Kindle e-reader connection problems

Oh my....i'mcurious what didn't suit about your original post, which i found very helpful!!

Thanks for this useful tip.

Well, I thought your original posting was very helpful. Maybe the exact reason your Kindle didn't work is not what you were told, but you were given a work around, which you shared here again, and that is really all that matters.

I experienced similar connectivity issues on the Scandinavian overnight ferry ride. Could not get a connection that was stable enough to do anything, even went to the ship's tech support group for help. About a dozen Apple device users were waiting for assistance. They laughed at me because I had an Apple device (not very helpful or supportive). I was up at 03:30 (slightly sea sick) and just thought I would try again. Worked perfectly. Turned out their system was just overwhelmed by the sheer number of Windows machines trying to connect during the day. As the day went on, I was once again no longer able to connect to WiFi on the ship.

Another option (if your cell phone and it's plan allow it) is to turn on the cell phone's WiFi hotspot setting and use the phone's data connection to connect your Kindle to the phone and then the internet. Simply Google "how to use your phone as a hotspot" for details on how to do it.

I believe that Frank had tried using his phone as a hotspot, which he relayed in the initial post.

Frank, thanks for the info. Really helpful. A lot of times, I think things "time out" as Mark pointed out in his post. Someday if you are inclined please post Amazon's response for my education as I am no expert.

Rab....I was able to connect via my phone's hotspot but it was slow due to a 2g connection.( Later that night, I was able to get 4g and that worked well.)

Ed....if I posted it again it would just stir up things with certain posters who think they know everything and must prove it. Just know that if your device doesn't connect to your hotel's wifi, try somewhere else before thinking it's your device.

I had a Nook some years ago and it wouldn't connect to wifi in various places because its "browser" couldn't provide a way for me to "agree to terms and conditions." I soon abandoned it for a Kindle Paperwhite with 3G as well as wifi connectivity, and that has worked fine overseas and elsewhere. The 3G runs slower than wifi but does the job, so I no longer have to worry about erratic wifi connections. As long as there's cell service I can shop on the Kindle. And my wife's newspaper subscription downloads automatically on 3G.

Maybe an upgrade to a Kindle with 3G (or maybe now they offer 4G) would help Frank stay in his hotel instead of having to drink all that coffee. ;-)

Unfortunately, the newest version of Kindle Paperwhite only offers wifi connectability for downloading books.

Frank. In my opinion there was only one "expert" and that was Andrew. I do hope you weren't inferring that I was one of the "experts" because I didn't offer any advice but simply agreed that Andrew's technical knowledge and expertise has been very helpful to many in a number of posts.

If the original post was deleted because you did not agree with his advice then I find that to be disappointing because he raised some very valid issues. It certainly didn't come across as some sort of one upmanship. A classic example is the post concerning the Guardian article regarding the threat of hackers exploiting hotel wi-fi systems. An article that was completely misleading and served only to instill fear or concern in those not quite as au fait with technology as others. If it wasn't for the likes of Andrew and others pointing out the inaccuracies of such an article then people will remain mis-informed.

JC, I did not mention any names and just wanted a pleasant post--unlike so many others--to share something I learned. Your post names people and reignites the arguments.

Why couldn't you just leave the post alone? Why do you need to stir up a hornet's nest?

A classic example is the post concerning the Guardian article regarding the threat of hackers exploiting hotel wi-fi systems. An article that was completely misleading and served only to instill fear or concern in those not quite as au fait with technology as others. If it wasn't for the likes of Andrew and others pointing out the inaccuracies of such an article then people will remain mis-informed.

Yeah well, maybe the Guardian article was not to your liking. But after reading this I’ll not be using hotel WiFi for a long time: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-06-26/the-hotel-hackers-are-hiding-in-the-remote-control-curtains

As for the OP’s Kindle issue-I tend to believe customer service on this one. Having said that I’ve had problems connecting my 1st generation Kindle Paperwhite overseas which were cured by a hard reboot.

JC, I did not mention any names and just wanted a pleasant post--unlike so many others--to share something I learned. Your post names people and reignites the arguments. Why couldn't you just leave the post alone? Why do you need to stir up a hornet's nest?

Frank, we're one big happy family on this forum, so much better than others and as such, anyone reading your post will have known exactly who you were referring to. I haven't stirred up a hornet's nest, I haven't reignited the argument, I've made no reference to the specific advice in question. All I have done is provided an alternative opinion to yours of a contributor to this forum who provides (and as someone with a computing and technical support background fully agrees with) sound advice.

I'm sorry that you've interpreted his advice as a form of oneupmanship, I didn't and I simply wanted to express that. I have absolutely no issue with your post describing your issues and experiences just as much as I have no issue with people expressing an informed opinion in response. None of us are experts in everything, we all have something to offer and I welcome responses from those who are in a position to provide knowledgable advice. Unfortunately, communicating via text removes a lot of context and intention that face to face conversation provides and sometimes we are all guilty of misinterpreting it.

Anyway, the upshot of your experience resulted in you enjoying a decent coffee af Cafe Nero which was undoubtedly better than what your hotel could offer 😁

Yeah well, maybe the Guardian article was not to your liking. But after reading this I’ll not be using hotel WiFi for a long time: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-06-26/the-hotel-hackers-are-hiding-in-the-remote-control-curtains

Alan, I've read the article and I'm interested in knowing why you'll not be using hotel wi-fi for a ling time.

Anyway, the upshot of your experience resulted in you enjoying a decent coffee af Cafe Nero which was undoubtedly better than what your hotel could offer 😁

The coffee shop was packed, there were about 10 people in the queue ordering coffee and not an empty seat in the place. I went in, connected to WiFi, downloaded my books and left. All in about 5 minutes.

I then went back to my room and used the Nespresso machine to make a cup of coffee.

JC re-read the last 4 paragraphs.

JC re-read the last 4 paragraphs.

OK Alan, I re-read the lsat 4 paragraphs but I still don't have the answer why you won't use a hotel wi-fi.

Simply because a team of industry security experts demonstrated how to crack a hotel wi-fi system (it's not particularly difficult armed with the correct knowledge) and could theoretically view someone's browsing activity. Simply because someone can view what website your viewing doesn't actually mean that they will, where's the benefit in that? All important data such as passwords, credit card details etc are still encrypted and cannot be viewed by hackers. They can hack into the organisation's database where such details are held, the recent Marriott hack demonstrated this, but this has nothing to do with a hotel's wi-fi.

This is no different to the scaremongering surrounded skimming contactless payment cards. I am not aware of any reports of this happening to anyone, simply because it can be done doesn't mean that it will be done. What value to a hacker is the knowledge of what website I'm viewing? Perhaps if I was famous or working in a high profile position I would be more mindful of what I was viewing but I'm not.

Well, we are way off topic JC and we clearly will not agree on this. But I do not want a hacker looking at my Internet activity, downloading my contacts, reading correspondence that could contain sensitive information. You can be the guy who holds the door open for these thieves, be my guest. I’ll use a VPN thank you. Hotel WiFi is insecure and a target for hackers. Over and out!

Thanks for the info. I tried WiFi on my new kindle at a hotel recently, with no luck. Now I know why. Just need to make sure books are downloaded before leaving home.

I've been meaning to start a separate post on Fires and Kindles, but I'll just jump in here. On a trip a few years ago with my Fire tablet, I discovered that the world of wifi tends to see only two colors - Android and Apple. It's true that Fire is a customized Amazon version of Android but it isn't always recognized as such. One airport in Connecticut just wouldn't let me online; the airport in Charlotte was very accommodating. While onboard American Airlines it wanted nothing to do with my tablet. So my overall advice is, while the world is now full of wifi, don't count on it always working. Download some books and/or videos at home so you always have a fallback loaded onto your device if the airwaves won't cooperate.