In keeping with Amazon, they are going to be eradicating the Obtain & Switch by way of USB possibility from readers’ Kindle Content material Libraries on the 26th of February, disabling readers’ skill to immediately obtain bought ebooks from their Amazon accounts.
In keeping with some Kindle homeowners, the change appears to be efficient instantly!
Readers gained’t have the ability to:
- copy Kindle ebooks to Kindle e-readers utilizing an USB cable,
- retailer ebooks individually from their Kindle system or app,
- again up their ebooks, or
- learn them wherever apart from Amazon’s personal Kindle surroundings.
When readers choose the Obtain & Switch by way of USB possibility from their account, Amazon presently shows the next discover:
Beginning February 26, 2025, the “Obtain & Switch by way of USB” possibility will not be accessible. You’ll be able to nonetheless ship Kindle books to your Wi-Fi enabled gadgets by deciding on the “Ship or Take away from System” possibility. Study extra about managing downloads
Will it have an effect on you?
When you solely ever learn your Amazon ebooks on a Kindle e-reader or app and are usually not involved with backing up your ebooks or studying them wherever else, this modification probably gained’t influence you.
You’ll proceed to sync your Kindle over wi-fi, the ebooks you’ve purchased will seem, and also you’ll have the ability to learn them as normal. However homeowners of early Kindle e-readers, such because the Kindle Keyboard, might not even have this feature.
Because the shutdown of 3G networks just a few years in the past, homeowners of Kindle 3Gs (with out wi-fi) have needed to manually transfer e-book recordsdata to their system utilizing an USB cable. This gained’t be an possibility after the twenty sixth. Homeowners of non-wi-fi Kindles could have no supported solution to obtain ebooks they’ve purchased and paid for.
When you purchase ebooks from Amazon to learn on a non-Kindle gadgets (and even to backup!), you’ll have two choices. Both set up the outdated Kindle app on a pc (when you have entry to 1) and try and obtain your ebooks that method, or purchase a Kindle system to learn your ebooks.
Amazon’s respondse to a Verge article on this subject was unhelpful at finest, stating that:
“Clients can proceed studying books beforehand downloaded on their Kindle system, and entry new content material via the Kindle app, Kindle for internet, in addition to immediately via Kindle gadgets with WiFi functionality,”
Studying between the strains, this confirms that Amazon clients can not learn their Kindle ebooks on a special system or app.
As a commenter on a Verge article overlaying this famous:
“I do not need to be pressured to repeatedly purchase new Kindles for the remainder of my life simply because I made the error years in the past of shopping for content material locked into their proprietary format.”
What you are able to do
Book recordsdata downloaded via the Amazon web site can be found within the older AZW3 format – which has its advantages.
Obtain your ebooks now!
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Log in to your Amazon account
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Navigate to your Content material Library
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Choose the Extra actions menu subsequent to every ebook you’ve purchased
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Select Obtain & switch by way of USB – if it’s nonetheless accessible to you
There are numerous instruments accessible on-line to automate this course of. Seek for one which fits you.
Convert them to a standard e-book format
You gained’t have the ability to convert your ebooks if the recordsdata are locked with DRM. It’s a lot simpler to take away DRM (what’s DRM?) from AZW3 recordsdata than newer Kindle e-book codecs. This implies you possibly can convert them to different e-book codecs, akin to epub.
To take away DRM, search on-line for an answer that fits your circumstances, akin to downloading particular software program or utilizing an internet service.
Then convert your e-book recordsdata to epub format utilizing on-line software program like Convertio or downloadable software program like Calibre.
Preserve your ebooks secure
When you’re a fan of cloud storage providers like Dropbox or Google Drive, again up your transformed ebooks to maintain them secure.
Or add your ebooks to your private Libreture library to see them in all their glory – with covers and all – and monitor your studying.
With Libreture you get 500MB of cupboard space free forever (good for tons of of ebooks), and may simply improve in the event you want extra room.
Want extra room? Right here’s a particular coupon for everybody with greater than 500MB of ebooks from Amazon and in search of a house for them.
Get 50% OFF a WHOLE YEAR of Further e-book house with Libreture!
Use promotion code:
DOWNLOADYOUREBOOKS
when upgrading to get 50% off for 12 months.
Do we actually personal our ebooks?
Whether or not or not we really personal ebooks which might be locked with DRM is a query raised by creator and editor Kristin McTiernan when she printed a video describing her expertise of switching from a Kindle to a Kobo ereader.
Kristin discovered that she couldn’t merely transfer her e-book recordsdata from one system to a different. She couldn’t obtain her books from the Amazon account she purchased them via. And when she did ultimately handle to entry the ebook recordsdata themselves, that was solely the start of the journey to getting them on her beautiful new Kobo.
“Why have all of us gotten so accustomed to corporations telling us whether or not or not we are able to entry issues that we’ve purchased?”
The most effective resolution (with hindsight after all) is to purchase from bookshops that don’t use DRM, and mean you can obtain your ebooks.
Keep in mind! Shopping for from any ebookshop that solely permits you to learn your bought ebooks via an app shouldn’t be an ideal thought. It’s typically tough to inform, so be careful for that earlier than handing over your cash!
The place can I purchase DRM-free ebooks I can really personal?
There are tons of of bookshops on the market that don’t use DRM, and who imagine you must get to really personal the ebooks you’ve purchased.
Right here’s my rising listing of nearly 500 ebookshops that promote ebooks, digital comics, magazines and RPGs in DRM-free codecs. I’ve checked each one!
You’ll be able to uncover Libreture’s assortment of DRM-free bookshops with the steering of Ofori’s DRM-free Bookshop of the Month video collection. Ofori shares ebook critiques, e-book suggestions, guides, and information on his YouTube channel, The Digital Reader.
If Amazon disabling downloads does something, I hope it helps readers uncover the broader world of ebooks past Amazon. That they study different ebookshops, publishers and authors, and the way to make sure they get to really personal, preserve, and browse their ebooks nevertheless they like for years to return.
