Last year around this time I posted about how the Kindle Scribe’s sales numbers were declining rapidly, especially whenever it’s not on sale, so I thought I’d look at the numbers again and it’s even worse this year. Much worse.
Compared to all the other Kindle models, the Kindle Scribe is barely a blip on the radar. It’s kind of amazing how unpopular the Kindle Scribe is by comparison.
If you look at the listings for the basic Kindle, the Kindle Paperwhite, the Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition, and even the Kindle Colorsoft, you’ll see that Amazon has sold over 10k+ for each and every one of those models over the past month (some of the different colored Paperwhites are lower than 10k+ since they count each color separately, but still that’s a lot of Kindle sold each month).
But when you look at the numbers for the new Kindle Scribe it’s hard to believe how much worse it’s selling. Both the 16GB and 32GB versions have only sold 500+ units over the past month. For a company like Amazon those numbers are ridiculously low, especially for a new model that was just released a couple of months ago.
The 64GB version shows 1k+ units sold over the past month, so it’s still the most popular version, which I never understood (99% of people will never need anywhere close to 64GB of storage on a Kindle, but old habits are hard to break).
The sales numbers for the Kindle Scribe weren’t good at this time last year either, but this year things are markedly worse for Amazon’s notetaking Kindle.
Kindle Scribe Sales Numbers on Feb 22, 2024
- 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 Feb 14, 2025
- Kindle Scribe 64GB – 1k+
- Kindle Scribe 32GB – 500+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB – 500+
I think Amazon is probably counting the Metallic Jade color separately, which is only available with 64GB, so if that’s the case you can add another 1k+ to those number, but even still those are really low numbers for a company as big as Amazon with the reach they have over the internet.
Amazon is still selling the previous Kindle Scribe as well so I thought maybe it was cannibalizing some of the sales, but the sales numbers for it are really low too.
2022 Kindle Scribe Sales Numbers on Feb 14, 2025
- Kindle Scribe 64GB – unavailable
- Kindle Scribe 32GB – 100+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB basic pen – 500+
- Kindle Scribe 16GB premium pen – 100+
When most Kindle models have a 10k+ sold banner under their name, these measly 500+ numbers for the Kindle Scribe have to be really disappointing for Amazon. I don’t think the Kindle Scribe has been nearly as popular as they had hoped.
I see the Elipsa 2E is at 100+, but that’s just Amazon and doesn’t include purchases directly from Kobo. Still, it does make me wonder how big the eNote category is as a whole. The best I see from Boox is 500+ for the Tablet Go 10.3, while the Remarkable Paper Pro and 2 Bundle are both 2k+.
The sales numbers for the Elipsa have always been really low whenever I check (it’s often 50+), but Onyx’s eNotes often hit the 1k+ sold mark, but Onyx has an annoying habit of constantly creating new listings when they restock instead of just keeping the same page so that makes it harder to track. Like right now they have 3 separate pages for the Palma 2 and two for the Palma 1—it makes no sense. None of the other ereaders on Amazon ever get close to the 10k+ number Kindles post each month, so it makes it even more surprising Amazon is only selling like ~20 16GB Kindle Scribes per day total.
They could increase their sales if they would offer it here in Mexico. I wonder why they are holding out in offering it. Same goes for the colorsoft.
It’s not very portable as an ebook reader and seems to be the least useful of the various notebook devices. It’s fine for me, but it never leaves the vicinity of my easy chair, and I’m more of a highlighter/underliner than a note writer.
Very small niche for this device, when you think about it. When I have to replace mine, I’ll be looking for a more versatile device. Something that will run other ebook apps as well as the kindle app.
I would imagine that most people think like you especially given the price. They’ll probably just buy a decent tablet instead.
I own the 2022 Scribe model. I’ve stopped using it since the recent update. I really loathe the new side panel icon that one can’t remove. I’ve reverted to my Paperwhites (2 different generations) and tablets (1 Android and 1 iPad). Otherwise, I really liked it. Only used it at home and the size isn’t an issue. Love the screen real estate.
I own over 4000 kindle books, and even on a 16G haven’t run out of room, although I may “only” have about 500 downloaded at a time. Some extra downloads include library and KU books. The Scribe is too large for me to read with comfortably. I read a lot in bed, and it’s too large to read with on my side. When I go out, I always take my kindle Sig Ed. It fits into my small purse. What I DO use the Scribe for is journaling. Additionally, I can see on my Kindle phone app what I’ve written, if I want.
I have both the Kindle Scribe 2.0 and a Kindle Oasis 2. For me, the pros for the Scribe is that it is integrated with the Amazon ecosystem (I think I am among the minority of people who read this site, who really doesn’t mind being locked into that ecosystem for better or for worse. I like the convenience and variety of books available, and I am not fussy about fonts), and I needed an e-note device to help me with work and home keeping, and the Scribe is a good size for that. I do like the different templates available for the Scribe, and use them quite a lot between lesson planning, home planning, and general writing. I read while I knit, so I love the bigger screen of the Scribe as it means I am turning pages less frequently and can just get on with my knitting. That and an e-ink screen is much kinder on my eyes and head than a tablet screen is.
As for the cons, I tend not to write or highlight in my books, paper or ebook, so the side bar icon that never goes away is mildly annoying, but I can deal with it. Besides the side bar icon never going away and being a bit of a distraction, the only other downside to the Scribe is that it is not as portable as the Oasis is, so I really only use it at home or in the office. Also, no page turn buttons or haptic (which is why my Oasis is still in heavy use, in addition to its portability)
Given that it is sort of a jack-of-all-trades and master of none, the lower sales make a little bit of sense. It’s too big to be a conveniently portable e-reader; while it is the size of a tablet, it doesn’t have as much functionality. Again, me personally, I love the Scribe as it ticks off the boxes I need to tick, but I’m an odd duck!
A lot has to comedown to marketing. I get the impression that Amazon is relying on word of mouth for advertising. Assuming kindle users will know about the Scribe. If I were involved in the marketing department, I would advertise at educational institutions. High schools and universities, I would also push Amazon to set up special accounts for educational institutions where they could use them in the libraries. I would market to literature teachers and students. When computers were just starting to enter homes, a lot of that was because Apple went into the schools to get computers in the classroom, setting up for future customers. I think Amazon is just not bothering to be aggressive with selling kindles in general. And as I said before, they are not even bothering to sell devices in international markets. In Mexico you have very limited options when it comes to kindles. No color options, no color soft, no Scribe. No audible on kindles.
I bought the 2024 16GB Scribe when it was on sale in January, which made it cheaper then then the previous 16 GB model. I like it, but it’s heavier then my tablet, which can make it awkward for reading. Writing is exceptionally nice, but I’ve never written on the old Scribe nor a tablet, so I can’t compare the two. My Colorsoft remains my main Kindle, and I primarily use the Scribe for note-taking and Journaling.
In my experience, the Kindle scribe has very poor contrast, the newer one being even worse than the first generation which was already terrible. The newer version is also very ugly with the white border frame.