Everything You Need to Know About the Changes to Kindle Support
Earlier this year, some Kindle owners got a message that support for their Kindle devices was coming to an end on May 20, 2026.
That means that, as of that date, you’ll no longer be able to download new books to your Kindle and the software will no longer be updated.
This change only applies to Kindles from 2012 and earlier (so if your Kindle is less than 14 years old, you’re in the clear!). These Kindles will no longer have any web support, so you won’t be able to use the “Send to Kindle feature,” borrow or download any books from Kindle or get Libby ebooks from your library on to your Kindle.
(Note that, per Amazon’s email, if you deregister or factory reset your Kindle, you won’t be able to register it again).
Also, if you need to find out how old your Kindle is, there are directions here.
And WHOA, were people mad about the change to Kindle support.
Here were some of the messages I got about this when I asked how people felt about this:
“Heartbroken. My G1 Paperwhite works just fine.”
“ANNOYANCE!! My 2012 kindle works perfectly fine!!”
“My Kindle is 15yrs old and still works. I use it off and on (some years I didn’t use it much as my reading habits changed) especially for kindle books from Libby. I am pretty mad they decided to discontinue supporting them. However, should I be surprised that a for-profit company would like to make more money by forcing long term customers to spend more money with the company? No. So I’m sad/ mad but not surprised. (I’m saddest to say goodbye to my physical turn page buttons!)”
Others sent messages like this
“I worked in tech for a decade on an app, and what people don’t understand is the maintenance team required to keep old versions up to date is crazy. And as tech gets better and the apps/software changes the code supporting old versions just stops working. The fact they even supported for that long is pretty impressive to be honest! And know the kindle back end dev team is probably rejoicing that they don’t have to try to make it work anymore.”
“I was a little annoyed, felt like it was $ driven. Asked Al if the one I’m currently using is affected (no) and then asked why they would stop supporting for products that are still working great. It was interesting and after understanding the tech side (security/advances in tech/more) I’m okay with it. One highlight was phones typically get 5-7 years support, so the 14-15 years for this is amazing. And a new phone is $thousands versus $150.”
So if you’re mad about it, you’re in good company.
And if you understand why they’re discontinuing support after 14 years, you’re also in good company.
If your Kindle is losing support, they’ll have sent you an email with a discount (I think 20% off) to get a new one – if you’re trying to decide which Kindle to get, I have a post comparing the various Kindle models here. (If you can stack that 20% discount on a sale, that’s even better!).
One reader sent me this message about upgrading:
“I had asked you if upgrading my Kindle was really worth it. Mine was from 2020. I was curious because it’s not like these devices are designed to be the fastest tech. Happy to report back that it is noticeably faster. 12 seconds for my old Kindle to wake up vs 6 seconds for my new one. And navigating is noticeably faster. This feels like when you finally open a new tube of mascara or a new bottle of topcoat. Just do it.”
And you do have the option to jailbreak your Kindle if you’d like to still use it – this post gives directions.
If you have other questions about the changes to support for old Kindles or have questions about getting a new Kindle, I’m happy to help!
And if you just want to vent a little about this, my comments are open!
Janssen, you were the first person I fired off an email to when I received Amazon’s notice! I knew you would be in the know. I also knew you would have information to talk me off the ledge of being mad. I asked whether you thought this would become a common or occurrence. You were able to matter-of-factly report that it had never happened to date. I, too, F
felt “they are just trying to get me to buy another device!” however, after just a few days of thinking it over, I noticed that they had put Kindle on a considerable sale and I was able to stack my 20% off end of device life offer on top of that. So I felt better getting a reasonable deal – thanks for that, Amazon! Thanks for being a listening ear and a great source of information about Kindle. It has meant a lot to me as a reader.