Certain old Kindle e-readers will no longer be able to buy new ebooks from August, it’s been revealed.
Amazon has been sending out warning emails to owners of the Kindle (2nd Gen) International, Kindle DX International, Kindle Keyboard, Kindle (4th Gen), and Kindle (5th Gen). These customers will no longer be able to browse, buy, or borrow ebooks directly on their Kindle devices starting in August.
It’s worth noting that it will still be possible to read new ebooks on these older devices, but you’ll have to obtain them through the Amazon website on another device.
Amazon hasn’t provided any reason behind this latest cull, but Goodereader speculates that it could come down to the lack of support for newer Transport Layer Security (TLS) versions. These older devices are stuck on the older TLS 1.0 and 1.1 protocols.
As a way of ameliorating the effect of this announcement, Amazon has been offering owners of such older Kindles promotional codes for 30% off a new Kindle (like the Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition) and $40 in free ebook credit.
This marks the first ever time that’s Amazon has cut off access to its store on a whole group of Kindle e-readers in such a way. However, continued support for older Kindle devices has become something of a problem for Amazon of late.
Towards the end of 2021, older Kindles began losing access to the internet as mobile operators began shutting down their creaky old 3G networks. Many older Kindles didn’t come with Wi-Fi connectivity, so there’s no alternative means of connecting to the internet for them.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
