E Ink announces Kaleido 4 with over 40,000 colors

E Ink has announced Kaleido 4, a new display technology for color ereaders. The company says it offers brighter screens and clearer text than its previous Kaleido 3 technology.

E Ink claims Kaleido 4 can produce over 40,000 colors, double the number supported by the previous generation. The company also says the display increases white reflectance by 15% and improves contrast by 50%. It supports video playback at 18fps, though the source author questions the appeal of regularly watching video on an E Ink screen.

E Ink says Kaleido 4 provides “greater clarity, while reducing the perception of screen graininess.” The source does not provide independent test results for these claims.

The display is currently available only in Hanvon Technology’s M10 C II, an E Ink tablet sold only in China. The source notes that a new Kindle Colorsoft model has recently launched, so it may take time for Amazon to use Kaleido 4 in its ereaders. It also names Kobo, Boox, and ViWoods as global brands that might adopt the technology, but reports no confirmed plans from them.