# Charging problem w/Kindle 3



## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

Hi!

I just had a Kindle replaced by Amazon (super service, even here from Germany). It had been completely discharged and then started locking up, wouldn't charge - or would charge and then give the "almost empty" warning after 15 minutes.

Anyway, the new Kindle arrived real quick, and I just discovered that there seems to be a problem as well: I had in in my USB-wall-charger since yesterday, and when I checked this morning the lamp was still orange, and when I removed it from the charger it immediately said "battery almost empty, please charge". The charger works fine with my iPhone and my wife's MP3-Player, and I also tried two different cables.

Now is the new device defective as well, or should I really buy the original Kindle-Charger for 19,99 from Amazon? Amazon says so on the support-webpages, but I'm not sure if this is for technical or for marketing-reasons?!

Regards 

  Wolfgang


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

I've charged my Kindle from the mains adapter and cable you get with it, and also using a generic Micro-USB cable from my PC's USB socket, so I don't think it's particularly fussy about the cable or adapter, but...

Like a lot of things these days, it does require the full current (500mA) to be available from the charging source. I don't know what variety your charger is, but I've certainly heard of problems with some of these that they don't put out the full charging current, especially if they are multi-socket and there are other devices plugged in at the same time.

If I were you, I would use the charger that came with it (*) or charge it from a PC's USB socket and see if it charges properly like that. This will help you tell where the problem lies.

(*) I'm puzzled you say you would need to *buy* an original charger, I got a cable and UK mains charger in the box with my (UK) Kindle, you should have got a German charger with yours if you bought it from amazon.de - or did you buy internationally from Amazon.com?


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## Phil75070 (Dec 30, 2009)

Mine wasn't giving me the low battery warning, but despite an overnight charge the charging light was still yellow. I did a restart and it has charged fine since. Give that a try.


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## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

Morf said:


> (*) I'm puzzled you say you would need to *buy* an original charger, I got a cable and UK mains charger in the box with my (UK) Kindle, you should have got a German charger with yours if you bought it from amazon.de - or did you buy internationally from Amazon.com?


Yes, I did - I think that's the only way to buy one in Germany, and then it comes without a charger. And I didn't order a charger with my Kindle because I didn't expect any problems using the charger I have.

Well, I will try rebooting and I will try different chargers/usb ports. Hope I can solve this - I love the thing apart from this.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

woffi, the easiest thing might be to get the charger Amazon advertises as compatible. 

I just has a weird experience -- I wanted to transfer some content via my computer.  So I plugged it in with any old USB cable I had that had the appropriate micro USB tip.  Doncha know it showed as charging but didn't show as a drive.  Odd.  But it showed as a drive just fine when I used the cord that came with it.  . . . which the only reason I hadn't at first was because it meant getting under the desk to unplug it from the power strip. 

Anyway, I just thought it was odd. . . I was using a micro to mini adapter that might have been part of the problem on the non-Amazon cords. . . . . but it still seemed strange to me.  Ah well, as long as I know it works with the real cord, I'm happy, and may just buy a spare since I don't like having to crawl on the floor to unplug the one. 

And that's why I think it might be worth it to buy the one Amazon recommends.


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

woffi said:


> Yes, I did - I think that's the only way to buy one in Germany, and then it comes without a charger. And I didn't order a charger with my Kindle because I didn't expect any problems using the charger I have.


Ah, I see. I assumed that when Kindles went on sale in the UK (on amazon.co.uk) they had also put them on the other European sites, but I can see when I look that you can still only order from Amazon.com as an international purchase which only comes with a cable. When you buy in the UK you get a cable and also a UK mains charger.

I would certainly start by trying to charge from the USB socket of a PC with the cable they supplied, that definitely should work OK.


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## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

I think I'm out of luck 

I tried two differen chargers, and i tried plugging it into an USB-Port on my Mac and tried the USB-Port on my Windows-NOtebook: sometimes it charges (orange light), sometimes it doesn't - and even when it apparently charges and i left it sitting there for 2 hours, it stiil says "battery empty" as son as I unplug it.

Only once it showed as a drive on my Mac, then never again. 

I have two original USB-Cables from Amazon, make no differene at all ((

Oh yeah, resetting ist (via Menu or via Slide-and-hold the On-button) didn't help either - only once after that it was frozen for about 20 minuted.

I really, really hate this. I loved my kindle from the first moment, but now I'm really loosing my trust into it. *sigh*

I'm really wondeing if I should even bother to have it replaced again, or maybe just get a refund instead - but what then? I tried readig on my wife's iPad, which isn't so bad, but no way close to the Kindle (when it works).

@Ann: i would go for the original charger, even though it's no bargain including shipping to Germany, but I thinks that makes no sense when the damn thing acts so weird.


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

The charging time can be more than 2 hours, so to be on the safe side I would plug it into PC/Mac, make sure you get the orange light, then leave it overnight and see what happens.

If that doesn't kick it into life, then I would say you are using it exactly as Amazon intend, so there really must be something wrong with it, so you'll have to talk to Amazon again I'm afraid.

If you do decide to go for another one, I would suggest that you charge it (at least for the first time) from your PC or Mac rather than from any other charger, and leave it alone until the light goes green - may be several hours, so be patient.

I also notice that you can get a deal on the Amazon power adapter - half price ($9.99) if you buy it with the Kindle. Might be worth seeing if Amazon Customer Services can arrange for you to buy one at that price since you are having all these problems.


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## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

Morf said:


> The charging time can be more than 2 hours, so to be on the safe side I would plug it into PC/Mac, make sure you get the orange light, then leave it overnight and see what happens.


Well, I couldn't get the orange light anymore, so just now I tried "reset to factory defaults" - and still waiting for it to start up again. If I can get it back to life maybe I'll even try updatting to 3.0.3 before calling CS.

Oh, and happy new year everyone!


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

IF the orange light doesn't go on there IS a problem. . .it's either in the cord or in the charging socket. Or the battery is just bad. Easiest to check the cord first -- if you have another device that uses a micro USB plug try it and see if it charges. But it's more likely a problem in the device since it _was_ sort of indicating charging but wasn't actually doing so. Time to contact CS: www.amazon.com/kindlesupport.


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## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

An, that's what I thought. Now I left it connected to my Mac, orange light was not on, screen was completely black, and I forgot it there. Returning after a couple of hourse, to my suprise the *green* lamp was on, and I just updatet to 3.0.3 with no problem - it even shows up as a drive on my mac. 

We'll see how this works out. Next time the thing gives me trouble I'll contact CS.


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## StaceyHH (Sep 13, 2010)

Not all chargers will work with the Kindle. If the voltage/amperage is the same, then theoretically it should work, but not all devices charge to the same capacitance. If you are using a non-Kindle charger, and have had the identical problem with two kindles, I would be more suspicious of your charging set up than of your Kindle. BTW, when you talk to CS, are you telling them you are trying to use your cell/iPod chargers? 

Neither my iPod charger nor my cell charger will charge my Kindle. Also, USB charging only works on my desktop PC from a powered USB port, and it is slow. If I plug into my laptop, I can see the drive, but can't charge. If I plug it into the AMZ OEM charger, it works perfectly every time.


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## Barbiedull (Jul 13, 2010)

Morf said:


> Like a lot of things these days, it does require the full current (500mA) to be available from the charging source. I don't know what variety your charger is, but I've certainly heard of problems with some of these that they don't put out the full charging current, especially if they are multi-socket and there are other devices plugged in at the same time.


 I usually charge my Kindle plugged into an external usb port connected to my computer. It has my scanner, printer, kindle, AND phone charger attached and it still gets enough power to charge quickly! (At least 4 usb devices on 1 usb hub and it works fine.) Maybe I've just been lucky.


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## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

@Stacey: I told CS taht I used different chargers, including the USB port on my computer. Now the external powered hub seems to be the one working best, and I come to think that when I got my first Kindle and it worked well, I charged it on my Windows-PC - which I no longer have, since I recently converted to Mac.

Ok, if no other problems come up, maybe I'll order the Amazon charger, even though it's kkind of expensive including shipping and stuff.


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## StaceyHH (Sep 13, 2010)

Barbiedull said:


> (At least 4 usb devices on 1 usb hub and it works fine.) Maybe I've just been lucky.


More likely is that it is a powered USB hub. Does the hub itself plug into the wall? If so, you should have no problem with charging from your hub.


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## Barbiedull (Jul 13, 2010)

StaceyHH said:


> More likely is that it is a powered USB hub. Does the hub itself plug into the wall? If so, you should have no problem with charging from your hub.


Yes, it is external powered. It has 7 usb ports and works like a charm. I think they're a great investment instead of needing many chargers.


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## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

Barbiedull said:


> Yes, it is external powered. It has 7 usb ports and works like a charm. I think they're a great investment instead of needing many chargers.


Maybe this one: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B000JJIWK2/ ? That's the one I got, seems to work for loading the Kindle. If you have another one maybe you can also name the exakt brand and model? There are so many crappy USB-Hubs out there ...


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## Barbiedull (Jul 13, 2010)

woffi said:


> Maybe this one: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B000JJIWK2/ ? That's the one I got, seems to work for loading the Kindle. If you have another one maybe you can also name the exakt brand and model? There are so many crappy USB-Hubs out there ...


This is the one I have, but the external power adapter wouldn't work for you if your are in Germany.
This has 3 ports on front, 3 on top, and 1 in back.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182175&cm_re=rosewill_hub-_-17-182-175-_-Product


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## Morf (Nov 18, 2010)

StaceyHH said:


> Also, USB charging only works on my desktop PC from a powered USB port, and it is slow. If I plug into my laptop, I can see the drive, but can't charge. If I plug it into the AMZ OEM charger, it works perfectly every time.


When my Kindle was new (UK which are supplied with an Amazon UK power adapter) I charged it using the supplied adapter and cable, thereafter I charged it from my PC.

Yesterday I charged it with the Amazon adapter (it was quicker to pick up at the time) and I noticed the charging time was a lot quicker than from a PC.

I've just looked at the charger, and it says "Output 5.0v (DC) 0.85A".

That's very significant, because normally the maximum output from a USB socket (powered, and in the best possible conditions ie no other devices connected at the same time) is 500mA ie 0.5A. So the Amazon charger can provide a higher current and therefore will allow the Kindle to charge quicker.

So there you have it. The Amazon charger will charge faster than a standard USB socket. Shame Amazon didn't tell us that anywhere!  (Unless anybody knows different, of course)

[BTW, I have seen this behaviour in the past with an Ipaq where the supplied mains charger was much faster than any other charging. In that case the charger used the USB data connections to signal to the Ipaq to go into fast charge mode. I don't know if the Kindle does this, but if it does then another high-current charger will not fast charge it.]

Woffi,

As I mentioned above, there does seem to be an offer of the Amazon adapter for half price ($9.99) when bought with a Kindle. If I were you, I'd get in touch with CS and see if they can give you this offer for you to buy the adapter now. If you emphasise that you are having problems with charging from your Mac (which I'm sure is what they intend you to do) you might be successful. Worth a try!


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## woffi (Dec 29, 2010)

Morf said:


> Woffi,
> 
> As I mentioned above, there does seem to be an offer of the Amazon adapter for half price ($9.99) when bought with a Kindle. If I were you, I'd get in touch with CS and see if they can give you this offer for you to buy the adapter now. If you emphasise that you are having problems with charging from your Mac (which I'm sure is what they intend you to do) you might be successful. Worth a try!


I will try that. Up to now, my Kindle seems to be working fine. If I don't get any more problems I'll try to talk CS into selling me one for 9.99 $.

Thanks to everyone for help - this seems to be a nice place to be for a Kindle user/lover


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## screwballl (Jan 4, 2011)

The Kindle needs the Kindles specific charger... the mini USB port may the same as other devices, and other devices may be able to charge with the Kindle cord, but the Kindle devices needs the Kindle cord to charge and transfer files.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

My experience has been that, if I'm plugging it into the wall to charge, other chargers may work.  Specifically, the charger for a Motorola DROID definitely does.  I also have an iGo charger with the right tip and it charges just fine using that also.


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## StaceyHH (Sep 13, 2010)

screwballl said:


> The Kindle needs the Kindles specific charger... the mini USB port may the same as other devices, and other devices may be able to charge with the Kindle cord, but the Kindle devices needs the Kindle cord to charge and transfer files.


This is not true. The cord is just a cord, there's nothing special about it. I use a non-Kindle USB with a micro-B connector at my office for charging and file transfer. I purchased it from an online cable vendor for less than $4. Works fine.


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## tomatogirl (Aug 27, 2010)

screwballl said:


> The Kindle needs the Kindles specific charger... the mini USB port may the same as other devices, and other devices may be able to charge with the Kindle cord, but the Kindle devices needs the Kindle cord to charge and transfer files.


I use a 3rd party retractable USB cable with no issues. So this is definitely not true.


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## TheRiddler (Nov 11, 2010)

screwballl said:


> The Kindle needs the Kindles specific charger... the mini USB port may the same as other devices, and other devices may be able to charge with the Kindle cord, but the Kindle devices needs the Kindle cord to charge and transfer files.


I've used my Kindle charger to charge my phone, and my phone charger to charge my Kindle.
Both from the power socket and from the USB socket on the computer.

So put me in the 'not true' camp too


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