SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 16 (Reuters) - Amazon ( AMZN ) on

Wednesday announced its first color Kindle e-reader following

years of effort to bring the more immersive device to market.

The 'Kindle Colorsoft' carries a $280 price tag that

compares with similar devices from other manufacturers available

on Amazon ( AMZN ) in the range of $149 to $330. The Colorsoft relies on

LEDs and other technologies to achieve the color display,

according to a company statement.

Amazon ( AMZN ) had tried in prior years to develop color e-readers

using eInk -- the technology available in its standard Kindles

that requires minimal battery power. The Colorsoft will have a

roughly eight-week battery life, compared with up to three

months for its latest generation Paperwhite e-reader.

The Seattle retailer also unveiled a new Paperwhite with a

7-inch screen, measured diagonally, two-tenths of an inch larger

than the most recent generation's. It also revealed an updated

Kindle Scribe e-reader, which allows users to jot onto the

screen with a stylus and convert that into more legible text.

Users' in-book notations can be summarized by artificial

intelligence software that can convert pages of notes into

bullet points, the company said.

Amazon ( AMZN ) is still the market leader in e-readers, commanding

more than three quarters of the market, by some measures. The

devices are built to last for years and the company has said it

sells them for close to cost, making money when people purchase

books or other reading materials.

The COVID-19 pandemic fueled a surge in e-reader use, as

many libraries stayed closed to enforce shelter-in-place

policies but still offered wireless downloads of e-books.

Kindles are often put on sale during discount events, such

as Prime Day. The Colorsoft will ship to customers on Oct. 30

and the new Scribe will ship on Dec. 4.