Back in May, I wrote about a curious little trend that was beginning to emerge: the rise of tiny E-Ink readers.

XTEINK had launched the X4, a pocket-sized e-reader that looked more like an enthusiast’s gadget than the beginning of a new product category (it had also not long since launched the X3). It was clever, certainly, but I wasn’t quite sure where it would ever be more than a niche within a niche.

A couple of months later, I’m beginning to wonder if I underestimated it.

XTEINK recently announced the X4 Pro, while BOOX has teased us with the announcement of the upcoming Picco tiny e-reader. Two companies arriving at remarkably similar ideas in a very short space of time usually means something interesting is happening.

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The Kindle Scribe Colorsoft and the reMarkable Paper Pro Move are the two tablets I use when I want to get away from … tablets, such as my iPad.

Both have colour screens, connect to the internet and allow me to read, write, annotate documents and organise my work. They even include artificial intelligence features. Neither is genuinely limited to a single function.

Yet they both feel fundamentally different from the conventional tablet I use. The reason is not simply that they can do fewer things. It is that each device has one clear reason to exist, and almost everything it does supports that purpose.What does this mean for the Kindle?

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Manufacturers will also be expected to provide replacement instructions, make batteries available for several years after a product is discontinued and avoid using software to block compatible replacement batteries.

Not every product falls under the same rules. Smartwatches and fitness trackers, for example, have recently been added to a list of exemptions because of the engineering challenges involved.

But e-readers aren’t on that exemption list.

That immediately raises an interesting question.

What does this mean for the Kindle?

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A few days ago, I was looking at buying a book. That should come as no surprise to anyone that knows me.

The paperback was listed, as was the Kindle version. And the price difference was… small.

Now, that’s not always the case. Sometimes the Kindle version is much cheaper. Sometimes there’s a deal and it’s 99p and you feel like you’ve somehow beaten the system. But more often than now, you see an e-book and can’t help noticing it’s almost the same price as the physical book, and you find yourself thinking… why?

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Why is it that almost every form of media has drifted towards digital so completely that the physical version now feels like a niche product expensively released for enthusiasts and collectors… except one?

Because somehow, after all these years, the humble book is still with us.

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The thing about technology is that, over time, it usually offers better value.

You might spend roughly the same amount on your next laptop, tablet or phone, but it will probably come with a faster processor, more storage, a better display and longer battery life. That’s been the pattern for decades. Technology has continued to improve, while the value we’ve received for our money has generally improved with it.

Lately, though, I wonder whether we’re witnessing the beginning of something different.

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I’ve noticed something over the last year or two, and I can’t quite decide whether it’s a genuine shift in technology or whether I’m simply noticing it more because of the products I spend my time reviewing.

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Apple announced new AI features across iPadOS 27, improvements to Photos, Notes and Safari, updates to child safety tools, and a collection of smaller changes that may not make flashy headlines but could make everyday use a bit better. And if, like me, you use an iPad as your daily driver, those quieter improvements often matter just as much as the big showy ones.

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I recently reviewed the Cuneflow AI Notebook on my YouTube channel, The Spark and I wrote up a review of it on this platform too. Making this video and writing the article got me thinking a bit more deeply about something we’re going to see more and more of: the growing use of AI in E Ink products.

And this raises a fairly important question.

How much AI do we actually want in our quiet tech?

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While most technology keeps getting bigger, faster and more complicated, e-readers seem to be moving in the opposite direction. Devices like the BOOX Palma, XTEINK readers, and even homemade projects are exploring the idea that reading might actually work better on smaller, simpler devices designed to compete with distraction rather than become another source of it.

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