Quote:
Originally Posted by Frogm4n
Amazon is stopping service to devices that are 14 years old. If your plan was to expect longer service support than that then your plan was flawed. That's longer support than just about any other device from any other brand.
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The below is my OPINION PIECE.
Amazon is not "stopping support". They haven't been doing anything to support the devices for a long time. No more firmware updates, etc.
What Amazon is doing is banning them from accessing your purchased books. They required downloads to go via WiFi when they banned Download and Transfer. Then they banned the devices from using WiFi access.
If Amazon had said (probably falsely) that they had to ban WiFi access for security reasons, but left Download and Transfer as an alternate way to purchase and use books, then that might not have been so bad (but it was still bad IMHO). Or, Amazon could have stopped Download and Transfer and allowed WiFi transfer (as they initially did). But no, they did not do this. They banned BOTH Download and Transfer AND WiFi access. That is not "stopping support". That is "intentionally making a device useless".
There's a big difference in what Amazon did compared to "stopping support". They already stopped support for these devices many years ago. But yet, these devices were still used by many. Until now. Yes, you can still use them if you are technically competent. Buy your ebooks elsewhere - not from Amazon - remove DRM, convert from EPUB to AZW3, and sideload them.
...and hope that Amazon has not already slipped their code to disable sideloading into your device. They'll probably be activating that code next, IMHO. I would advise people to keep their devices offline permanently to avoid Amazon activating that code, if it exists. I wouldn't doubt that it does. And I wouldn't buy any more books from Amazon either. I might guess that they're implementing or at least researching how to add code to their ebooks themselves, that would work in conjunction with their stealth code in your Kindle, that would permanently alter the way a Kindle behaves after opening that ebook. I wouldn't put it past them based on prior behavior. They're already reportedly making DRM changes using a stealth channel outside of the normal firmware uprgrade channel. IMHO, keep those Kindles permanently offline people. That's currently the safest bet when dealing with Amazon. Yeah, my paranoia is real. So is what Amazon is doing.
Amazon offers "features" that entice you to register your Kindle and keep it online. And to buy newer Kindle hardware. There's a reason behind that, and that reason is probably not to your benefit. We're seeing that unfold right before our eyes.