Amazon Stops Supporting Pre-2013 Kindles Today. Some Owners Turn to Jailbreaking (amzn.to) 42
Today Amazon ends support for first- and second-generation versions of Kindles and Kindle Fire tablets, along with the Kindle Touch, the 9.7-inch Kindle DX, and other devices released in 2012 or earlier.
Owners can continue reading ebooks that they've already downloaded, and they can also still sideload books using a USB cable (from, for example, Project Gutenberg). And PCMag points out that "There are plenty of e-stores where you can buy DRM-free novels legally, such as ebook.com and Smashwords. If you want to try this process for free, public-domain repositories such as the one at Standard Ebooks are a great place to start." (eBook files can be converted for the Kindle with the open source tool Calibre.)
New ebooks can no longer be purchased directly from Amazon. But most of Amazon's affected devices "have not received firmware updates for over a decade," notes the blog OMG Ubuntu, "and most lost on-device access the Kindle Store." Some Kindle owners are taking things even further: You can unlock the firmware of older devices to add extra functionality (custom screensavers, epub support) or run entirely different software. On the hardware hacks side, some choose to turn old Kindles into photo frames or online dashboards.
TechCrunch offers some caveats about jailbreaking: This process allows users to install custom fonts, new screensavers, alternative reading apps, and even third-party tools that expand the Kindle's functionality... [I]t's important to note that jailbreaking a Kindle might violate Amazon's terms of service. In many jurisdictions, jailbreaking isn't considered a criminal offense for personal use, but it may become a crime if it involves copyright infringement, illegal software distribution, or the sale of modified devices. Many Kindle owners who opt to jailbreak view it as a method to gain control over a device they purchased that is still functional, rather than being forced to buy a new device. However, jailbreaking is technical and carries risks, including the possibility of rendering the device unusable if something goes wrong. It also isn't possible on every Kindle model or firmware version, so before proceeding, Kindle owners should first spend some time researching if their device is compatible.
Alternately, PCMag notes, "If you're feeling particularly virtuous, you can donate your old Kindle to a local library or send it back to Amazon free of charge via its electronic recycling program."
Owners can continue reading ebooks that they've already downloaded, and they can also still sideload books using a USB cable (from, for example, Project Gutenberg). And PCMag points out that "There are plenty of e-stores where you can buy DRM-free novels legally, such as ebook.com and Smashwords. If you want to try this process for free, public-domain repositories such as the one at Standard Ebooks are a great place to start." (eBook files can be converted for the Kindle with the open source tool Calibre.)
New ebooks can no longer be purchased directly from Amazon. But most of Amazon's affected devices "have not received firmware updates for over a decade," notes the blog OMG Ubuntu, "and most lost on-device access the Kindle Store." Some Kindle owners are taking things even further: You can unlock the firmware of older devices to add extra functionality (custom screensavers, epub support) or run entirely different software. On the hardware hacks side, some choose to turn old Kindles into photo frames or online dashboards.
TechCrunch offers some caveats about jailbreaking: This process allows users to install custom fonts, new screensavers, alternative reading apps, and even third-party tools that expand the Kindle's functionality... [I]t's important to note that jailbreaking a Kindle might violate Amazon's terms of service. In many jurisdictions, jailbreaking isn't considered a criminal offense for personal use, but it may become a crime if it involves copyright infringement, illegal software distribution, or the sale of modified devices. Many Kindle owners who opt to jailbreak view it as a method to gain control over a device they purchased that is still functional, rather than being forced to buy a new device. However, jailbreaking is technical and carries risks, including the possibility of rendering the device unusable if something goes wrong. It also isn't possible on every Kindle model or firmware version, so before proceeding, Kindle owners should first spend some time researching if their device is compatible.
Alternately, PCMag notes, "If you're feeling particularly virtuous, you can donate your old Kindle to a local library or send it back to Amazon free of charge via its electronic recycling program."
For crying out loud, stop using that term. (Score:5, Interesting)
I don't care where the term originated, but calling it "jailbreaking" just makes it sound like you're doing something illicit. No one would think twice about it if you said you were going to "enable expanded functionality mode" on their Kindle, since it's out of support now. Implying you're going to get in trouble for freely using hardware you paid for outright for is such a corpo psyop.
Re:For crying out loud, stop using that term. (Score:5, Funny)
Do you get equally upset when someone talks about a chroot jail on Linux? /j
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Oh, just fsck off.
Anyway this branch should be blamed on the Apple fanbois if'n I remember the history correctly.
I bit surprised to see an Amazon story without "evil" in the comments. Not surprised there is no Funny.
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I don't care where the term originated, but calling it "jailbreaking" just makes it sound like you're doing something illicit. No one would think twice about it if you said you were going to "enable expanded functionality mode" on their Kindle, since it's out of support now. Implying you're going to get in trouble for freely using hardware you paid for outright for is such a corpo psyop.
When you're wrongfully imprisoned, jailbreak may be your only recourse.
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When you're wrongfully imprisoned, jailbreak may be your only recourse.
Yes, and that's the source for the term from the modding community. But non-techie people don't associate "breaking out of jail" as being a morally right thing (because most of them think being wrongly imprisoned isn't a common occurrence). That translates to this and they then get skittish at even flipping an interface switch to allow install of apps from outside a walled garden. They are like the iOS dorks who think allowing side-loading means anyone can install anything on your device without your approv
Jailbreak no longer implies ilicit (Score:2)
"Jailbreak" definitely implied something illicit in 1974 when AC/DC performed the song, but in 2026?! No. Jailbreaking is totally legit 99 times out of a hundred.
Jails were once respected because they were a product of society's consensus. When DRM appeared, jails became anyone's restrictions, with no societal inputs and no claims to legitimacy.
If you break out of the county jail or federal prison, that's a whole other thing than breaking out of your neighbor's sex dungeon. And almost all the time we talk a
Should be required by law. (Score:5, Interesting)
If you discontinue support for a device that prevents the user from accessing or modifying critical functions then it your company should be required to make a final update available that enables users to use the device as they please. Effectively destroying functional devices because it's not profitable is the worst kind of waste.
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Just what I came here to say. Please vote the parent up.
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If you remove the primary function from a device then it follows that the device is no longer functional. The process of making a device non-functional is effectively destruction because it now lacks its functional raison d'etre.
Literal destruction? No.
Effective destruction? Yes.
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The primary function is displaying ebooks,
Close but incorrect. The primary function is to make it easy to obtain and read ebooks. Without being easy the device it is considered to be garbage to most consumers.
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I guess this must depend on the specific customer.
I'm thinking about people in general, not technically inclined individuals like those at Slashdot. Slashdot's audience is far from general, so assume people are tech illiterate, since that is a target demographic for this device.
what would "using the device as they please" mean in this case?
I suppose it would mean enabling other websites to make purchasing ebooks on the device a trivial task. Maybe add a selection menu of shops (that can be modified of course) in place of the way you buy on amazon, similar to how MS was forced to let people choose which browser to use
It's all about DRM (Score:5, Interesting)
Public Service Announcement (Score:2)
You can buy a lot of e-books DRM free, legally, on ebooks.com. They even have a filter so you can search only for DRM-free ebooks.
And that's why (Score:5, Interesting)
I download all my books DRM-free from bittorrent.
My ebook reader is an ancient Sony PRS-650 [the-ebook-reader.com], it still works fine and it has no trouble reading files that haven't been messed up by Amazon. What a concept eh?
"What about the book's authors who aren't getting paid when you download their stuff for free?" I hear you say:
Yes, I wish I could pay for what I downloaded. But I can't. The best option I could find was to buy the paperback as well, so some of my money would trickle back to them. But that's mighty stupid and totally not environmentally-friendly.
I did try to pay an author directly once (the late Ian M. Banks [wikipedia.org]) but he send me an angry email back saying even if he got money from me, I was robbing his editor and distributor, and I should just buy his book normally - which I would, if that didn't entail leaving an undeserved cut to effing Amazon.
So there we are: there's no mechanism to legally buy books that aren't hamstrung by DRM. So honest people who value their consumer rights can't be honest.
Re: And that's why (Score:3)
Buy the physical book for your local library. Libraries in USA regularly redistribute duplicates to other libraries, so no concerns if it is a common book.
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Buy the physical book for your local library. Libraries in USA regularly redistribute duplicates to other libraries, so no concerns if it is a common book.
This. Or buy it used.
Honestly, there's no excuse to pirate stuff over BitTorrent when one can buy a book in print.
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Your correct and honest course of action here would be to not buy it and not have it. But since that's not where you landed, your post is just a weird attempt to justify your theft. You're trying to invent yourself a moral basis for an immoral act.
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But can you still buy AZW books? (Score:2)
AI claims that you can still buy AZW books and read them on one of these old Kindles. The claim is that if you buy from your PC account for the old Kindle it will be supplied as AZW, which will be readable on the device after transfer to it from the PC by USB.
The claim is that what has changed is that you can no longer buy directly from the Kindle, because purchases are now KFX only. But that you can still buy books for it over the web using your PC and they will be supplied as AZW.
If this is really true,
Re: But can you still buy AZW books? (Score:2)
We escape the jail because of USB (Score:1)
Madness (Score:2)
I have a Kindle from 2015. In one of the 'recent' updates â" I think it was released a year or two ago â" they made it impossible to read imported ebooks.
You connect the Kindle to a PC, copy ePub files and then disconnect it. The files (books) are there. Check the reader a few hours later and all the books will have vanished. If you attach the reader again, the files are deleted. Fuck you, Amazon!
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I have a Kindle from 2015. In one of the 'recent' updates â" I think it was released a year or two ago â" they made it impossible to read imported ebooks.
You connect the Kindle to a PC, copy ePub files and then disconnect it. The files (books) are there. Check the reader a few hours later and all the books will have vanished. If you attach the reader again, the files are deleted. Fuck you, Amazon!
Hmm, I have one newer than that. and my imported ebooks are there and persistent.
Not necessarily easy to find though - the UI is horrific.
(also, I think I used the "email it to your special Kindle email address" method rather than USB cable to get them on there)
I have a very old kindle (Score:2)
Amazon should free them (Score:5, Insightful)
If a company stops supporting the devices, they should be obliged to make them usable without their support. They should have to allow root access and distribute the DRM keys required to access the licensed content.
This is why books are better (Score:4, Insightful)
You never have to worry about someone turning off access to a book you purchased thirty years ago.
You don't have to find workarounds to get a book. They're available practically everywhere.
Text within a book will never change. Once you have the book, it remains the same forever.
No one can remotely remove access to your books.
The only real benefit to Kindles and the like is you can have multiple books on you at the same time even though you can only read one at a time. Until your power runs out. Which doesn't happen when you have a book.
Goodbye eBooks. Welcome Back Paper & Piracy. (Score:2)
Scary sentence (Score:1)
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Well, yes, but also, new ebooks can no longer be purchased from Amazon FOR a pre-2013 Kindle, since they did away with the "download & transfer via USB" option on the Amazon site last year.
News to me that they are supported (Score:2)
Sorry, it violates Terms of .. what? (Score:3)
Isn't the context here, that there is no service? I suspect that whatever terms the two parties came to agree upon, Amazon is the one who has initiated the violation of those terms, by ceasing to provide service!
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So? (Score:2)