@free.kindle - help needed

[holden1]

Hi all,

I have document that I wish to send to my kindle. I understand that I can send it to my kindle email, but there will be a charge. I also read that I can send it to another email address '@free.kindle' without the conversion charge. Can anyone tell me how to set this email address up? When I go to my 'Manage my Kindle' page I do not see an option to add this to my account.

Thanks

[TheKindleWorm]

Hi there - you don't need to set up the "free" address. Just make sure you set up a Kindle address then you use the first portion of this address for example yourname@free.kindle so basically your free kindle email is exactly the same except for the addition of the "free" part.

[holden1]

Thank you - it all makes sense now.

Do you know if sending documents to your kindle in this way will convert them for you? And will it send the doc over 3G or wifi or both?

Thanks again

[charlec]

As far as I know the free address only sends over wifi (that's why its free) but documents will still be converted.

[babyd]

I think you need to put 'Convert' in the subject line of the email if you wish it to be converted, then send to yourname@free.kindle.com

[TheKindleWorm]

The manual states that it will send the documents to you when you're connected to wifi and also to your email address.

Not something I've ever needed to try but sounds simple enough

[trekchick]

Originally Posted by babyd

I think you need to put 'Convert' in the subject line of the email if you wish it to be converted, then send to yourname@free.kindle.com

You only have to do that if you're sending a PDF and want it converted to .azw. Without specifying "Convert", Amazon just delivers PDFs. Any other supported file, even natively readable .mobi and .prc, Amazon converts to .azw before sending, whether you've put anything in the subject line or not.

Another tip: You can set your Personal Document Charge limit to $0.01 (on Manage Your Kindle). Then, if you send something to *@kindle.com, you'll get a message saying that the charge was over the limit, and they'll automatically forward the document to *@free.kindle.com. That way, you can still get files for free from sites that don't support the free address (like Instapaper). But, if you ever want to receive files over 3G, you'll have to change the limit first.

[clintbradford]

Sending Personal Documents to Kindle

Kindle makes it easy to take your personal documents with you. Each Kindle has a unique and customizable e-mail address you can set on your Manage Your Kindle page. You can send unprotected Microsoft Word, PDF, HTML, TXT, RTF, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, PRC and MOBI files to your Kindle e-mail address.

To access your personal documents on your Kindle, send attachments to your Kindle's e-mail address ("name"@free.kindle.com). The files will be sent to your Kindle via the Wi-Fi connection and also to the e-mail address associated with your Amazon.com account at no charge.

To have your PDF documents converted to Kindle format so you can take advantage of functionality such as variable font size, annotation, Text-to-Speech, etc., type "Convert" in the subject of the e-mail when you submit your personal document to "name"@free.kindle.com. Image-heavy PDF files are presented in landscape orientation and don't work with devices that have auto-rotation, so those will be delivered in the Kindle format.

You can also transfer personal documents to your Kindle at no charge using your USB connection.

Using your Kindle's e-mail address:

When you register your Kindle, you'll automatically set up two e-mail addresses you'll use to send files to your Kindle: "name"@free.kindle.com and "name"@kindle.com. You can find this address from your Kindle's Home screen: Press the Menu button and select Settings. Your Kindle's "name"@kindle.com e-mail address is listed under Device E-mail. Use the same name to also send documents to your Kindle at "name"@free.kindle.com .

In general, send personal documents to your "name"@free.kindle.com address to wirelessly transfer personal documents to your Kindle over Wi-Fi as well as to the e-mail address associated with your Amazon.com account at no charge.
If you are not able to connect your Kindle via Wi-Fi, send your documents to your "name"@kindle.com address. The files will be sent to your Kindle over Wi-Fi if available.

If Wi-Fi is not available, the files will be sent via 3G for a small fee.

To edit your Kindle's e-mail address: Visit the Manage Your Kindle page.
Sign-in to your Amazon.com account.
In the Your Kindle(s) section, select "Edit Info."
In the Kindle E-mail Address text field, change the first part of the e-mail address to what you would like it to be. The @free.kindle.com and the @kindle.com will automatically be appended.
Select "Update information" to save your changes and close the text entry box.
To set up approved "From" e-mail addresses:

Visit the Manage Your Kindle page.
Sign-in to your Amazon.com account.
In the "Your Kindle approved e-mail list" section, enter the e-mail address and select "Add Address."
To send your personal documents:
Attach your document to a new e-mail or forward an existing e-mail that has a document attached. A subject is not necessary, unless you want to convert your PDF documents to the Kindle format. To convert your PDF document to the Kindle format, add "convert" in the subject line.
Send the e-mail to your Kindle e-mail address for wireless delivery directly to your Kindle; If your Kindle has Wi-Fi enabled, it will be delivered to your Kindle at no charge. A small fee will be charged for the wireless delivery over 3G.
Personal documents in supported file formats smaller than 5 MB sent to "name"@free.kindle.com are typically delivered to your e-mail address and to your Kindle, if your Kindle's Wi-Fi is connected, within five minutes (per document). Personal documents larger than 5 MB may take longer.

Personal documents in supported file formats smaller than 5 MB sent to "name"@free.kindle.com are typically ready for wireless auto-delivery to your Kindle within five minutes (per document), not including actual wireless download time, which will vary with file size. Personal documents larger than 5 MB may take longer.
Personal documents in some file formats (such as PDF files) may take longer.
Your e-mail provider may have additional limitations on file size.

Keep in mind:

The file size of each attached personal document should be 50MB or less (before compression in a ZIP file).

The submitted e-mail should contain no more than 25 attached personal documents.
The submitted e-mail should target less than 15 distinct Kindles.

Fees for Personal Document Service
Fees for transfer of personal documents to the Kindle via 3G are based on the size of the file submitted (before compression if you use a .ZIP file), your country, and where you're accessing 3G. Fees will only be charged for documents that are successfully received wirelessly on your Kindle. (Personal Document Service is not available wirelessly in Canada. Please see Sending Personal Documents to Kindle for information about e-mailing personal documents to your computer for USB transfer to your Kindle.)

Kindle (Free 3G + Wi-Fi) user living in the United States: If you transfer personal documents to your Kindle via Wi-Fi there is no delivery fee. If you transfer personal documents to your Kindle via 3G while inside the United States, the fee is $ .15 per megabyte. When traveling outside the United States, a fee of $.99 per megabyte will apply.

Kindle user living outside the United States: We'll send personal documents to your Kindle via 3G for a fee of $ .99 (USD) per megabyte anywhere in the world you access 3G service.

Fees are rounded up to the next whole MB and apply to each personal document delivered via 3G to each Kindle. You can transfer personal documents to your Kindle via USB for free at any time.

Setting your Personal Document Charge Limit
You can set the maximum charge allowed for a single personal document sent wirelessly to your Kindle. Any personal document exceeding this charge will be sent to your @free.kindle.com address and a notification will be sent to your Kindle. We will also attempt to send the document to your Kindle for free via Wi-Fi.

To set the Charge Limit for Personal Document Service:
Visit the Manage Your Kindle Page.
Scroll down to the "Your Personal Document Charge Limit" section.
Enter your preferred maximum charge value.
Click the "Update limit" option when finished.
The limit you set is a per document limit. If you send multiple documents for conversion in a .ZIP file, the total aggregated charge for conversion of all the documents may exceed your per document limit. As long as each document's charge is below the limit, conversion and delivery will be successful.

Aggregation of Fees for Personal Document Service
Consecutive orders for Personal Document Service via wireless that cost less than $5.00 may be combined into one transaction and appear as a single charge on your credit or debit card billing statement. You may see a combined transaction charge if the Personal Document Service has not been used for longer than one month.


Downloading to Multiple Devices
Content purchased from the Kindle Store can be downloaded to your Kindle, or Kindle compatible device, as long as you've registered the device to the Amazon.com account that purchased the Kindle content. There is no limit on the number of times a title can be downloaded to a registered device, but there may be limits on the number of devices (usually 6) that can simultaneously use a single book.

That means you can download and read your books on any Kindle device you own as long you've registered each device to the Amazon.com account where your Kindle Library is stored.

You can see the items in your Kindle Library under Archived Items on your Kindle and send downloads to your registered Kindles from the "Your Orders" section of the Manage Your Kindle page.


Files Kindle Recognizes
You can purchase and wirelessly download Kindle books, newspapers, magazines and blogs from the Kindle Store as well as download and read other types of non-DRM (Digital Rights Management) text-based content on your Kindle. You can also play Audible audiobooks or MP3 files. When your Kindle is connected to a computer and mounted as a USB drive, you will see three default directories or folders. Here's a list of the directories and the file types recognized by Kindle:

Documents: Kindle (.AZW, .AZW1). Text (.TXT), Unprotected Mobipocket (.MOBI, .PRC)
Audible: Audible (.AA, .AAX)
Music: MP3 (.MP3)
Tip: Mobipocket files must have no Digital Rights Management (DRM) protection applied to be readable on your Kindle. If you purchased a Mobipocket file from a Mobipocket retailer, you will not be able to open the file on your Kindle.

Personal Documents
Kindle's Personal Document Service allows you to e-mail the following approved file types to your Kindle's e-mail address:

Microsoft Word (.DOC)
HTML (.HTML, .HTM)
RTF (.RTF)
JPEG (.JPEG, .JPG)
GIF (.GIF)
PNG (.PNG)
BMP (.BMP)
PDF (.PDF): See below for details.
Microsoft Word (.DOCX) is supported in our experimental category.
The above file types can also be combined in a compressed ZIP (.ZIP) file. ZIP files are automatically opened up by the conversion service, converted to the Kindle format, and sent to your Kindle or computer as specified. Some complex PDF and DOCX files might not format correctly on your Kindle.

Built-in PDF Reader for Kindle (Latest Generation), Kindle (2nd Generation), and Kindle DX devices
Your Kindle displays most PDF documents without losing the formatting of the original file. You can magnify PDFs by viewing them in landscape mode. The only Kindle devices supported for PDFs are the (Kindle Latest Generation and 2nd Generation) and Kindle DX.

To have your PDF documents converted to the Kindle format so you can take advantage of functionality such as variable font size, annotation, Text-to-Speech, etc., type "Convert" in the subject of the e-mail when you submit your personal document to "name"@free.kindle.com. Image-heavy PDF files are presented in landscape orientation and don't work with devices that have auto-rotation, so those will be delivered in the Kindle format.

Option to Convert PDF Files to Kindle Format
If you prefer to have your personal PDF documents converted to the Kindle format so you can take advantage of Kindle functionality such as variable font size, annotation, Text-to-Speech, etc., type "Convert" in the subject of the e-mail when you submit your personal document to your "name"@free.kindle.com address.

Image-heavy PDF files are presented in landscape orientation and don't work with devices that have auto-rotation, so those will be delivered in the Kindle format.