Last month I did a couple of posts with estimated sales figures for the Kindle Scribe based on the monthly sales numbers that Amazon now shows for most products on their website.
The first post was on January 12th so part of the holiday shopping season was included in the data, and the overall Kindle sales figures were really surprising, especially for the Kindle Scribe.
Amazon had sold over 21,000 Kindle Scribes over the previous 30 days (not counting bundle packages and refurbished units). But when I checked again later in the month on January 31st, the overall sales numbers had dropped significantly to 9,000+ units.
I decided to check the sales figures again today, and the numbers have dropped by 50%. Now when you total up all four variations of the Kindle Scribe, the overall number is only 4,500+ for the past month.
The Kindle Scribe hasn’t been on sale during the past 30 days so that certainly has some impact on the numbers, and the first dataset included a couple weeks of the holiday shopping season, but it’s still surprising to see the numbers go from 21k+ to just 4.5k+ in 6 weeks.
The funny thing is the rapid decline in sales numbers only seems to be affecting the Kindle Scribe. All three storage capacity variants of the Kindle Paperwhite are still listed at 10k+ like they were on January 12th. The basic Kindle is still at 10k+ as well.
Granted, Amazon’s estimated sales numbers aren’t very specific so they might be selling fewer Paperwhites than they were before too, but they certainly aren’t selling less than a quarter as many as they were 6 weeks ago as is the case with the Kindle Scribe.
I find these numbers interesting because Amazon has a history of dropping products that aren’t selling as well as expected. I really like the Kindle Scribe and think it’s rather underrated, and I hope Amazon doesn’t decide to abandon the eNote market after their first attempt. I like having more options and sizes for Kindles. Now that the Kindle Oasis is gone, it would be a shame if Amazon decided to just sell a Paperwhite and a basic Kindle moving forward.
Kindle Scribe Sales Numbers on Feb 22
- Kindle Scribe 64GB – 2k+
- Kindle Scribe 32GB – 1k+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB basic pen – 1k+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB premium pen – 500+
Kindle Scribe Sales Numbers on Jan 31
- Kindle Scribe 64GB – 4k+
- Kindle Scribe 32GB – 3k+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB basic pen – 1k+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB premium pen – 1k+
Kindle Scribe Sales Numbers on Jan 12
- Kindle Scribe 64GB – 8k+
- Kindle Scribe 32GB – 6k+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB basic pen – 4k+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB premium pen – 3k+
Are the sales numbers dropping because of returns? I have a Scribe and if it wasn’t such a hassle to return, I would have.
I wonder what research Amazon’s marketing department does. The Scribe is too big for an e-reading device. On the other hand, it seems a bit small as a dedicated note-taking gadget. Most people who want to take notes digitally are doing it on tablets such as iPad anyway.. So, yeah, the Scribe is going to reach a small niche of a niche. Amazon should finally give its Kindle customers what they want: an 8-inch e-reader with buttons. And until they do, they should not discontinue their Oasis.
I just got a Pocketbook Inkpad Color 3 for these two features; 7.8″ screen and physical buttons. I’m still like my Kindle Oasis and read on both. Scribe is too big for reading.
But physical buttons are an absolute must for me.
I bought the Color 3 just to see color e-ink. I expected to try it and then maybe pass it along to my wife for comics. I like it so much it has replaced all my other readers. Oasis, Aura One, Voyage, Scribe, Nook GL4, PB HD 3, PW3, BOOX Darwin. None of them have been getting used. The Color 3 is such a nice size and comfortable to use. Even the dark screen doesn’t bother me after getting used to compensating with the frontlight. I added KOReader and a Noreve case. They don’t make one for the Color 3, but the InkPad 4 version fits perfectly including auto wake/sleep. The whole experience has been a delightful surprise. All that said, the PocketBook HD3 in the factory case is very pocket friendly and has a great screen and lighting.
I suspect Amazon was looking at the reMarkable tablets when they were designing the Scribe.
I’d use a reMarkable tablet for eReading if it came with a dictionary.
I really like my KIndle Scribe. I originally got it simply for the larger screen size. It’s nice to read things comfortably without having to blow up the font on smaller devices. Over the last month or so I’ve started using the journal features a bit more & like that too. But I fully recognize I would be considered part of a niche market. But like Nate, I’m hoping they stick with the Scribe.
I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that Amazon fumbled on the latest software update that made it very difficult for Mac users to load content on it.
For me, having to download android file transfer to side load content, do software updates and install fonts and then delete it in order to use Calibre is a real PITA. Calibre doesn’t recognize the Scribe if android file transfer is installed. Not only that, but now it automatically defaults to Bookerly font whenever I turn off my scribe or open another book. I like the Scribe but thinking about selling it for these reasons. It’s not a seamless experience anymore. Not only that, but as a Kindle Voyage owner, I’m spoiled to anything else. No other screen compares.
We are still recovering from the Holidays too. I would think a lot of scribes were gifted during the holidays, so the rush to get a scribe or any kindle is down. but it should pick up after a while. Probably a lot of people are also waiting for Amazon prime to get one.
I actually hate my Scribe. I have Kobo’s Elipsa and love it. I use them only for reading. The Scribe seems to waste so much screen space no matter how wide the margin is set. The cold metal is unpleasant – a cover makes it too heavy. I have a 10th generation PW that I have pulled out of retirement to read the books from some of my favorite authors who are locked into Kindle Unlimited. Can’t wait to be able to trade the Scribe in when Amazon starts accepting them.
I love mine I have no problems with it
I got a scribe last fall. I love it for reading in bed, but it’s not as portable as my oasis.
The Oasis was the last cellular kindle and I am loathe to give it up as my “purse” kindle, despite the flaws. If Amazon isn’t wanting to maintain cellular services anymore, they should just put in a Sim slot, or allow it to Bluetooth tether with a phone for an always-on connection. (It’s based on Android, so should be possible. ) Maybe it’s stupid of me but I always liked the idea that I could just whip it out and buy a book, anytime, anywhere, without fussing with my phone. Oh well.