Is it too hot for your Kindle?
We’re having a heatwave in parts of the USA, and it’s a “hot topic” (sorry) on the 24 hours news channels.
You get advice about how to take care of yourself, your kids, your plants, your pets (time to let Snoopy in the house, Charlie Brown…although I seem to remember something about his doghouse having an indoor swimming pool)…what about your Kindle?
Right now, for many of you, it’s too hot to be “operating” your Kindle. That’s right, according to Amazon, you are outside the recommended temperature. What is that temperature?
Operating temperature — 32°F to 95°F (0°C to 35°C).
Storage temperature — 14°F to 113°F (-10°C to 45°C)
That was the range for the Kindle 1, and is also the range for the Kindle 3…I’m going to presume it is the same for the DX and the K2s.
So, Amazon doesn’t recommend operating your Kindle if it is more than ninety-five degrees Fahrenheit.
What does operating it mean?
Clearly, reading it counts.
How about when it is sleeping? Is it being “operated” or is it in storage? I’m not sure…when your Kindle is sleeping it may be doing things (like indexing). That makes me think the operating temperatures apply.
What could happen to it?
Well, I suppose if it is hot enough, it could melt. 😉
I would guess, though, that it could behave erratically…maybe even fail.
This came up when Kathy, one of my readers, asked me about what might be affecting her Kindle.
By the way, she has just started a blog of her own:
A Year of Actually Reading My Own Books
The blog is just getting started, but it’s a fun idea and well-written.
I couldn’t possibly read my books as quickly as I obtain them (thanks largely to all the Kindle freebies), and I just have to accept that my unread books will outlive me. While that is a tad disturbing, it’s much less worrisome than the other way around. 😉
This post by Bufo Calvin originally appeared in the I Love My Kindle blog.
I Love My Kindle 
July 20, 2011 at 5:20 pm |
I live in Houston, Texas, where the daytime high temperature is pretty dang high from May through September. I routinely read my Kindle outdoors in temperatures above 95 degrees and have done so for three summers now. It has a noticeably deleterious effect on battery life and I do occasionally need to do a hard reboot, but otherwise it’s fine. If you are in a high temperature environment, you should avoid completely air-tight cases.
July 20, 2011 at 8:08 pm |
Thanks for writing, Crystal!
Love those field reports. 🙂
Yes, I suspect the batteries are particularly vulnerable…and that may be why in large part why there is a storage temperature range as well.
July 20, 2011 at 5:43 pm |
Interesting thoughts. I habitually leave my Kindle in the car. That way I always have it when I stop for lunch or have to wait in a doctor’s office. In this torrid summer I am sure that the temp in the car gets up into the 130’s. I doubt it gets below 13F in the winter though.
My Kindle has developed seriously shortened battery life. Only a few hours if I leave the 3G connection on. I wonder if the heat stress may have caused this? How do you replace a Kindle battery?
July 20, 2011 at 8:10 pm |
Thanks for writing, Rick!
Do you know what model of Kindle you have?
If you have a Kindle 1, it has a user-replaceable battery.
Otherwise, you can contact Kindle Customer Service at
http://www.amazon.com/kindlesupport
You’ll see a
Contact Us
button. I would call them or have them call you.
If you are in warranty, they’ll probably replace the Kindle…not just the battery.
If it is out of warranty and you want to replace the battery yourself, you have to go outside the system.
July 20, 2011 at 9:09 pm |
Hi Bufo: Thanks so much for the compliments and the plug! It means a lot. Kathy
July 20, 2011 at 9:18 pm |
Wow! I contacted Kindle support and explained the problem. Even though my Kindle is out of warranty, they are going to replace it FREE! Not just the battery, the whole thing! Anyone with battery problems should definitely give them a call!
Rick in WV
July 20, 2011 at 11:08 pm |
Thanks for writing, Rick!
I’m glad that worked for you, and I appreciate you taking the time to let me know. 🙂
Kindle Customer Service is great, and people shouldn’t hesitate to contact them.
You might find this post helpful when you get the new Kindle:
https://ilmk.wordpress.com/2011/03/19/oracs-coming-out-party/
July 21, 2011 at 4:42 am |
I suspect if you are out in the sun, it’ll get flaky — this happened to me a time or two — I just took it inside let it cool down, rebooted, and all was well with the world. I tend to keep it out of hot areas now — for all I know I was just lucky — permanent damage is possible if chips get too hot.
July 21, 2011 at 12:10 pm |
Thanks for writing, Edward!
My intuition is that the biggest impact at the lowest level of exposure is to the battery. I’m not a heat fan, so I don’t think my Kindle tends to run into that problem. It does get hotter than 95 here, but not all that often…and I’m moving from AC to AC at that point.
July 24, 2011 at 8:28 pm |
Hi Bufo: As a follow up to my original comment about my K3 being wonky – shutting down on me daily.. It hasn’t done it since I did a hard restart (per your suggestion). However, it has also cooled off a lot since then… And since I have the hard cover with the light that Amazon sells for it, I took a look at things and noticed that the hard cover completely covers and obstructs the heat venting on the back. So, if heat does play havoc with this gadget, then in theory, my covered K3 could be even more vulnerable.
Thanks for the help, Kathy
September 2, 2019 at 4:56 pm |
I have been using Kindle for years and years, reading in the pool/hot sun for years and years. I live in DFW and never had an issue with it overheating until my latest Kindle (10th generation). I can only be outside for 10-15 minutes when I get a message that it is too hot and needs to cool down. This is very frustrating as that is the whole purpose of a Kindle (vs tablet) is to be able to read outside. I guess there is nothing I can do about it but it is extremely disappointing.
September 2, 2019 at 7:31 pm |
Thanks for writing, Mindy!
That doesn’t seem normal: how long have you had it? Maybe they’ll replace it under warranty…