eBook frustration in China!

[Polokus]

I noticed elsewhere on these forums folk feeling unsatisfied re. geographical restrictions on ebook sales. Being outside the US is apparently a problem.

But if you're in China (like me), and you use a Kindle, that's when you really hit a brick wall! Because even if you have previously bought stuff from Amazon (using a credit card drawn on a Chinese bank) and had it shipped to China with no problem, Amazon will now refuse to let you make any purchases from the Kindle store because "Kindle and Kindle content are not available for China".

You cannot use the Kindle wireless service to do anything here, the only thing that will be piped through to you is a welcome message from the CEO when you register the device!

But I did have hopes that Amazon would permit me to buy ebooks, download them and put them on with the USB cord.

There is a book that I have recently seen mentioned on these forums (If the Universe Is Teeming with Aliens… Where Is Everybody? Fifty Solutions to the Fermi Paradox and the Problem of Extraterrestrial Life) that I am longing to read, which is only available as an ebook from the Kindle store. I would be very willing to part with $10 to enjoy it, but I cannot!

[happy_terd]

That really stinking bites.

They should refund your Kindle in my opinion.

[desertgrandma]

Originally Posted by Polokus

I noticed elsewhere on these forums folk feeling unsatisfied re. geographical restrictions on ebook sales. Being outside the US is apparently a problem.

But if you're in China (like me), and you use a Kindle, that's when you really hit a brick wall! Because even if you have previously bought stuff from Amazon (using a credit card drawn on a Chinese bank) and had it shipped to China with no problem, Amazon will now refuse to let you make any purchases from the Kindle store because "Kindle and Kindle content are not available for China".

You cannot use the Kindle wireless service to do anything here, the only thing that will be piped through to you is a welcome message from the CEO when you register the device!

But I did have hopes that Amazon would permit me to buy ebooks, download them and put them on with the USB cord.

Welcome to MobileRead, Polokus

Did you buy your kindle thru Amazon, and did they ship it to China?

Or did you buy it thru a third party, like ebay?

Amazon is pretty specific in its kindle pages about where books are available.

That being said.....there are workarounds. One of the most popular is using Amazon gift cards.

I'm not sure of the exact process, perhaps a search will help more.

In the meantime, check out some of the over 15,000 books available here. Click on 'ebooks', then, under formats, click "mobipocket"

(not 'mobipocket download guide")

You can sort by author, or genre.

Good luck.

[rmm200]

I suspect buying books from Amazon will be the least of the problems downloading books in China.

Tried downloading any texts about Tibet recently?

Robert

[Polokus]

I bought my Kindle via Taobao, which is the Chinese equivalent of eBay. In fact, I don't want to return it or have it refunded, because since I got it I love using it to read ebooks! (Of course I take full advantage of online resources such as Project Gutenberg.)

Just before the Kindle DX was due for release I did read that Amazon were willing to ship to China, and the ease with which a large retailer in Beijing was able to supply me seemed to confirm this.

I could accept (albeit unwillingly) that they are totally unprepared to provide wireless coverage here (even for something as unrelated to ebook purchase as using the built-in experimental web browser), but as I've said what I find really galling is that I cannot buy ebooks from them and download to my PC, even though Amazon has accepted my orders for (real) books in the past, they now tell me that I cannot order from the Kindle store, that they will not accept payment with a Chinese credit card! Where is the logic or fairness in this?

Thanks for the suggestion re. gift cards desertgrandma, I'll maybe check that out in order to try and get that book. I just have a particular desire to read that book, I think for the most part I'll simply now learn to live without Amazon's help or services.

If anyone can point me to another source for the book I mentioned I'd appreciate it.

Tibet isn't a subject that greatly interests me rmm200.

[carlobee]

Originally Posted by happy_terd

That really stinking bites.

They should refund your Kindle in my opinion.

exactly!