recovered connected different platforms. In different words, it's mostly accurate, though analyzable accusation tin nutrient generic-sounding results.

Also: I trial tablets for a surviving and this is nan Samsung tablet I urge nan most

Aside from your collections of notes, nan Kindle keeps everything you've highlighted crossed aggregate texts successful a "Clippings" folder, which tin beryllium ace adjuvant for automatically looking astatine cardinal accusation astatine a glance. 

Of course, nan Kindle Scribe is group up to make buying e-books arsenic seamless arsenic possible, pinch Amazon's Kindle Store easy accessible connected nan instrumentality and tons of ways to hunt for what you want to read. Depending connected really overmuch you scheme connected utilizing nan device, you tin acquisition e-books individually aliases outpouring for nan Kindle Unlimited membership, which gives you unlimited entree to (most) titles pinch a subscription of $11.99 per month.

Right now, Amazon is offering a free 30-day proceedings of Kindle Unlimited, truthful it's worthy checking it retired to spot if you'll get nan astir retired of it. If you're a slower reader, you mightiness want to opt for individual purchases. 

ZDNET's buying advice

All successful all, nan Kindle Scribe is an e-reader designed for readers who for illustration to prosecute pinch their texts, doodlers, note-takers, and list-makers who for illustration to "just constitute it down." At nan waste value of $324 for nan 16GB version, nan Scribe is competitively priced arsenic a functional tablet, and unless you really request a larger device, I'd opportunity it's surely 1 of nan champion options retired there, taking into relationship its afloat suite of features. 

However, support successful mind that nan 32GB type is regularly priced astatine $420, and if you want 64GB, you'll salary $450. This brings nan value successful statement pinch the ReMarkable Paper Pro, an ultra-premium instrumentality pinch galore much features for note-taking (color display, myriad of brushwood selections, etc.) but little successful nan measurement of easy-to-access e-books. 

If you're not personification who needs to scribble connected nan page aliases return a highlighter to what you're reading, nan Scribe is still a top-tier e-reader pinch a grippable, flippable shape facet and a agleam show and awesome battery. 

Looking for nan adjacent champion product? Get master reviews and editor favorites with ZDNET Recommends.