# Resetting a stuck Kindle 2 question



## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

Today my 1 month old Kindle 2 decided not to turn on. When I moved the slider switch to turn it on, nothing happened. The screensaver stayed in place on the screen on the left side and on the right the screensaver image degraded but was still partially visible. I had installed the screensaver hack a couple of weeks ago and the screensaver image on the screen is a custom one I added when I installed the hack.

I can still connect up with USB and when I move the slider bar to turn the unit off or on (hard to tell which mode its in since the screen doesn't change) the right side of the screensaver image flashes a bit and degrades slightly more to the point where it is now almost gone and only some stray pixel dots remain on the gray Kindle screen.

I read on this page http://www.articlesbase.com/gadgets-and-gizmos-articles/amazon-kindle-howto-series-help-my-kindle-2-is-frozen-860487.html about using ALT+SHIFT+R to reset using the keyboard. This did not do anything however.

I also tried to hold the slider switch to the right for > 15 seconds to hard reset the Kindle but nothing appears to happen on screen.

The above web page also mentions that you can reset a Kindle 2 by removing the back cover and gently hitting the reset button or by removing and replacing the battery. However, I can't find anything on the web regarding HOW to remove the back on a Kindle 2 and it isn't obvious.

What I'd like to do is at least try and get the thing to reset and uninstall the screensaver hack before calling Amazon customer service about my problem.

Any constructive suggestions gratefully accepted.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

It sounds like you have gotten some confused information, beernutz. The Kindle 2 does not have a reset button (the Kindle one does) and I don't believe it has a removable back. I know the battery is definitely not removable. You do a reset on the K2 by holding the slider button (on the top) for 15+ seconds (until you see it start to reset). Make sure to have your Kindle plugged into the wall with the charger when you try to do a reset. I have heard of situations where the battery has run down so much that the Kindle doesn't have enough juice to reset and that is why the screensaver image stays on the screen.

If a reset with a fully charged (and plugged in) Kindle doesn't work, your next step is to contact customer service. 

Good luck and report back.

L


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## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

Leslie said:


> It sounds like you have gotten some confused information, beernutz. The Kindle 2 does not have a reset button (the Kindle one does) and I don't believe it has a removable back. I know the battery is definitely not removable. You do a reset on the K2 by holding the slider button (on the top) for 15+ seconds (until you see it start to reset). Make sure to have your Kindle plugged into the wall with the charger when you try to do a reset. I have heard of situations where the battery has run down so much that the Kindle doesn't have enough juice to reset and that is why the screensaver image stays on the screen.
> 
> If a reset with a fully charged (and plugged in) Kindle doesn't work, your next step is to contact customer service.
> 
> ...


I first found that advice on resetting a Kindle 2 here http://www.guidetokindle.com/How-To-Unfreeze-Your-Amazon-Kindle-2.html so I guess I was grasping at straws to hope it was true.
I actually 'misspoke' above when I said the Kindle 2 had a reset button as what the how to article says it has is a reset hole which is visible with the back cover off.

My Kindle is plugged in and is fully charged (green light) however, holding the slider to the right for more than 15 seconds does not change the screen in any way.

I guess I'm screwed then if Amazon decides to make a big deal out of my having installed the screensaver hack.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

According to a customer service post on the Amazon Forum on 3/2/2009:
*
Custom Screen Savers*
Amazon.com Customer Service does not support or provide instructions for adding custom images to your Kindle to be used as screen savers. However, should you choose to do this on your own it will not void your warranty.

So you should be okay. Keep us posted...

L


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

beernutz said:


> I first found that advice on resetting a Kindle 2 here http://www.guidetokindle.com/How-To-Unfreeze-Your-Amazon-Kindle-2.html so I guess I was grasping at straws to hope it was true.
> I actually 'misspoke' above when I said the Kindle 2 had a reset button as what the how to article says it has is a reset hole which is visible with the back cover off.


I am suspicious of that article as it seems to be mixing K1 and K2 reset strategies.

With the K1 the advice was usually to do a hard reset (via the paperclip in the hole method) while plugged in so that if low power was the issue it would work. But I thought I read somewhere here on KB that you should NOT have the K2 plugged in while resetting, which is done with the on/off switch. And also that it takes way more than >15 seconds, sometimes closer to 30 seconds for the reset to occur. But I don't have a K2 so I may be mis-remembering.

There are any number of bona fide K2 experts here. . . if one can't help you out you'll need to call CS. . . .if your computer can see your Kindle as a hard drive, maybe you can remove the non-oem screen-savers, though it seems they've decided it won't void your warrentl.

Good luck. . .

Ann


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## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I am suspicious of that article as it seems to be mixing K1 and K2 reset strategies.
> 
> With the K1 the advice was usually to do a hard reset (via the paperclip in the hole method) while plugged in so that if low power was the issue it would work. But I thought I read somewhere here on KB that you should NOT have the K2 plugged in while resetting, which is done with the on/off switch. And also that it takes way more than >15 seconds, sometimes closer to 30 seconds for the reset to occur. But I don't have a K2 so I may be mis-remembering.
> 
> ...


Thanks Ann. I've tried doing a 20 second slider move reset both plugged in and not plugged in and it doesn't make a difference--neither do a thing.

Can someone tell me if I have to hit a button or interact with the keyboard or 5-way at all after the reset process starts? Since my screen never changes I can't tell if there is something I'm supposed to be doing to get the reset to continue/finish that I'm currently not doing.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

Mine always takes a good 30 seconds before it resets.... I've had to reset it 5 or 6 times since it arrived in Feb.... the first time was right after I took it out of the box.... The slider is the only button you hold to perform a reset.

I wonder if the 2.0.3 update is what is hanging your Kindle... Mine hung up when it tried to update a few days ago, and I had to reset it then and uninstall the screensaver hack.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

First off: Don't try to remove the back on the K2. There's a reset hole on the Kindle 1, not the K2.

From Amazon.com:
*Disconnect your Kindle from any power source*, and then slide and hold the power switch for 15 seconds before releasing. (From me: You may need to hold it for more than 15 seconds...It's taken 30-45 seconds before. )

Amazon has said that while they don't provide support for custom screensavers, having them won't void your warranty, so if the reset doesn't work don't worry about having to contact Amazon.


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## webhill (Feb 12, 2009)

beernutz said:


> I first found that advice on resetting a Kindle 2 here http://www.guidetokindle.com/How-To-Unfreeze-Your-Amazon-Kindle-2.html so I guess I was grasping at straws to hope it was true.
> I actually 'misspoke' above when I said the Kindle 2 had a reset button as what the how to article says it has is a reset hole which is visible with the back cover off.
> 
> My Kindle is plugged in and is fully charged (green light) however, holding the slider to the right for more than 15 seconds does not change the screen in any way.
> ...


No, the article does not say that. The article says "There are a few things you can do to "unfreeze" your Kindle 2, but the best cure is a bit of prevention. First, let's get to the "unfreezing". *In the Kindle 1* you have a few options to unfreeze your device...(snipped list of options for K1)...*Unfortunately the new Kindle 2 does not have a keyboard reset, there is no manual reset using a paper clip, and the battery cannot be accessed.* So you have one option left for unfreezing your Kindle 2. That is resetting the device using the Power button."

You could try calling tech support and having them walk you through the resetting. For some reason, when I tried it myself one time it didn't work, but then when they walked me through it it did work, and I am not an idiot, I swear. It couldn't hurt, anyway. If it didn't work, but you didn't want to give up and send it back yet, you could just say "well, I'm going to see if my (friend, husband, dog) can fix it; I'll call back if it's still giving me problems, maybe I'm just not doing it right."


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## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

webhill said:


> No, the article does not say that. The article says "There are a few things you can do to "unfreeze" your Kindle 2, but the best cure is a bit of prevention. First, let's get to the "unfreezing". *In the Kindle 1* you have a few options to unfreeze your device...(snipped list of options for K1)...*Unfortunately the new Kindle 2 does not have a keyboard reset, there is no manual reset using a paper clip, and the battery cannot be accessed.* So you have one option left for unfreezing your Kindle 2. That is resetting the device using the Power button."
> 
> You could try calling tech support and having them walk you through the resetting. For some reason, when I tried it myself one time it didn't work, but then when they walked me through it it did work, and I am not an idiot, I swear. It couldn't hurt, anyway. If it didn't work, but you didn't want to give up and send it back yet, you could just say "well, I'm going to see if my (friend, husband, dog) can fix it; I'll call back if it's still giving me problems, maybe I'm just not doing it right."


Ack, you are correct, I was totally wrong about what the 'how to' said. Before now, I didn't think I was an idiot, but now I'm not so sure. 
That is good advice and I'm going to call CS and get them to walk me through a reset.


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## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

The good news is that somehow I managed to get my Kindle to reset which uninstalled the screensaver hack as I had added the Update_kindle2_restore_default_screen_savers.bin file to the root of the file system before attempting to reboot.

The bad news is that didn't fix anything and I still have a frozen screensaver image on the right side of the screen and random lines on the left.

Help me Amazon CS help me.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

It sounds like it is time for a call. Something might be wrong with the screen.

L


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

beernutz said:


> The good news is that somehow I managed to get my Kindle to reset which uninstalled the screensaver hack as I had added the Update_kindle2_restore_default_screen_savers.bin file to the root of the file system before attempting to reboot.
> 
> The bad news is that didn't fix anything and I still have a frozen screensaver image on the right side of the screen and random lines on the left.


O.K. NOW we're getting somewhere.  Sorry. . .but at least you know it wasn't the screensaver hack that was causing the problem. . . .call CS. . . .betcha they send you a new one. . . .

Let us know how it goes.

Ann


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Uh oh..the random lines on the screen doesn't sound good at all. Better call CS.

I'm willing to bet you'll have a new (or at least refurbished) one by Monday.


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## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

Update: Amazon CS is sending out a new Kindle 2 via 1 day which they claim I'll have by Tuesday.  We did "don't ask/don't tell" (they didn't ask so I didn't tell) with respect to the screensaver hack when I spoke with them.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

beernutz said:


> Update: Amazon CS is sending out a new Kindle 2 via 1 day which they claim I'll have by Tuesday. We did "don't ask/don't tell" (they didn't ask so I didn't tell) with respect to the screensaver hack when I spoke with them.


Sorry to hear you'll be the weekend without your Kindle. Got any DTB or TV shows to catch up on? If not, you could spend the time here getting to know us. We could help you dress accessorize your new Kindle.


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## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

luvmy4brats said:


> Sorry to hear you'll be the weekend without your Kindle. Got any DTB or TV shows to catch up on? If not, you could spend the time here getting to know us. We could help you dress accessorize your new Kindle.


I think I actually did suffer some Kindle withdrawals this weekend. I had read 12 books in the last month on it and then, bam, cold turkey. I sure hope my replacement lasts longer than the 40 days my first one did.


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## beernutz (Mar 23, 2009)

beernutz said:


> I think I actually did suffer some Kindle withdrawals this weekend. I had read 12 books in the last month on it and then, bam, cold turkey. I sure hope my replacement lasts longer than the 40 days my first one did.


Yea! My replacement Kindle (looks new but could be reconditioned) was delivered yesterday and I easily transferred all my old content back onto it. 
I can't believe how much I missed it during the week I went without it.


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