Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Myths and Clarifications


Some of these will just be clarifications for questions often asked, and some will be corrections of myths developing around the Kindle.

 I'll update this one regularly.

MYTH: You cannot download to, or put on your Kindle, anything but Amazon books.
FACT: As long as the document isn't copy-protected and is readable on the Kindle (MOBI/prc, plain text, or Kindle's AZW files) it can be downloaded or transferred to the Kindle.  Here's what Computerworld reports in an interview with Amazon's Kindle unit director, Charlie Tritschler, on this:
' Some users complained that Amazon might be eliminating the SD slot to force its Kindle customers into buying only Amazon content. But Tritschler said the Kindle 2 still allows users to access non-Amazon books, text files and even some music that is not protected by Digital Rights Management systems. They can do so via a USB cable connected to the Kindle 2 or through e-mail, since each Kindle has an e-mail address, he said. '
Here's a busy Amazon forum discussion of how to find and download Kindle-compatible books from other sources.  Also, see how to get the Project Gutenberg catalog onto your Kindle for download of any book in the catalog.


QUESTION: Is battery replacement covered by the warranty?
INFO: The same Computer world article references Tritschler.
' Tritschler announced today that the Kindle 2's battery can [be] replaced under warranty for a year.  After that, it can be replaced in the Amazon factory for $59. '
Since the extended warranty extends for an additional year what is covered in the basic warranty and also expands on that (covering one accident, while no accidents are covered under basic warranty), it stands to reason that a failed battery will be covered in Year 2 also.  That and the one-accident thing caused me to buy the extended warranty although normally I'm against vendor extended warranties.  If you have a new Kindle and are within 30 days of having ordered it, see the right-hand column for 'Kindle add-ons' on this page, to see Amazon's detailed info on this for each model. Below are ways to Share this post if you'd like others to see it.
-- The Send to Kindle button works well only on Firefox currently.

Send to Kindle


(Older posts have older Kindle model info. For latest models, see CURRENT KINDLES page. )
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