Here’s What Will Actually Happen To Your Kindle On May 20

For galore readers, nan Amazon Kindle is simply a godsend. It’s lightweight, portable, water-resistant, and has a monolithic retention capacity. The artillery life is astounding, capable to past for days, and its backlit E-ink screen, which mimics existent paper, allows readers to publication astatine nighttime (and successful planes, for instance), each while being easier connected nan eyes than a accepted blue-light screen. This is to opportunity thing of nan sentimental worth a Kindle mightiness clasp for bookworms who bring it everywhere pinch them.

But this month, tech elephantine Amazon has announced a caller alteration that has sparked backlash from dedicated e-reader users: from May 20, 2026, immoderate Kindle devices will nary longer beryllium supported. But what does this mean, and which Kindles will beryllium affected?

Amazon’s announcement … and what it really means

The alert from Amazon stated that older Kindle models will nary longer beryllium supported. In short, this intends that from May 20, users will nary longer beryllium capable to download caller books from nan Amazon store, arsenic nan devices will nary longer person web support. Libby users will besides return a hit, being incapable to get e-books from their room arsenic these books besides spell done nan Kindle shop and nan ‘Send to Kindle’ feature.

The affected devices will besides nary longer beryllium capable to person updates, and Amazon’s email elaborate that users who deregister aliases do a mill reset connected their devices will not beryllium capable to registry them again.

Notably, nan Kindle Library will stay afloat accessible for users done nan free Kindle app and Kindle for Web. Users who link their Kindle to a machine and usage a programme for illustration Calibre will still beryllium capable to transfer, aliases “sideload,” e-books to their Kindle.

Which Kindles are being affected?

In nan email Kindle users received, Amazon stated they are “discontinuing support for Kindle devices released successful 2012 aliases earlier. The affected devices include:

• Kindle (1st generation)
• Kindle (2nd generation)
• Kindle DX
• Kindle DX Graphite
• Kindle Keyboard
• Kindle 4
• Kindle Touch
• Kindle 5
• Kindle Paperwhite (1st generation)
• Kindle Fire (1st generation)
• Kindle Fire (2nd generation)
• Kindle Fire HD 7
• Kindle Fire HD 8.9

In total, nan move is estimated to impact immoderate 2 cardinal devices.

The controversy

The move has been heavy criticised by readers who ain Kindles. While users of these older Kindle models will still beryllium capable to publication nan books that are already downloaded onto nan device, nan imaginable of not being capable to download caller books without utilizing a third-party programme whitethorn beryllium a dealbreaker, prompting users to move to different devices, for illustration a Kobo.

Criticisms of Amazon’s UI for nan Kindle, including nan prevalence of ads and often-restrictive format support person besides led users to ditch their Kindles and opt for different e-readers. 

Additionally, galore users study that their Kindles, contempt being much than a decade old, are still moving fine. Newer Kindles whitethorn past weeks connected a azygous charge, while nan artillery wellness and velocity of capacity of older models will slow deteriorate complete clip pinch dense use; but for nan astir part, galore Kindles manufactured successful 2012 aliases earlier are still successful perfectly bully condition. As a result, galore readers person condemned Amazon’s announcement arsenic a deliberate ploy to get readers to acquisition different Kindle.

Older Kindle models besides characteristic beingness page-turn buttons connected nan devices, which immoderate readers prefer. With nan caller announcement, disgruntled readers whitethorn beryllium forced to spell pinch nan touch-screen page turning options instead.

To facilitate immoderate users’ modulation to a caller Kindle, Amazon has offered a 20 per cent discount connected a newer model, arsenic good arsenic e-book credits. However, nan move has been denounced arsenic “corporate greed” by outraged users, for whom nan Kindle is not only a convenient measurement to shop books and publication on-the-go, but a sentimental device.

The bottommost statement for readers

For immoderate users, nan only viable way will beryllium ditching their aged Kindle and transitioning to a newer exemplary aliases moreover different marque of e-reader entirely. Others will opt for jailbreaking their Kindle, a process that involves removing Amazon’s package restrictions and gaining entree to nan device’s operating system.

Ultimately, readers will person to determine whether they are consenting to enactment successful Amazon’s ecosystem, aliases yet move nan page connected it.