Amazon Kindle Scribe (16 GB) - Now write directly on books and documents. With built-in notebook summarization. A Kindle and notebook, all in one. Includes Basic Pen

I ordered this one as soon as it was announced and hadn't really realized how short on functionality it was going to ship with, but I'm still extremely happy with it so far.First up, it's a very nice Kindle device and is amazing for reading my books on. I adore the screen on it, and it's very snappy and responsive to navigate and write on. The screen size is also wonderful for reading on for my nearly 50 year old eyes that have somehow slipped into reminding me of my age by needing multi-focal lenses. One thing on this front that I miss from my Oasis is the buttons on the margin for page flipping. Those are nice on that device, although I don't hate that they're missing from this one, I just kind of wish they were there. Another thing I'm a little annoyed with is no 4G or 5G built in. I'll live without it and tethering isn't hard these days, but it's an annoyance that didn't need to exist on at least the top end models.I love the writing experience on the device, too. It's not smooth as glass like my iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil, it's much more like writing on paper. But it has a similar quick response to writing input that makes it feel pretty natural and not artificial or annoying, so Amazon have worked that part out well.The functionality is very basic at this point, which is probably the most negative aspect of the device. But it's actually SO basic that I have few doubts that this isn't in the pipeline to be addressed in software updates over the next several months. I would suggest not gambling on that if the cost is prohibitive to you because you should always make your purchase decisions on what you actually get when you buy, and not based on future promises or a naive belief that what you want will be delivered at any point. I can afford to live with my device as is, and it'll still meet the needs of why I bought it, just not optimally, if they don't add what I consider the missing functionality to it. That's not going to be true for everyone.The hardware they've used does support everything needed for all the additional features that I suspect Amazon is planning to add, if they've fully implemented it in the hardware, and at this price point, I believe they have, but I don't know it for sure.Things I think it's missing are:Pressure sensitivity for the penA wider array of writing tools (drawing tools primarily)Stroke based storage instead of converting strokes to pixelsAbility to zoom in and out of notes and drawingsHandwriting recognitionRelated to handwriting recognition, the ability to search note contentsMore organization options for notesPerhaps a second app to segment writing from drawing functions, but this isn't a want, just a speculation on how they may approach some of these features if they add themBetter Kindle integration - like having notes automatically sync to other Kindle devices and apps on other devices, more robust sharing options and integrating with other products like Office apps or drawing exports, etc.Ways to mark up a book with the pen beyond just the current sticky notes. This is a complicated ask because of the way ebooks are formatted, but it isn't unsolvable.My hope is that they are responsive to customer feedback and this becomes the premier Kindle e-ink device, and that they add this functionality to the current devices rather than milking them by only adding them to newer models. It seems more likely that they'll add most or all of the functionality to these devices, because otherwise they'd create a massive amount of customer backlash that they'd have to needlessly overcome, and that just isn't logical or necessary, so I think we'll see at least some of these features added over the coming several months to a year or two.

I bought this for several reasons;- Easily organize notes on different clients for work- Be able to write creatively and have the ability to save it digitally- Replace my unsupported very old paperwhite kindleI work with many clients in my job. I like being able to take quick notes on paper during meetings. I tried a variety of ways of organizing physical paper notebooks and pages between clients and nothing was efficient. I was always defaulting to writing on consecutive pages in one big notebook for different clients and then having to flip back through to find the spread-out information for a single client. I tried physical folders and notebooks with removeable sheets of paper. I tried multiple different paper notebooks for clients. None of this was efficient and certainly unreasonable to travel with.So I started to research digital notebooks. I almost pulled the trigger on the reMarkable 2 on two separate occasions. I got all the way through the selection process and couldn't get myself to pay the $500 plus for such a limited device.Other digital notepads had a crazy cheaper price point but were not at all comparable according to online reviews.I happened to finally come across this Kindle Scribe and after watching YouTube comparisons between this and the reMarkable notebooks, I felt the pros of this one won me over. Especially when they mentioned that the ink lags less with this one versus reMarkables.Forty minutes into my experience, I am already super happy with my decision and I know this is going to solve my multi-client note taking issues for work.Out of the box this device is super intuitive to set up and use. I looked at zero instructions before setting up and using it. (I had seen review videos but nothing too instructional.) If you follow the set up steps (your only option), it leads you to the typical overview of a device where it highlights your various settings and options. I have had kindles before, but even the new stuff on here was very intuitive and easy to navigate.The pen is quick enough (not laggy) that I do not mind writing digitally at all. IF I were using this for artistic purposes, I'd have a small issue with it. But I don't really notice the lag once I'm writing quickly and focused on work. My handwriting looks ever so slightly worse on here than in person but overall, considering I dislike lag, this device doesn't seem to lag problematically at all - it's negligible.I can tell I'm not writing on paper, but the feel isn't slippery at all. It's pleasing. I'm sure this is in part due to the pen too, which is the pen that has the eraser (more expensive of two options).The screen looks just like an old paperwhite kindle, but you can adjust the brightness and also the warmth of the screen. I love this option. I'm sure I'll be adjusting it in different lighting.It's easy to navigate from your kindle library to your notebooks for writing/drawing. You can create a folder to organize your notebooks. I have a work folder, inside of which I have a separate lined w/margin notebook for each client, plus a check box notebook for my work to-do's. Outside of the work folder, I have a personal To-Do list. I love the ability to organize work and personal notes and carry it all in one device that is smaller than the old lined notebook I was carrying.In terms of the ink styles and highlighting, there are options of thickness for ink ranging from thinner than my mechanical pencil to roughly the thickness of a regular (not fine tip) Sharpie. When you click the button on the pen, it turns into a highlighter. I didn't think I'd necessarily need an eraser because I almost never need one when writing with a pen or pencil, but on this device I've used it a lot. It's easier to erase with a digital eraser than a physical one, so I'm less apt to strike through something, and more likely to erase it (something my past writing teachers would hate). Also, because my handwriting is slightly impacted by the digital aspect, it's nice to have an eraser for cleaning up truly sloppy letters. So, it's worth it to me to have spent $15 more for the higher end stylus with the eraser.I made a few more hand-written notes on my device (see photo).As I employ this for work and fun, I'll come back to post any pertinent updates. I'm particularly interested to see the capabilities for transferring the notes off of this device and into my work google drive.After 1 solid week of use, I am comfortable with this device and absolutely love it. I ended up adding two grips to the pen to make it comfortable to write. It won't adhere magnetically to the side now, but I purchased a case that has a pen holder.Today I discovered that you can add blank pages to notebooks and reorder the pages. This is fantastic as I recently decided to add a cover page to each of my notebooks to track the top level details of each client.I so highly recommend switching to a digital notepad if you're a pen and paper note taker. It's much more versatile than trying to switch to typed note taking.Update after 2 years of use (May 2025):I am so glad I purchased this. I have used it daily for work for two years. It is easy to silo work folders and notebooks from my personal folders and notebooks. I use it while traveling because I can access all of my kindle books for personal use and I have all of my client notes for work with me. It works great, no different than when it was brand new. A charge lasts weeks! I added pen grips to the stylus for comfort. Overall, highly recommend.Side note - if you like to sketch and do creative writing, this is great because you have endless paper while traveling. If I'm in a meeting, sometimes I concentrate better if I can doodle on a page. I make doodles/marks while making my important notes and then I can easily erase the doodles later. If I randomly think of something I want to build in my yard during a meeting, I can flip one page, sketch my design, and flip back. Then later I can cut and paste or move that entire page to another notebook. Fabulous for A.D.D.