Kaitlyn Cimino / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Amazon is about to finish Kindle content material obtain assist in previous variations of its Android app.
- The transfer would shut a loophole used to retrieve recordsdata weak to DRM removing.
- This follows Amazon ending “Obtain & switch by way of USB” assist.
Getting new books to your Kindle is simply concerning the best factor on the earth. Amazon’s acquired a silly variety of books out there so that you can purchase à la carte, Kindle Limitless provides a handy subscription choice, and you may borrow books from taking part libraries. However even with so many curated paths in direction of rising your Kindle library, some customers are at all times going to need to do issues their very own approach, and for that we’ve nonetheless acquired Kindle sideloading. Earlier this yr we heard about Amazon closing one loophole that permit customers convert their legitimately bought Kindle titles into simply sideloadable content material, and now it seems to be like one other is on borrowed time.
Principally, these Kindle libertarians have been keen on getting their arms on e-book downloads from Amazon, then working these recordsdata by way of instruments that strip the DRM and take away the constraints on how that guide could be shared and skim. For this to work, although, they should have entry to these recordsdata within the first place.
Again in February, Amazon deprecated its “Obtain & switch by way of USB” performance, which had beforehand been a supply for these recordsdata. But it surely seems that wasn’t the one strategy to retrieve these downloads from Amazon’s servers, and a few intelligent customers have as a substitute been turning to older variations of the corporate’s Android app, which nonetheless supported an analogous obtain mode.
Sadly, that window is about to shut, as properly. It’s unclear if Amazon is actively making an attempt to eradicate the workaround, or is simply performing some housekeeping, however the firm has despatched out discover that previous Android builds will now not assist Kindle downloads, as shared by MobileRead discussion board consumer trishau (by way of Android Police):
We’re reaching out to ask you to replace the Kindle app in your Android system to the most recent out there model (Android OS v9.0+). Beginning Could 26, 2025 Kindle for Android app variations launched previous to March 2022 (v8.51 or earlier) will now not assist Kindle content material downloads. This replace will make sure you get probably the most out of the Kindle expertise and that the app operates as supposed.
As you possibly can see, we had been speaking about some significantly historical app variations getting used to tug off this trick, so even this loophole enterprise however, it wouldn’t have been loopy to see Amazon ending assist for customers who haven’t up to date in years.
Should you’ve been working an previous model for exactly that motive, although, a minimum of Amazon’s supplying you with just a few weeks’ discover earlier than pulling the plug — once more.
