Amazon have rendered my kindle useless

Luckygirl3

The battery on my ancient model is fine - in fact everything about it is fine. I just wish I could go in using it.

My understanding from their notification email is that you should still be able to use it after the end of May, but you will no longer be able to download any additional books onto it after that date. If you buy any books before then, they will load as normal on your existing kindle, so if you’ve got your eye on any titles, now is the time to get them before the cut off date. 😊

Allira

Aveline

All books downloaded from Amazon are still are on your account so can be downloaded to your new device

Not after 20th May, as I understand it.

From the email:
* You can continue to read books already downloaded on these devices, but you will not be able to purchase, borrow, or download additional books on them after that date.
* If you deregister or factory reset these devices, you will not be able to re-register or use these devices in any way.

I've just downloaded several 99p books on to mine.

Allira, I think you've misunderstood. If you have an old, discontinued Kindle device, you can continue to read books that are already on it, but you won't be able to add any more books to the old Kindle after 20th May. If you deregister or reset your old Kindle it will no longer work, so don't do that!

However, all the books you have ever purchased for your old Kindle are still in your Amazon account and can all be downloaded to a new Kindle, or to the free Kindle reader app on a phone, tablet or your computer.

Luckygirl3

this could amount to 2 million devices rendered obsolete according to some estimates, potentially generating over 624 tons of e-waste".

And this is unacceptable when we need to cut down the waste mountain. I am not sure whether the plastic can be recycled.

Moonwatcher1904 ... you will still be able to read the books that you have already downloaded.

Luckygirl3 I quite agree but I might download a few books before the deadline. So that will last me a good while. I've had my Kindle since 2011. I have many books on there and don't mind reading one or two again.

I had my original Kindle for well over ten years and it simply stopped charging. Took it to Curry’s for recycling and bagged £15 off a brand spanking new one…..love it!

Doodledog

You may want to look into remote page turners

They look weird but they are life changers

I bought a Kindle in USA. It stopped working after 13 months ( the screen looked like a bar code) when I made a complaint I was told to take it back to where I had purchased it. I am not likely to go back to USA again. I can download books on my iPad. I used to get books - old classics on the Gutenberg app Our local library has a BorrowBox app either for some books or to reserve real books, which I prefer to read.

Allira

Aveline

All books downloaded from Amazon are still are on your account so can be downloaded to your new device

Not after 20th May, as I understand it.

From the email:
* You can continue to read books already downloaded on these devices, but you will not be able to purchase, borrow, or download additional books on them after that date.
* If you deregister or factory reset these devices, you will not be able to re-register or use these devices in any way.

I've just downloaded several 99p books on to mine.

I understand that to mean that the ones already on the old machine will still be there to be read, but you won't be able to add any more.

Is 20th May the deadline for downloading more books successfully? That gives about five and a half weeks to stock up.

Oh dear, I must concentrate! My brain is trying to multitask again.
Aveline meant all the books you have ever purchased can be loaded on to your new device, if you buy one.

The latest update of calibre will allow you to sideload books onto the kindle. For a while it couldn't but it seems to have got over that now.

Amazon should offer a special trade-in price to let their customers know they appreciate their loyalty. They shouldn't make the reading tool expire without a clause written saying such at purchase time and they shouldnt make their customers start all over like a brand new Kindle customer and buy the reading device at full price a second time. How rude ! They need a competitor. This monopoly is probably illegal.

They are offering a discount as explained earlier in the thread.

Just looked mine up - it's Paperwhite 7th generation, so should be ok.

So what do we do with the redundant machines?

Allira

The battery runs out on my old one after a very short time anyway.

Old devices can be recycled; some upcycling places may take them, some charity shops do and electronics firms will take them.

Blossom21

.

I gave up on my Kindle after a very short time as I didn't like the very small pages and how pages would turn at the slightest movement. I found a grateful new home for it.

Since I've bought my books on my Amazon ipad app which sends them immediately to my ipad. The page sizes are just like a 'normal size paperback' and so it reinforces the feeling of 'reading a good book'.

I've built up quite a library and love the weekly email offers based on my preferences that Amazon send me. I've bought some great Michael Connolly and John Grisham Kindle editions for 99p to £1:99.

I would never go back to the Kindle.

It's older ones. Treat yourself to a new one 20% off cist you £49

Is Amazon really the only provider of e-books in English?

I am asking because I don't know, never read e-books, preferring the old fashioned kind, and don't care greatly for Amazon either.

I have a kindle fire which is around 15 years old. I haven’t had anything from Amazon…yet

AuntieE

Is Amazon really the only provider of e-books in English?

I am asking because I don't know, never read e-books, preferring the old fashioned kind, and don't care greatly for Amazon either.

No, there are others - Kobo is probably the best known after the Kindle, but there's Onyx Book too and some other less well known ones.

Barnes and nobles too

Authors have their own websites too

I bought a new kindle not long ago . I use them every day and they tend to become sluggish after a while . I bought my first one in April 2011 and am now on number 7 .
I have over 1500 books downloaded onto it and I could possibly start at the beginning of and read them all again. I have a subscription to Kindle Unlimited and read 10 to 20 books a month from there . I don’t smoke or drink so I do not begrudge a single penny that it is costing me .

Similar happened with Portal. I used to be able to use zoom on it but that facility was withdrawn so now it's basically a device that FaceTimes and it's pointless. Such a waste of money.

For EVERYONE with an affected Kindle, as Hithere says, DO NOT DESPAIR. I Googled 'solution re obsolete kindle' and got lots of answers.
PC Mag has a COMPREHENSIVE article, on this unfortunately chunky link >>> www.pcmag.com/news/dont-toss-your-old-kindle-yet-heres-how-to-keep-it-alive-after-may-2026

Thank you DrWatson, downloaded for future reference 🙂

Thisismyname1953

I bought a new kindle not long ago . I use them every day and they tend to become sluggish after a while . I bought my first one in April 2011 and am now on number 7 .
I have over 1500 books downloaded onto it and I could possibly start at the beginning of and read them all again. I have a subscription to Kindle Unlimited and read 10 to 20 books a month from there . I don’t smoke or drink so I do not begrudge a single penny that it is costing me .

That could be me writing that Thisismyname1953.
My PaperWhite is from 2018. Before that I had a keyboard kindle from 2010. It didn’t die, I just wanted one that had Bluetooth.
When I took out a Kindle Unlimited subscription I did wonder if it would be worth it, but I read a lot of books per month and can share the subscription with DH too.
Some KU books include an audio version for free.
I also use Borrowbox from the library for books and audio books.