Amazon Is Discontinuing Support for the Following Kindle Models.
Attention, Kindle users! Amazon may soon discontinue support for your e-reader. If you purchased a Kindle very recently—that is, within the last 10 years—you have nothing to worry about. However, those still using an older Kindle model may be affected.
The news began spreading on Tuesday, followed by confirmation from Amazon. In a statement to PCMag, Amazon stated the following: “Starting May 20, 2026, users of Kindle and Kindle Fire devices released in 2012 or earlier will no longer be able to purchase, rent, or download new content through the Kindle Store.” Amazon’s original Kindle was released in 2007, meaning the company will be ending support for these devices within five years. These devices include:
-
First-generation Kindle e-reader (2007)
-
Kindle DX and DX Graphite (2009 and 2010)
-
Kindle Keyboard (2010)
-
Kindle 4 (2011)
-
Kindle Touch (2011)
-
Kindle 5 (2012)
-
Kindle Paperwhite 1st Generation (2012)
-
Kindle Fire 1st Generation Tablet (2011)
-
Kindle Fire 2nd generation tablet (2012)
-
Kindle Fire HD 7 (2012)
-
Kindle Fire HD 8.9 (2012)
As with most discontinued devices, Amazon isn’t discontinuing Kindles released in 2012 or later. If you have an older Kindle model from this year, it will continue to work and you can read on it—you just won’t be able to access the Kindle Store. This may not be a big deal: you’ll still be able to read your books or add new ones manually. However, you won’t be able to borrow books using library apps like Libby, which are used by a huge number of readers. The problem is compounded if something happens to your device, such as needing to deregister it or perform a factory reset. In this case, Amazon states, “You will not be able to re-register or use these devices in any way.”
Amazon will contact affected customers directly via email, explain the situation, and offer them a 20% discount on new Kindle devices, as well as a $20 e-book credit upon purchase of a new device. This code is valid until June 20, 2026, at 11:59 PM.
What if you have an older model Kindle device?
E-readers aren’t much like smartphones: they’re not about having the latest and greatest features, as most of the time you’re using an e-reader for reading—and often, it’s just black-and-white text. If your 2012 or earlier Kindle is perfectly capable, you might not need to spend money on an upgrade—even with a discount from Amazon.
Luckily, you have a few options. First, you can continue using the Kindle Store for now, so if you enjoy buying ebooks, you can download them to your Kindle until it’s discontinued. But in the long term, it’s better to start “sideloading” (or manually) ebooks onto your device. One of the most popular apps for manually managing your ebook library is Calibre , which acts as a sort of iTunes for ebooks. You can customize the details of each book (such as changing covers) and convert ebook formats to Kindle’s proprietary AZW3 format. While there are certainly illegal ways to obtain ebooks and download them to your Kindle, there are also many legal ways to purchase books this way . This way, you can still purchase ebooks, convert them to Amazon’s format, and then download them to your Kindle without updating your device.