Amazon Kindle News

Amazon Book Clubs is a new platform that  is in early access. People can join public groups, that focus on specific genres, such as mysteries, romance or science-fiction. Book Clubs can be private and invite only, or public. Each of clubs, has little blurb on the focus, as well as their number one recommendation. Clicking on the recommendation takes you to the Amazon listing. I think this is an interesting new system, that should have plenty of new features, before it officially launches.

There are a few different ways you can buy refurbished Kindle e-readers. The first is Amazon owned woot, which tends to only focus on overstock and used items. You can find anything on this site, and every month they have around 30-100 different Kindle models that go on sale, until they are sold out. Here is an example of a 1 day sale. It is important to note that Woot is only available for US customers. Amazon also sells refurbished Kindle e-readers on their various websites. Amazon.com has a used selection of only 3 devices, but once in awhile there are lots of them listed. The current list focuses on the entry level Kindle and previous generation Kindle Paperwhites. Ebay is one of the originals, many people used to exclusively shop on this site, before Amazon became a big thing. You can find plenty of every generation of Kindle e-readers, from lightly used, to sealed in the box and never used. Some vendors buy up the woot stock when it goes on sale and lists it on Ebay to get a little bit of profit. Still, you can find lots of deals.

The Microsoft dual screen Surface Duo is coming out on September 10th. This device is running Android 10 and should be good for reading. Amazon has just updated their Android app with full support for reading ebooks on both screens at once. You will get a two page spread, where each page is on a single screen. So it will function like reading a real book, once you have finished reading both pages, you can swipe or tap and both pages will automatically turn, populating both screens with the next two pages.

Some of the new features it received today was a new search experience making it easier to navigate through your search results in the book without losing the page you were reading. To get started, simply search for a term in your book and tap on a search result. They have also updated the Page Flip experience that shows recently read pages as dots on the progress bar, including your most recent page read from another device. If you have a Freetime Unlimited subscription, kids will see a new layout, improved search, book details, and Audible support. In supported marketplaces, kids with access to Amazon FreeTime Unlimited will see rows of recommended eBook and Audible content that are age-appropriate.

KindleGen is a command line tool used to build eBooks that can be sold through Amazon’s Kindle platform. Many people who used Linux or a MAC liked the ability to build ebooks and the tool is best for publishers and individuals who are familiar with HTML and want to convert their HTML, XHTML, XML (OPF/IDPF format), or ePub source into a Kindle Book. It can also generate the APNX page number file with the right input. The system was developed in 2012 and was just discontinued today, Amazon is encouraging people to use the Kindle Previewer.

Amazon has just issued an Operating system update for the 2018 Fire HD 8, 2017 Fire HD 7, and entry level Fire 7 that came out in 2019. It upgrades to Fire OS 7, which is based on Android 9. Amazon hardly ever supports their older tablets, so this gives them a second life.

Amazon frequently runs sales promotions for the Kindle line of e-readers in the United States, but rarely in Canada. The company has just announced that the Kindle Paperwhite is now on sale for $114 for the 8GB model, the regular price is $139. The 32Gb model is also available for $139, regular price is $169. The entry level Kindle e-reader with a front-light is on sale for a paltry $84.99, the normal everyday retail tag is $119.

Amazon launched the Kindle Lending Library in 2011. This was a program where Prime members can borrow a free book once a month. Once a book is borrowed, it can be re-downloaded for free at any point in the future. Books that are included in the free lending library will have a “Prime” logo next to them and a “Borrow for free” button beneath the traditional “Buy” button. There was no expiring date for the books and it was very popular. In 2016 Amazon released Prime Reading and it basically killed Kindle Lending Library, and Amazon no longer promoted it on their website or via press releases. Today, Amazon has just discontinued the Lending Library and are now telling people to use Kindle Unlimited or Prime Reading instead.

Steve Jobs made it his mission to sabotage Amazon to prevent them from selling ebooks within their app.  According to new emails between between Steve Jobs, Phil Schiller, Eddy Cue, and various other senior Apple executives, disclose the exact thinking behind how Apple approached Kindle on iOS. The current precedent was outlined by Steve Jobs, who stated that “I think this is all pretty simple — iBooks is going to be the only bookstore on iOS devices. We need to hold our heads high. One can read books bought elsewhere, just not buy/rent/subscribe from iOS without paying us, which we acknowledge is prohibitive for many things.”

Amazon is running one of their rare promotions for free ebook credit…

The Amazon Kindle app for iOS can now save your preferred font and layout settings into custom themes. Located in Aa menu, themes allow you to toggle between favorite reading configurations with a single tap. This system is ideal for people who share the same login and password between multiple people in a household. The settings in the iOS app are automatically synced to the Kindle line of e-readers, since they have had this feature for awhile. 

Amazon has just unveiled a new series of cases for the entry level Kindle. They are called Printed Covers and feature three full color themes, bookscape, library and mystery. They magnetically close, protecting your Kindle and automatically put to sleep when the case is closed and wakes it up when the case is opened. They are retailing for $24 USD on the main Amazon website and are not available outside of the United States, except for Good e-Reader.

A couple of years ago Amazon incorporated Audible audiobooks on the Amazon Kindle. All of the current and previous generation models have an audiobook player and you can listen to them with a pair of wireless headphones. There is an Audible shop, next to the Kindle store, where a wide selection of audio content is available. Amazon does not let you sideload in your own audiobook collection, because the audiobook player only recognizes Audible books. Should Amazon let users sideload in their own audiobooks, like they let people do with ebooks in various Kindle friendly formats?

Many people are buying a new Kindle e-reader for the summer and in conjunction with COVID, many of their most popular models are sold out. The Kindle Paperwhite 32GB without ads is of stock for 6-8 weeks and ditto with the 8GB model, except the base is in stock, but many of the new colors, such as Plum and Sage also facing the same delays. The Amazon Kindle Oasis 32GB is out of stock until the end of July, the 32GB is facing intermittent shortages, yesterday it said it was sold out until the end of August, but it now shows as available.

The Amazon Paperwhite 3 has not received a firmware update since last year and most of the other Kindles are a full version ahead. This includes the Kindle Paperwhite 4, Kindle Basic, Kindle Voyage and the Oasis. Good e-Reader reported a week ago that the Kindle Paperwhite 3 was on the verge of being discontinued, due to the lack of support. Amazon read our story and confirmed a longstanding bug that was preventing the update system from working properly, which they are working on. The company has told me that “Third generation Kindle Paperwhite devices remain supported and we will continue rolling out updates as soon as possible. When we roll out the update, we will post the most updated software on the Kindle software website.

The Kobo Nia is coming out in a few days, and Amazon is doing everything in their power to convince you to buy the entry level Kindle. They have just discounted it by $20 and it is now available for $69.99 USD. The Kobo Nia is going to retail for $99 USD, so it looks like Amazon has fired the first shot. Price is a big draw when it comes to entry level e-readers and Amazon is making a compelling case to go with the Kindle, over the Kobo. Amazon is just running this deal in the United States, the promotion is not active in Canada.

For over a decade, Amazon had subsidized the cost of a Kindle with a program called Special Offers. This put advertisements on the home screen and the lock screen, it costs around $20 to remove it. Amazon is undergoing a rebranding effort of Special Offers and is now calling it Ad-Supported and if you want the adfree model they are calling it Without Ads.

Amazon has ended support for the Kindle Paperwhite 3 and the e-reader will not receive any future firmware updates. The only exception is if Amazon upgrades their Kindle Whispersync program and Kindle Store with a new version of TLS. The 7th generation Kindle Paperwhite 3 was one of Amazon’s most successful e-readers ever. It came out in 2015 and was heavily marketed for four years, before it was eventually replaced by the Kindle Paperwhite 4 in late 2018.  The last time the PP3 received a firmware update was in 2019, and it is currently running 5.12.2, while all of the other modern Kindles, are running 5.13.1. Amazon frequently suspends firmware updates on devices that are 4-5 years old, as a way to get people to always upgrade to the latest and greatest, if they want to receive new features, bug fixes and enhancements.

Amazon Kindle Unlimited offers 1.4  million audiobooks, comics, ebooks and graphic novels. The platform continiously offers discounts, but tends not to advertise them. Currently you get get a free two month trial and promotion lasts until the end of August. It is only good for people who reside in the United States. One of the most important aspects of this deal is not just for new members but also the ones who canceled the subscription some time ago. There is one caveat, your previous free trial had to end earlier than 12 months ago.