The Future of E-Readers: Foldable Color E-Ink Arrives With MooInk V

In April, we called Amazon’s initial colour Kindle, the Kindle Colorsoft, “a very big first step” toward a brighter future for E‑Ink reading. And that step has already been taken. At a recent tech expo in Taiwan, Chinese company Readmoo has unveiled the MooInk V, the globe’s first colour folding e-reader — and it’s making more than a few heads turn.

Gallery 3 vs Kaleido 3: a colour class divide
Colour depth: The Kaleido 3 panel of the Colorsoft can handle a maximum of 4,096 colours, but the Gallery 3 display of the MooInk V does so, but up to around 50,000 colours, with clean resolution preserved even in colour mode.

Display resolution: Whereas the Colorsoft can handle 300 ppi in monochrome alone, the MooInk V can do 300 ppi in full colour.

Screen size: MooInk V folds out into a full 8-inch screen, compared to the 7-inch of the Colorsoft.

Folding done right (on the sixth try)
E-Ink displays are much thicker and more fragile than OLED screens found in fold phones, hence rendering the fold form factor a significant technical challenge. Readmoo reportedly spent nine years developing the hinge and flex display tech needed to make it happen.

The MooInk V has also had its handling of over 200,000 folds, the same endurance barrier applied to today’s best flagship foldphones.

The fold does leave a visible crease and a slight air gap when closed — concessions made to protect the sensitive ink layers from stress. Still, it remains compact and lightweight, staying close to traditional e-reader dimensions and portability.

Why you’ve never held a folding Kindle
Why e-reading devices didn’t arrive sooner is a matter of material science. Traditional E‑Ink screens use rigid glass substrates and microcapsule layers that weren’t created to be flexed.

Readmoo’s strategy combines flexible backplane, thinner display stack, and proprietary hinge that distributes stress evenly. With those advancements, Gallery 3 displays can now be produced on flexible substrates, opening the door to new foldable and even rollable form factors.

The exploding colour crowd
While Amazon’s Colorsoft is in the spotlight, it’s not alone. Competitors like Kobo and Boox are also championing colour E-Ink. Kobo is shipping its own colour readers featuring Kaleido 3 panels, and Boox devices are generally more about Android-driven note-taking.

None of these alternatives, though, offer folding screens, and that gives Readmoo a clear first-mover advantage — at least for now.

What’s next — and why Amazon can’t ignore it
E-Ink has confirmed that Gallery 3 is entering mass production for a number of brands this year. The ground is being set for other businesses — including Western ones — to roll out flexible, colorful e-readers.

Rumors have put Amazon on the job working on foldable tablet designs, and now that the concept has hit the market, we can expect prototypes to pick up speed.

Because demand for comics, graphic novels, and stimulating educational material is growing, Amazon will be likely to develop a versatile Kindle to retain its dominance in the colour e-reading segment.

For now, the MooInk V provides a taste of what is possible — a folder-like book reader with colour in a style never before seen. Even if it is limited to niche markets, the technology it contains will follow.