There has been a host of new e-readers lately, or will be coming out soon. Not to mention older devices that are more popular than ever, such as the latest Kindle and Kobo ones that came out in 2024. We have a new foldable Gallery 3 e-reader coming out soon and the new Onyx ones, which were announced last week. Are you going to buy a new e-reader in 2025, and what one will it be?
Readmoo Mooink V
Readmoo unveiled the Mooink V at Touch Taiwan, which is likely the most significant event of the year regarding fun e-paper technology. The Mooink V is the first foldable e-reader with a giant 8-inch touchscreen display. The screen can be folded to fit perfectly in a pocket and has two reading angles: fully open, 180 degrees, and 90 degrees. It is made of an aluminum-magnesium alloy, and the foldable crease, when open, is hardly noticeable. It also employs an E INK Gallery 3 color e-paper with 300 PPI resolution. This might be the ultimate e-reader.
The E Ink Gallery panel used this time has undergone the development of multiple new materials, stacking optimization, and has passed 200,000 bending tests. It took 9 years to develop and reach mass production level. It can display close to 50,000 different colors, and new tech has increased page-turn and device speed.
There is no release date or price yet, but it should be available in the next few months.
Onyx Boox Go 2025
Onyx Boox announced two new Go e-readers this past week. One is a black-and-white e-reader, and the other has the same specs, except it uses a Kaleido 3 e-paper display.
The Go 7 features a 7-inch E INK Carta 1300 e-paper display with a resolution of 1680 x 1264 with 300 PPI. The device’s body is black, and the screen is flush with the bezel and protected by a layer of glass. It has white and amber LED lights that read in the dark. The front-lit display and color temperature system can be mixed to provide a tremendous reading experience. A G-sensor will automatically switch the orientation from portrait to landscape mode.
The Go 7 Color Gen 2 features a 7-inch E INK Kaleido 3 color e-paper display. The black and white resolution is 1680 x 1264 with 300 PPI, while the color resolution is 150. The device’s body is white, and the screen is flush with the bezel and protected by a layer of glass.
Underneath the hood is an Octa-core processor, 4GB of RAM, and 64GB of internal storage. If this is not enough space to house your audiobooks, e-books, comics, or PDF files, an SD card is capable of an additional 1 TB. There is a single speaker, so if you want to listen to music or audiobooks, you will want to take advantage of wireless earbuds or headphones thanks to the Bluetooth 5.1 support. Surf the web or download apps via WIFI. A USB-C port is available to transfer content to the Go 7, and it’s also used to charge the device. It is powered by a 2,300 mAh battery.
The Go 7 is available as a pre-order for $249.99, and the Go 7 Color Gen 2 is coming soon.
Amazon Kindle Colorsoft
The Amazon Kindle Colorsoft is their first color e-reader, explicitly designed for reading e-books. It is the first device from Amazon to feature a color e-paper screen, making it easy to read various types of digital content, including comics, magazines, manga, and webtoons. Now that most of the screen tech bugs have been worked out, this is my most recommended Kindle you can buy right now. It will be on sale for a few days before it returns to full price. However, Amazon regularly discounts it every couple of months. Likely, the next sale will occur on Mother’s Day.
The Kindle Colorsoft features a 7-inch E Ink Kaleido 3 color e-paper display with a black and white resolution of 1264×1680 and 300 PPI and a color resolution of 150. A Kaleido 3 screen is typically able to display over 4,096 different colors. Amazon says this new device has custom-formulated coatings between the display layers to enhance the color, a light guide with micro-deflectors to minimize stray light, and an ultra-thin coating in the display stack to improve optical performance. They built the display on an oxide backplane for sharper contrast and better image quality.
The Kindle Colorsoft is entirely based on a touchscreen, with no physical buttons. Amazon stated that, in the foreseeable future, they will not have buttons on any Kindle. It has an auto-adjusting front-lit display to automatically change the brightness of the warm and cool lighting based on your environment. The peak brightness is 94 units, with 12 White and 13 Amber LEDs.
This Kindle Colorsoft employs a dual-core 2GHz Mediatek processor with 1GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage to house your digital content. Bluetooth 5.1 will allow you to pair wireless headphones or an external speaker to listen to Audible audiobooks purchased from Amazon, but Audible only works in select countries. The Kindle Colorsoft is rated IPX8 and can withstand immersion in up to 2 meters of fresh water for up to 60 minutes and 0.25 meters for 3 minutes in seawater. A USB-C port will transfer and charge digital content to your device. It also supports quick charging with an optional dock. It is powered by a 2310 mAh battery, which should be good for about eight weeks of light reading. The Kindle is made from 28% recycled materials. The battery is made from 100% recycled cobalt, and the packaging is made from 100% recycled cardboard.
Pocketbook
Pocketbook releases a bevy of e-readers every year. In 2025, they only announced one so far, the Verse Lite. You can consider this an entry-level e-reader; it lacks physical page-turn buttons, and the resolution is under 300 PPI. However, it will retail for less than $129 when it comes out in May.
The Verse Lite will feature a 6-inch E INK Carta e-paper display with a resolution 1024×768 and 212 PPI. PocketBook Verse Lite’s built-in front light is ideal for reading in low-light conditions, whether in bed at night or in a dimly lit room. Unlike smartphones or tablets, which illuminate the face, Verse Lite uses diodes around the frame to light the screen gently, not the user. Thanks to E Ink technology, Verse Lite lets you read with the front light wholly turned off – unlike tablets and smartphones – offering a more natural reading experience with zero Blue Light emission.
Kobo
Rakuten Kobo released their first color e-readers in early 2024, with the advent of the Libra Colour and Kobo Clara Colour, in addition to the Kobo Clara BW. Since then, they have not released anything else, so they are due for some new hardware in 2025. Early speculation is a new Libra BW or a new model of the Sage. If you want to buy a new Kobo, the Libra Colour is the way to go. It has physical page-turn buttons, a nice colourful screen, and one of the best e-book stores in the business. Everyone I know who has one did not suffer from buyer’s remorse.
What will you buy?
Bigme, iReader, Hyread, and other companies have already announced or will release new e-readers this year. They are only relevant in a few different markets, since most are designed for a Chinese-speaking audience, although they all support English. However, most people who are reading this website will mostly buy something with an Android OS, such as Bigme or Boox, where they can install millions of paid or free apps, or an e-book reader with an integrated bookstore, such as the NOOK, Kobo, Kindle, or Tolino.
Speaking of NOOK, a new model is overdue. Their latest generation NOOK can be out in 2023, and its product line is getting old. The company has been trying to fix its OS with a series of firmware updates. Do not be surprised if at least one new NOOK is a color one with Kaleido 3 e-paper. It cannot afford to leave the US market to Amazon and Kobo.
What new e-reader will you buy this year? Something on our list, or another one?
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.