On May 20, 2026, Amazon will stop supporting older Kindle devices with a new policy regarding these changes that has left some users uncertain as to what this means for their eBook reader devices.
Amazon has made it clear that no software updates or web services will be made available for devices that have been sold since the release of the Kindle before 2013.
However, it does not mean the Kindle devices will stop functioning.
After this news, the initial user reaction online was panic, with users assuming their devices would be rendered useless, but this is not the case.
These Kindles will continue to function for reading, but their capabilities will be limited going forward, and there will be no further updates for these Kindles.
List of Affected Kindle Devices
Let’s have a look at the list of Kindle Devices that are going to stop working, soon.
- Kindle (1st generation)
- Kindle (2nd generation)
- Kindle DX
- Kindle DX Graphite
- Kindle Keyboard
- Kindle 4
- Kindle Touch
- Kindle 5
- Kindle Paperwhite (1st generation)
- Kindle Fire (1st generation)
- Kindle Fire (2nd generation)
- Kindle Fire HD 7
- Kindle Fire HD 8.9
The other biggest change is the loss of access to the Kindle Store. Users will no longer be able to purchase, download, or borrow new books directly on these devices.
Features like “Send to Kindle,” which rely on internet connectivity, will also stop working. This is particularly significant for users who rely on library services like Libby, as borrowing e-books will no longer be possible on affected devices.
While these limitations mean that there is no longer any new content available to users as of this writing, it is important to note that all previously downloaded content will still be available on the device once the new content can no longer be read on that device.
There are other ways around the lack of new content, e.g. manually transferring eBooks from an Amazon Kindle device to a computer via USB cable using software such as Calibre.
This change is due in part to the advancement of technology, but also because there are a lot of Kindle devices that have been around for more than ten years.
Now Amazon wants to concentrate on producing their newer Kindle devices with more current capabilities and options for being used with the Internet and other devices.
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