Pedantic clarification. My Kindle Fire in 2011 had color. This is specifically about an eInk display Kindle? The article talks about the "the first-ever color Kindle" without specifying that it is eInk.
That explains my confusion. I am just getting old. The 2011 Kindle Fire still works though power is predictably degraded. I end up using the app on my phone more or my 1st Gen Paperwhite anyway.