Now, you have the Kindle by following the guide of buying Kindle 2 from outside US. There are couple of things you need to know on using Kindle in your homestead.
- Don’t charge your Kindle with your home power supply – unless at home you have the same voltage and US two-pronge plug. Instead, use the USB cable and charge it with your computer.
- Amazon use Whispernet to send the book to your Kindle, and it consumes lots of battery power of your Kindle as it needs to search / connect to Whispernet constantly. But since there is no Whispernet outside US, you shall switch off the Whispernet (from the Kindle menu) as soon as you get your hands on it.
- With your Kindle account, you need to set up a Kindle email address such as [email protected]. You can send files to that account and Amazon.com will convert the files for Kindle reading.
- On the other hand, Amazon will send the converted file to your Kindle directly via Whispernet. Since you don’t have Whispernet in your country. What you need to do is to send the files to a different address – [email protected]. Amazon will then convert the file and send you an email with a link to the converted file. You can then save the converted file and transfer to your Kindle.
- Kindle is beautiful, but make sure you buy a cover to protect it.
- Register to www.mobileread.com, it provides lots of support to mobile readers like us … outside Amazon.com.
Update : Since the screen saver picture also consumes power, therefore switch off your Kindle, instead of turning it to sleep mode before you go to bed. That will make your Kindle battery last for two, three weeks; instead of just a few days.
Update 2 : Kindle 3 is now available, great product !!
Update 3 : As you may aware, you can register your Kindle thru the “Manage your Kindle” in Amazon website, but not registering it using Whispernet … but here is a trick – create your own reginfo file and copy to your Kindle (for expert only … I warn you first).
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Hi Michael
Got my Kindle 2 at last. After one connection, my computer could not recognize the Kindle, and therefore could not charge it. Your advice will be greatly appreciated.
Hi Toddy,
Was your connection directly to the PC, or to an USB hub. May I suggest you to try the followings:
1. If your PC can recognize a new device, but not a Kindle – first properly eject the device first, i.e. not just unplug the Kindle 2
2. Total shut down the Kindle – push the top button to right for a few seconds until the screen go blank.
3. Plug the Kindle to the PC USB port with the cable, but not thru any USB hub.
4. See if your PC can recognize the Kindle or not. If not, you probably need try it on another PC.
Let me know if you have other problems. Hope it helps.
Thanks. Working again.
Great Toddy !! Enjoy your Kindle2 and the world of eBook.
Hi!!
I live in the Dominican Republic and my mom just gave me a kindle as a gift, and i get that i cant deregister it on the actual kindle until I reach the us, but i cant read any books. I downloaded to free books in the format permited and they show on the computer that they are stored inside the Kindle but i cant access them!!
Please help!!
Hi Marcelle,
Not sure I can answer your questions … you wrote your mom gave you a Kindle as a gift, but did she buy it in Amazon and specify as a gift ? If yes, you should be able to register the Kindle with your Amazon account (can be done anywhere in the world via Internet). Otherwise, your mom or whoever bought that Kindle, need to deregister it first.
And the only “registration” that needs to be done in US is the registration of the Kindle hardware, since that requires your Kindle to connect to the WhisperNet. But even without that, you shall be able to buy and download eBooks to your Kindle to read (just like what we are doing, outside US).
For the free books you downloaded, are those in .azw format and stored in the “document” folder ? And can you see those books in the home menu ?
Hope it helps.
thanx man for your tip’s but i have a real big problem and i need to fix it … i ordered kindle for my friend and i didnt use the gift option so what happend is that the kindle was rigesterd with my name and i needed to change it to his name so what happend is that i tried to change but it ( diregister it ) did not accept cause am out side U.S so i found that there is an option in the kindle menu and it was ( restore to the factory default ) and i did it .. guss what ? the kindle now is not rigesterd to me any more but the problem is i cant rigester it to any account because am out side U.S ( in the middle east ) and now i dont know what to do ?? if at least there is a way to get the books it will be enough .
Hi Ahmed,
I think there is a misunderstanding, or I misunderstood your problem. Seems to me you deregister your Kindle and restore to factory default, all from your Kindle device itself (i.e. the Kindle menu) …
But when we talked about the registration / deregistration was actually a step in managing your device within the Amazon account. Therefore, I think there is still a chance that you can deregister your Kindle after logged into Amazon account (the Manage Your Kindle page). Then ask your lucky friend to register this device with his / her Amazon account.
You / your friend shall able to get the book, but cannot register the Kindle hardware (which indeed requires you be in USA with the Whispernet).
Hope it helps and if it still does not solve your problem, I am afraid you need to make a call to Amazon.
Hi Michael,
I’m living in HK and plan to follow onenow’s way to purchase Kindle DX.
As I know from amazon’s web that DX is PDF native supporting, can I get the DX and transfer my own pdf files at my PC through USB cable to DX for reading?
Thanks for ur kindly advice.
Hi Kenneth,
Yes you can transfer your own pdf files from your PC to your DX for viewing. One thing I am not so sure is how good is the PDF native support, may be it works on all complex PDF, or may be just simple PDF with pictures and graphs. Anyway, please note that, with Kindle’s B&W screen, the colorful PDF may not as good looking as you view it in PC screen.
Hope it helps.
everytime i connect kindle to my mac via USB screen goes blank! help
Hi Nik,
Sorry to learn that. But in my case, the Kindle works normally – i.e. the Kindle screen shows the correct screen, and the Mac shows the Kindle icon in desktop, and the charging light of the Kindle gets turned on. May be you can try turn off your Kindle first, and then connect again to try ?
Hope it helps.
Hello Michael,
Thanks for your very informative advices. I live in India and my friend just got me a Kindle from the US. Should I register it in my name or in my friend’s name? Most probably my friend will also buy books for me. Or is it necessary for me to create an account in my name.? How do I go about it? I do not have an active amazon account. Please suggest!
VT
Hi VT,
Glad you found the information useful. So, is it an International version, or an US version ? If your friend is going to buy books for you, then there is no harm to let your friend register the Kindle. But each time, your friend will need to download the book to his / her computer, then mail it to you and you transfer the book to your Kindle via USB cable.
If you have credit card, or if you can buy Amazon gift card easily, then it is better to have your own Amazon account and register the Kindle with that account. And you may want to check my other posts on how to get US books (lower priced) to an International version Kindle.
Hope it helps.
Thanks Michael,
Yes, it is an international version. One more question: Can my friend register it in his name in the US and buy books for me but I download it here in India on my kindle? Is this possible?
Thanks also for the other posts on how to get US books to international version.
VT
Hi VT,
This is possible only if he share his Amazon login account with you. Another approach you may consider is you create your own Amazon account, with your friend’s address as mailing / delivery address. And you register the Kindle under your account, and you use Gift coupon to buy books (so you don’t need your friend’s help as well). Then you can buy and download books easily.
Hope it helps.
Hi Michael
[[On the other hand, Amazon will send the converted file to your Kindle directly via Whispernet. Since you don’t have Whispernet in your country. What you need to do is to send the files to a different address – [email protected]. Amazon will then convert the file and send you an email with a link to the converted file. You can then save the converted file and transfer to your Kindle.]]]
Just want to check – I’ve to create 2 accounts with free.kindle.com? I’m going to get Kindle using a Borderlinx US address (similar concept to VPost) – which Kindle should I get?
Thanks for your help
Mabel
Hi Mable,
Since now Amazon ships the Kindle outside US with the International version, so first you don’t need to select “which” Kindle to get – there is only one Kindle. Secondly, you don’t need to get the US address for the Kindle (even though you can always ask Amazon to ship to the US address first, then ask Borderlinx send to you). You can use the US address for two purposes now – 1) if there are other products from Amazon or other US online shop that will not ship to your country; 2) you want to use the US address to consolidate your shipments and save some delivery charges.
Hope it helps.
I want to buy my brother in Afghanistan a Kindle for Christmas. However, it does not look like it will be easy to get it registered and working from there. He does have a computer with internet. Do you know of anyone or is there a way to purchase one and get it registered so it will work for him over there. If it is too much hassle I won’t get this as a gift. Please let me know if you know of anyone over there that has one that works. Thank you
Hi Jody,
Certainly you can get the Kindle as a gift to your brother. One way is you register an Amazon account for your brother, then get a Kindle to him. You may want to instruct Amazon to ship the product to you first, then you can register it in US (via Whispernet). Then you ship the Kindle to your brother with the Amazon account information. Then your brother can buy books via the Amazon account.
Hope it helps.
Hi Michael!
I am currently living in US but will be returning home to Singapore in a few months time. I am considering in buying Kindle before my return since it is not made available in Singapore. However, after reading your helpful tips and asnwering some of my concerns about using in my home country. I will also like to know does this means that the 3G wireless in Kindle will not function in Singapore? I wont be able to surf the internet on the Kindle? Thanks very much for your advice!
Hi Jane,
Right, not until Kindle 2 is available in Singapore, you won’t be able to access the net thru the Kindle (be it 3G or GPRS). On the other hand, I personally don’t see the wireless access is a must for two reasons – first, the Kindle 2 browser is mediocre, really not a good surfing experience; second, I can always buy Amazon ebooks thru my PC, instead of the Kindle store (which you can access from your own Kindle).
Not until one day you subscribe to some newspaper / magazine and you want Amazon to download to your Kindle every morning, I really don’t see the need, yet.
So basically, I turn off the wireless function most of the time. Hope it helps.
Hi Michael!
Thanks very much for your prompt reply! I think i will take the opportunity to buy a Kindle soon! You’ve been most helpful!
My pleasure. Trust that you will enjoy your Kindle as much as I do.
Hi Michael,
I’m in the UK now planning to move to Singapore. I can get a Kindle in UK but wonder if I can continue to buy books and subscribe to magazines after the move. I think you said we could do so in Singapore via amazon.com and sycronize via the PC. But I use a MacBook, would there be any problems?
Thanks!
Hi Ivy,
Yes, you can still buy books in Singapore by various methods I mentioned in my blog posts. Once you bought the ebooks, you can download to your Mac and then copy to the Kindle (I tried myself). However, I don’t think the magazine subscription will work, because there is no wireless transfer in Singapore yet. However, you still can buy / download the “current issue” of magazine, as in this blog post http://www.michaelyung.com/blog/services-and-products/2009/08/20/newspaper-and-magazines-for-kindle-outside-us/. Hope it helps.
That’s great, thanks Michael!
Hi Michael,
I finally received my Kindle here in US. Reading it on some website and forum (i may have misunderstood) Is Kindle for the international market different from a Kindle in bought and meant for US users? I wasnt aware there was one till i just got mine. Also, I came across the Nook from Barnes and Noble which allows users to have Wi-Fi that Kindle does not have. What is your take on that.
Hi Jane,
Glad that you got your Kindle finally. Your US version (?) shall work perfectly and just like any other International version Kindles. The only difference is when you download ebooks to your Kindle outside US, you need to pay the transfer charge (I guess it’s US$ 2.00).
And for Nook, I think with Wi-Fi is a good thing if you can find Wi-Fi hotspots easily and there is a good browser with the Nook (I am not so sure about that). Otherwise, to me using phone network that I can connect to Whispernet all the time is better. In Asia, 3G (and later on 4G) cellular network is very popular.
Hope it helps.
Hello again Michael,
Sounds good to me! So far most reviews have said Nook could be the next Kindle Killer, it still cant beat Kindle yet. If i understand you correctly there isnt really any difference between the international version kindle to the one sold in US? I currently bought the US version and wonder if there is a need for me to exchange it to a International version for i will eventually move back home to Singapore. Thanks very much for the advice!
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