Older Amazon Kindle devices lose Kindle Store access

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Amazon’s Kindle line of devices are designed first and foremost for reading eBooks. But you can also use them to buy eBooks thanks to integration with the Kindle Store. Amazon has certainly gone out of its way to put that store front and center in recent Kindle software updates.

But if you have an older Kindle device, you’ll no longer be able to access the Kindle Store on that device starting August 17th, 2022, because Amazon has ended support for the store on older models that lack touchscreen displays.

The change only affects Kindle devices that are at least a decade old, including:

In other words, if you’ve got an older Kindle with a physical keyboard or physical page turn buttons instead of a touch screen, then you’re probably going to lose access to the Kindle Store.

Try to fire it up on an older Kindle, and you’ll be greeted with a message that says “The Kindle Store is no longer available on this device.”

I know there are still some folks out there handing onto those older models, and if you’re one of those people, there is some good news. You can continue to use your Kindle to read eBooks or download eBooks that you’ve already purchased. You’ll just need to use a PC, phone, tablet, or any other device with a web browser to actually buy new books from the Kindle Store. Once a title has been added to your library, you should be able to download it on your Kindle.

What you can’t do anymore is browse, buy, or borrow books from the Kindle Store directly from a Kindle device.

If you’re wondering why even older Kindle devices aren’t on the list, that’s because they’ve already become nearly useless. Amazon’s earliest Kindles didn’t have WiFi and instead relied on 3G connectivity for internet access. So they already lost access to the Store, along with all other wireless functionality, last year when most wireless carriers in the US shut down their 3G networks.

via /r/Kindle

This article was first published May 24, 2022 and most recently updated August 17, 2022.

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