Troubleshooting Kindle Keyboard Issue

[h2r2d2]

I've had my Kindle Keyboard (Kindle 3) for probably close to 8 years. I didn't use it for around a month, picked it up, and the screen was totally blank. No light would turn on and it would not charge. After reaching out to Amazon, they said it appeared to be a battery issue.

I just got my replacement battery, replaced the battery myself, and the screen is still blank. The charging light will now turn on for around 10 seconds before abruptly turning off.

I've tried holding the power button for 20, 30, 40 seconds. Nothing. I've had it plugged into the wall for several hours with no change. I've tried different cords and AC adapters, no change. I've tried holding the home button, no change. The screen is still completely blank and it won't do anything.

I'm going to leave it plugged in overnight, but as the light isn't on, I assume that won't charge it and may not make any difference.

Has anyone had this happen and found a fix? I despise the new e-readers with a passion and would rather go back to physical books alone than switch to a newer e-reader.

Thanks!

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by h2r2d2

I've had my Kindle Keyboard (Kindle 3) for probably close to 8 years.

Hopefully someone else will come along with a specific repair plan.

I don't have one, so I'll first give a general repair philosophy.

My wife and I take our Kindle Keyboards with us almost everywhere. She's more careful with her things than me, so her Kindles hardly ever break. But with all that reading, and movement, they will. Eight years is a tremendous run. Anyway, what I do is always have a few replacement Kindles in the house. I make sure that at least one is in working order to serve as a quick replacement, with others as a store of parts. There are cheaper places than eBay to buy spares (Goodwill?), but I have used eBay.

It may be that reloading the software will fix your problem. But, personally, since I have the parts, if in your situation I might next try swapping out the motherboard. Several google-able web sites have instructions.

P.S. You can see that we also have a Fire. We only have one, and it has two uses: the Washington Post, and the occassional library eBook (mostly Brooklyn Cloud Library) that isn't eInk Kindle-compatible. We feel that built-in lighting is unneeded and will, like you, choose the Kindle Keyboard if given a choice.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by h2r2d2

I've had my Kindle Keyboard (Kindle 3) for probably close to 8 years. I didn't use it for around a month, picked it up, and the screen was totally blank. No light would turn on and it would not charge. After reaching out to Amazon, they said it appeared to be a battery issue.

It may be that your screen cable has backed off from the motherboard (system board).

This YouTube video explains it (jump about 2/3 into the video, the first 2/3 is opening the case).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rns1KkRrnxA

There are also undocumented reset points inside the Kindle Keyboard. Sometimes crossing these points with a small screwdriver supposedly fixes this issue.

http://www.nickengerer.org/personal-...eyboard-d00901

(See also the image below, taken from this article.)

It's also possible that the replacement battery was defective. I had a Kindle Keyboard that would not "kick over" that worked when I put in a new battery. The battery I was using supposedly had a charge, but it wouldn't start the Kindle.

But even if you can't get this Kindle up and running, there's no reason to abandon Kindle Keyboards in general. You can find Kindle 3s on Shop Goodwill, eBay or on Craigslist very inexpensively. Recently they had them on Woot for $15. Right now I don't see any refurbished ones at Amazon, but they get them regularly.

At any rate, stuff to look at. Hopefully something will help.