Latest Kindle update removes a key feature from the e-reader

Amazon not opting to offer in-app purchases for its Kindle app on iOS and Android makes sense. We imagine that selling ebooks does earn the company a fair bit of money, so why would they want to share that with Apple and Google, right? Oddly enough, it looks like the feature will be gone from Amazon’s own Kindle e-readers.

If you recall, Amazon revealed in May earlier this year that in a future update, certain Kindle models would be losing its ability to make ebook purchases directly from their devices. This basically affects the fourth and fifth generation models (those with newer models won’t have to worry about this), and it looks like the time has finally (and unfortunately) come.

Now, keep in mind that losing this feature does not render your e-reader useless. Users can still make purchases via Amazon’s website and send it over to their Kindles, or they can do manual file transfers if they prefer. It’s not a total loss, but it does remove a pretty convenient feature that we’re sure many users have gotten used to.

But like we said, this only affects the fourth and fifth gen models that were released about a decade ago in 2011 and 2012 respectively, so if you’ve upgraded your Kindle in the past few years, you’re good. If you are affected, you can still use your Kindle to read books, but if you want the convenience of buying it directly within the e-reader itself, then it might be time to consider one of Amazon’s newer Kindles.

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