# Saying goodbye to my Kindle...



## coyote (Feb 24, 2009)

I expect (hope) that my iPad will be delivered here to Maui on Friday.  Soon afterwards I'll be wiping my kindle and giving it to my son.  I have to admit to having a little feeling of loss that I hadn't anticipated.  Sure, the Kindle is awkward-feeling, with its flickery screen and B&W limitation.  But it's delivered the NYTimes to me every morning without fail, even here in Maui, where you can't get it until 2 days later.  I've used it to read the entire 'Percy Jackson' series.  I hacked it, I carried it everywhere, and it's become a part of my life. 

I can't anticipate going back to the Kindle.  After all, my books will all be available on the iPad, and who would switch back to B&W TV?

So, has anyone 'wiped' their Kindle?  What's the proper method so ensure that I don't lose the 'credits' for those books when I start reading them on my iPad?

-c


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

At least you are giving it to your son and not throwing it on the trash heap of used technology!

If you have bought books from Amazon, they will be in your Amazon archive and you can just transfer them to your iPad when it arrives. If you have books from other places, you want to make sure to have backups on your computer so you can re-load them to your iPad.

As for your son, if he is not on your Amazon account: if you leave books on your Kindle that you think he might enjoy, then that's that. If he removes the books, then they are gone, since he will not have access to your Amazon archive. If you remove some or all of the books before you give it to him, that won't affect the books in your archive, but obviously, he won't have the books to read.

L


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## coyote (Feb 24, 2009)

Leslie said:


> As for your son, if he is not on your Amazon account: if you leave books on your Kindle that you think he might enjoy, then that's that. If he removes the books, then they are gone, since he will not have access to your Amazon archive. If you remove some or all of the books before you give it to him, that won't affect the books in your archive, but obviously, he won't have the books to read.


I've heard that any given Kindle book can only be downloaded to a limited number of devices. Is this still true? If so, I want to get my 'old kindle' removed from the list of devices I'm using.

-c


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

coyote said:


> I've heard that any given Kindle book can only be downloaded to a limited number of devices. Is this still true? If so, I want to get my 'old kindle' removed from the list of devices I'm using.
> 
> -c


It is true, although I have heard that non-Kindle devices (iPhones, computers, etc.) don't count as devices. You can put a book on only 6 Kindles but other devices don't count against that limit. However, I haven't tested this out--just a rumor I have heard. Maybe someone else has more concrete evidence.

The only specific person I have heard about who "regained" licenses for books is Heather (luvmy4brats). She had several defective Kindles that she returned and so she hit her max of 6 usages while having many fewer Kindles in her possession. She had to make a list of the books in question and call customer service and have them do the reset manually. At least, this is the way I think it worked. Maybe she'll chime in with more details of her experience.

If you have had only 1 Kindle on your account, then theoretically, you should still have five licenses for your books available to you. When you put them on the iPad, they may or may not count (see above). Even if they do count, you'd still have four per book. Not sure it would be worth the CS call but YMMV.

L


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

There's actually a thread either in "Let's Talk Kindle" or "Tips and Tricks" about how many devices a book can be on and what happens when you reach the limit.  Here's the consensus from the discussion there as well as others previously.

All Kindles/iPads/iPods/Iphones/Kindle4PCs/Kindle4Macs count for the purpose of the device limit.

Not all books have a device limit.

If you try to download a book that has no more licenses available, you get a warning that basically says you have to delete it from one of the devices it's already on first.  When you do that, the license is automatically released so that the book can be downloaded to another device.

It doesn't really matter if "old kindle" is shown in your account, what matters is what books are still on it.  But if you reset it to factory and de-register it before giving it to you son, all your licenses should be retained.  Keeping it registered but deleting all the books would be the same.

Amazon has said that it is technically against their terms of service to give or sell a Kindle with content intact.


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## coyote (Feb 24, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> There's actually a thread either in "Let's Talk Kindle" or "Tips and Tricks" about how many devices a book can be on and what happens when you reach the limit. Here's the consensus from the discussion there as well as others previously.
> 
> All Kindles/iPads/iPods/Iphones/Kindle4PCs/Kindle4Macs count for the purpose of the device limit.
> 
> ...


Just spoke with Amazon customer support. The lady there told me that there is no way to recover a license from a kindle device I'm no longer using, and she confirmed that eventually I'll have to purchase the book again as my hardware changes over time. VERY annoying. I will start purchasing books from the iBooks store, since those never 'disappear'.

-c


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

coyote,

Did you speak to Amazon Customer Support, or Kindle Customer Support. I can assure you from experience, she is incorrect. It does indeed work as Ann described.



> If you try to download a book that has no more licenses available, you get a warning that basically says you have to delete it from one of the devices it's already on first. When you do that, the license is automatically released so that the book can be downloaded to another device.


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## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

coyote said:


> Just spoke with Amazon customer support. The lady there told me that there is no way to recover a license from a kindle device I'm no longer using, and she confirmed that eventually I'll have to purchase the book again as my hardware changes over time. VERY annoying. I will start purchasing books from the iBooks store, since those never 'disappear'.
> 
> -c


That is true if you don't deregister the unused Kindle. If it is still registered to your account but you are just not using it, it still is taking up a license on your account. But if you deregister it and give it or sell it to someone else, you can have your licenses restored. I had to return my original K2 six (yes, six) times because of the old sunfade issue and eventually, many of my Amazon purchased books stopped working, even though the returned Kindles were deregistered. Amazon told me to send an email explaining the situation with a list of all the books in question and request that the licenses be restored. I did so and I was then able to download and open all of them from my archive. I had to do this three times with different books and sometimes it took a day or two, but I got back to square one. It's not enough to just deregister the Kindle from your account, I had to do the email thing. So, from personal experience, I can back up what Ann and Heather said.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Like Heather says. I had the same experience with several defective Kindles. I have 3 Kindles and 4 iPhones/iPod Touch on my account and have not had any issues with licenses. Because Heather had problems getting the returned devices off of her account, I called Kindle Support and my returned ones were already removed.


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## narcisse (Mar 19, 2010)

I also know from experience that it works as Ann described. It doesn't matter how many times you download and redownload a book, only how many devices it is on simultaneously. Some books have no set limit for the amount of devices (registered to your account) that it can be on at one time. For example, look at The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo under the section that says "product details". There is no limit mentioned here. Others have a limit of 5 or 6. For example, if you look at the product details for Dragon Keeper, it specifically states "Simultaneous Device Usage: Up to 5 simultaneous devices, per publisher limits." It says "simultaneous devices", not "total downloads", and it works exactly as that stipulation suggests.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

My experience has been that books are licensed for 6 devices simultaneously unless otherwise specified.  And the most frequently 'otherwise specified' number seems to be 5.  Some have no device limit; I think when that's the case it says "unlimited". . . .but I admit that I have not looked lately.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

I went through some of my books just to see how many devices they allowed. I was surprised that most did not have anything posted. I really love Nora Roberts books and none of the J D Robb or Nora Roberts books had a limit.


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## coyote (Feb 24, 2009)

Well, I de-registered the old Kindle before restoring it to factory defaults, so hopefully my licenses were preserved.  I spent quite a bit of time with the Amazon rep, however, and she was very adamant that the licenses could not be recovered.  Since there is no way to see how many licenses are available, I guess only time will tell.  I do love the Kindle app on the iPad.

-c


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## DD (Nov 9, 2008)

coyote said:


> Well, I de-registered the old Kindle before restoring it to factory defaults, so hopefully my licenses were preserved. I spent quite a bit of time with the Amazon rep, however, and she was very adamant that the licenses could not be recovered. Since there is no way to see how many licenses are available, I guess only time will tell. I do love the Kindle app on the iPad.
> 
> -c


As Heather said, it makes a difference whether you are talking to Amazon CS or the specialized Kindle Support CS.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Kathy said:


> I was surprised that most did not have anything posted. I really love Nora Roberts books and none of the J D Robb or Nora Roberts books had a limit.


Do they say "unlimited"? Or do they just not have a number?

I think, when they just don't have a number, the device limit is the default: 6

I admit, however, that I'm not particularly worried about it so I have not done a detailed study.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Ann in Arlington said:



> Do they say "unlimited"? Or do they just not have a number?
> 
> I think, when they just don't have a number, the device limit is the default: 6
> 
> I admit, however, that I'm not particularly worried about it so I have not done a detailed study.


There is no number. I was really surprised that most of the authors that I read didn't have a number. I have 7 devices on my account (3 Kindles, 2 iPhones and 2 iPod Touches), but the same book is never on all of them. I may just try it and see. I'll make sure it is a book that I've already read. I'll let you know.


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## GinnyB (Dec 19, 2009)

I won't be giving up my Kindle. I'm sure there will be times when I won't want to carry the iPad, but still want to read. Of course, there's always my BlackBerry, but I'm keeping both. Today, only my Kindle is going to work with me. Once I have the Internet on my iPad, maybe I'll sing a different tune.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

coyote said:


> Well, I de-registered the old Kindle before restoring it to factory defaults, so hopefully my licenses were preserved. I spent quite a bit of time with the Amazon rep, however, and she was very adamant that the licenses could not be recovered. Since there is no way to see how many licenses are available, I guess only time will tell. I do love the Kindle app on the iPad.
> 
> -c


Like others, I wonder if you talked to a Kindle CS rep or an Amazon rep? There are different phone numbers. (If you answered this, I apologize.) If you're concerned, I would call back and make sure you talk to a Kindle CS, and even if you did before, you may get a different answer from a different rep. Several people have indicated that their licenses have been freed up.

As for me, I'm keeping my Kindle. Yesterday I passed my iPad AND my Kindle through a metal detector at at the county courthouse; the guard said, "You know there's a Kindle app for the iPad."  I told him I had it, but I liked reading on the Kindle better!

But I think it's great you enjoy reading on the iPad and that you passed your Kindle on to your son!

Betsy


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## luvshihtzu (Dec 19, 2008)

I have no intention of giving up my Kindle DX when my iPad comes.  I have an iTouch and there is no way it is even close to the comfortable reading I have on my Kindle.  One night I tried to read the Touch after lights out and thought I would burn my eyeballs out.


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## coyote (Feb 24, 2009)

luvshihtzu said:


> I have no intention of giving up my Kindle DX when my iPad comes. I have an iTouch and there is no way it is even close to the comfortable reading I have on my Kindle. One night I tried to read the Touch after lights out and thought I would burn my eyeballs out.


I'm not sure you'll find the same problems with the iPad. I have been reading "Outlander" and find it incredibly easy on my eyes. Of course, I do turn it down a lot at night.

coyote


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## cheeki (Nov 29, 2008)

I'm reading Voyager right now.  The third book... in the outlander series.... CAN'T PUT THE DARN THING DOWN.... I don't know how I missed Gabaldan for so long.... but I will be reading the whole OUTLANDER series...


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## coyote (Feb 24, 2009)

cheeki said:


> I'm reading Voyager right now. The third book... in the outlander series.... CAN'T PUT THE DARN THING DOWN.... I don't know how I missed Gabaldan for so long.... but I will be reading the whole OUTLANDER series...


Same here. A friend told me about the series. I'm curious, is this how female sexuality works? I like it, very sensual. I'm looking forward to 'meeting' the gay character that shows up in the series.

-c


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## akagriff (Sep 8, 2009)

Coyote,  I was curious about what you were asking.  You have brought this topic up since 2009.  I'm surprised that you didn't get this resolved when you were discussing the Nook.


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## coyote (Feb 24, 2009)

akagriff said:


> Coyote, I was curious about what you were asking. You have brought this topic up since 2009. I'm surprised that you didn't get this resolved when you were discussing the Nook.


If you're talking about 'licenses', no, I've never gotten a straight answer. I actually spent a *long* time on the phone with Amazon support this time, but the nice woman kept insisting that, in effect, each download uses a license and there is no way to get them back. I kept telling her that this board said otherwise, and she insisted that the board was wrong. (If she _is_ wrong, why are Amazon customer service reps trained so _badly_, and why was she so adamant that she was right?)

What is the phone number for Kindle-specific support?

-c


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## Eeyore (Jul 16, 2009)

This is from the Amazon Boards. Bufo Calvin is the resident expert there.

Initial post: Oct. 14, 2009 7:40 PM PDT
Bufo Calvin says:

Actually, Caroline, I believe you can have as many Kindles registered to your account as you want. The confusion people have is between the device license (which is per book and set by the publisher) and the devices registered to the account.

Also, Amazon says that to free up a device license when you deregister a Kindle, you are also supposed to delete the content from that device.

That information is here:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200316870&#howmany

(Amazon page relevant to the discussion)

I have a post on this which should be on my Amazon Author Central page for a couple of days. I realized, though, after I wrote it, that there could be a problem in buying it twice. My intuition is that I would contact Customer Service and they would make it possible to buy it again, but I'm not sure.

Bufo Calvin
Amazon Author Central page:
http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B002E0NBIW

Posted on Oct. 15, 2009 6:00 AM PDT
Caroline Wong says:
At one time, I think Amazon allowed people to download/send a book six times. Remember the people who posted that they had difficulty with a download because it didn't open or was gibberish and after they deleted and downloaded it several times they couldn't download it anymore? We don't hear that complaint any more so I think Amazon may have changed their DRM/program to accommodate that. After all, lots of K2 owners have reset and resynced their library several times.

If we can register unlimited Kindles to one account, then your question becomes trickier. Probably after a number of years, lots of people will have more than six Kindles, iPhones etc. on their account. I still think the only way to get more licenses is to open another Amazon account and buy the book again. Amazon probably hasn't thought about this issue. When Mobipocket set 6 as the limit, they probably thought they were being very generous. They probably didn't think of a future where an entire family of Kindlers would be sharing one account.

Time to contact CS.

Link:
http://www.amazon.com/tag/kindle%20customer%20service%20q%20and%20a/forum/ref=cm_cd_search_res_rm?_encoding=UTF8&cdMsgNo=1&cdPage=1&cdSort=oldest&cdThread=TxDBARMS00MSHQ&cdMsgID=MxZTQMZY13AXOE#MxZTQMZY13AXOE

Best Wishes!


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

coyote said:


> What is the phone number for Kindle-specific support?
> 
> -c


1-866-321-8851.

You can also use the call me feature. They always call me in seconds.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/contact-us/kindle-help.html?ie=UTF8&browse_node_id=200127470

L


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