A Kindle DX in Canada
During my previous posts I had mentioned a list of things that needed to be changed in the Kindle in order for me to consider purchasing one. While Amazon may not have completed everything on my list they managed to hit the two big ones, PDF support and a larger screen with landscape mode for displaying textbook style documents. This was enough for me to warrant spending they money and giving the Kindle its fair shot.
Some of you might want to know how I managed to get a Kindle DX, since I live in Canada and only have Canadian credit cards and addresses and the answer is really quite simple. I have an Amazon.com account and there is a gas station just across the US border that allows deliveries and holds them for Canadians, so I used my Canadian credit card with Canadian billing address and had the Kindle shipped to the gas station, simple as that.
Now without further adieu, the un-boxing:
Kindle DX Fresh off the Greyhound
Once Upon a Time
Interior Packaging
Kindle, Meet Canada
Shiny New
The Kindle DX is Even Thinner than I Expected
Wall Plug and USB Combined... Genius
Booting up the Kindle
Welcome to Kindle
Now since I have only had the device for several hours I really can’t comment a great deal on all of the aspects of the device or any particulars to using it in Canada. So far I can only say the obvious, the whispernet does not work so you need to do all of your transfers through your PC, this really makes a daily newspaper probably more hassle than its worth, but doesn’t bother me one bit for my books. As I get more familiar with the Kindle DX I will be sure and update this post and/or answer any questions people have.
For more generic Kindle DX information you can visit the Kindle DX page at Amazon.com
First impressions: nice packaging, super slick, thin, light, attractive, and most importantly, incredibly crisp readable text with no noticeable eye strain. I look forward to getting to know my new Kindle DX.
Side Note: The kindle was entirely packaged with recyclable material and packaging was not excessive either, so kudos to Amazon for their apparent environmental conscience.
Tags: Kindle DX
September 16th, 2009 at 12:04 am
I am sorry may I please ask how do you add books in Canada? Since you can’t get them from whispernet? Thank you.
September 16th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Hi Andy, thank you for your comment! As far as purchasing books in Canada, you can get a US amazon account (the one u used to order the kindle will work) and then you can pay using a one time use mastercard that you buy pre loaded from say London Drugs. This will work, but it is a PITA so for now I mostly either download free books and papers in PDF format or I search for the book by “other” means.
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:01 am
Hi Shane,
I’ve read on some forum that the way to order books is buying amazon gift vouchers on the amazon.ca account and then putting the gift vouchers into your amazon -us account.
Then you’re able to order and download to your pc…no US credit card needed.
October 23rd, 2009 at 1:53 pm
Hi Lisa, thank you for commenting! I have also read this, though I have yet to give it a try myself. There are a couple books I am interested in reading now so maybe I will give this a try. If you beat me too it please post back and let me know your experience.
November 23rd, 2009 at 9:39 am
Can you confirm that one can wirelessly download books onto the Kindle 2 as opposted to the DX which you cannot?.
November 23rd, 2009 at 9:43 am
Hi Penny, thanks for the comment. As I do not have a Kindle 2 I cannot “confirm” this but I can tell you that according to the literature available you can wirelessly download books to both the Kindle DX and Kindle 2 using the Whispernet.
Hope that answers your question.
November 23rd, 2009 at 9:46 am
Is the whispernet through your computer? sorry to be stupid, not aware of what that is?
November 23rd, 2009 at 9:53 am
The Whispernet runs on Sprint’s cellular network (USA only) and provides the Kindle with connectivity to the internet and to Amazon’s web store using the cellular network (so it runs on the Kindle, not on your computer). This functionality is only supported within the USA unless you purchase a Kindle 2 International Version (the only version of the Kindle 2 currently being offered), since the Kindle 2 allows your Kindle to Roam onto 3G, GSM, and EDGE networks when outside of the USA.
Here is some more info at Wikipedia
November 27th, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Where can you buy the Kindle DX in Canada?
Thanks
Len
November 28th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
Hi Len, thank you for your comment! You can only purchase the Kindle from the Amazon USA website, the Kindle “Global Wireless” is what you are looking for and you will need to pay for it in US dollars.
November 29th, 2009 at 9:50 pm
Hi Shane,
Thanks for all of the great information. Due to a recent medical condition my father is unable to hold a real book, but is still able to do things like operate a mechanical bed control. Since he’s a big reader i’ve been considering the DX as a good alternative for him. I know it’s not much to go on, but would you say that someone could operate a DX in spite of muscle weakness and lack of dexterity?
It’s weird too that in Canada the Kindle 2 is on WhisperNet but not the DX. Wouldn’t it work on the same technology? A rhetorical question i guess… clearly it doesn’t.
November 29th, 2009 at 10:00 pm
Hi Matthew,
Thank you for your comment and your interest in this blog. Sorry to hear about your fathers condition, as far as the Kindle DX is concerned I have a few tidbits of advice. First, as far as dexterity is concerned I am sure he would be fine using the DX’s easy “next page” and “previous page” buttons but I am not sure how he would find the thumb stick navigation for selecting books and using the menu. Secondly is that the DX is heavier than your average paper back and as such I am not sure if he would need a table or mounting device to hold the Kindle for reading. If you could overcome these two issues, and he is still able to read just fine, I would say the DX could be an excellent solution for you and your father.
Yes I agree with you, it is quite strange that they would make the Kindle 2 accessible on global telcom networks but not the DX. Either way it is good that there is now some Kindle competition to spur development of better devices and better global service.
Thanks again Matthew, and feel free to post again if you have any other questions.
November 29th, 2009 at 10:09 pm
My dad spent a lifetime building contraptions to do one thing or another. He’ll be chomping at the bit to tell his sons how to build a mount for a DX.
With him being in Hamilton (not far from Toronto), it’s a shame that the wireless stuff is a bust (for now… cross your fingers). But with the biggest viewing area available i think the DX is the best choice.
Thanks again for the info. Your description of usability was very helpful.
Cheers,
m@
November 29th, 2009 at 10:53 pm
Haha, that is great! I agree the DX is the way to go thanks to its larger screen and larger buttons but you might want to hold off a little longer and see if they update the wireless in the near future. I am also following the development of the Plastic Logic E-Reader very closely as it looks quite promising.
Either way, good luck and if you can, post your decision as I am sure many others will be interested to hear how you and your father make out.
December 9th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
Hi Shane,
Lots of questions! If someone wanted a Kindle just for reading books, do you think the Kindle 2 is actually better than the larger DX? I understand that the DX is great for PDFs, newspapers and technical documents. But if that isn’t going to be the application, would someone find the DX almost too big?
Also, if I ordered a DX from the States, is there anything you’ve heard that might suggest it won’t work wireless in Canada eventually? It would be interesting to know if those people who ordered Kindles from the US before they were available in Canada can make those U.S. units now work wireless in Canada.
Thanks so much for any info you can share!
December 17th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Hi David,
Very sorry for the long delay in replying, I have simply been slammed with work. Let me do my best to answer your questions.
If you are more of a paperback/hobby reader then I would absolutely suggest the Kindle 2 over the DX. Not only is the DX larger, but it is still not yet available in a “world edition” from Amazon, meaning no store and no web in Canada.
Well I have not “heard” anything official, but since the Kindle 2 world edition is different than a regular Kindle 2, and to my knowledge the Kindle 2 does not work wireless in Canada yes I would have to guess that a regular Kindle DX from the US will not work wireless in Canada in the future. Not sure if this is hardware or firmware related but Amazon doesn’t seem to talk about either way.
Hope I helped a bit, let me know what you decide, and thanks for commenting David.
January 1st, 2010 at 7:18 pm
Shane,
I have been thinking about the Kindle DX vs. the Sony touch eReader. Have you compared the 2 machines? Can you give an opinion on which seems nicer?
Have you tried the gift certificate option yet?
Another question is, even with the Canadian credit card, could you register the eReader to work on your US account?
Sorry for the questions, but I am debating on ordering one myself.
January 25th, 2010 at 1:29 pm
Amazon now will ship these unites to Canada.
February 1st, 2010 at 9:51 am
I have a DX that was shipped up from the states. An “illegal alien” so to speak. (Yes, i bought it for my dad, and he liked it, but he took a turn for the worse.) It doesn’t seem to want to connect, saying “Your Kindle is unable to connect at this time. …” Does anyone else have this problem?
February 1st, 2010 at 11:28 am
Hi Matthew,
Sorry to hear about your father, I hope he pulls through. As for the connection issues I am not sure what you mean. If you are referring to the “Whispernet”, Amazon’s wireless service then yes this service is unavailable in Canada using a US Wireless Kindle DX and you may as well turn this feature off to conserve battery life. If however you are getting this message when using USB let me know and I will try to help you troubleshoot your issues.
February 9th, 2010 at 7:08 pm
Hi Shane,
Yes, i was trying to use WhisperNet, but was hopeful since Amazon recently released the DX internationally. I wouldn’t be surprised if my U.S.-born unit is somehow hard-coded to work only in the states, but i was wondering if there were some way to reconfigure it to make it look like a Canuck. I sent a support email to Amazon a couple of weeks ago but there’s been nothing but crickets in response.
February 10th, 2010 at 10:27 pm
As far as I know the units are hard wired for Sprint USA networks and I don’t know of any way to make it look like the international version so you can use it outside of the USA. I will keep my eyes and ears tuned and will report back if I hear of anything.
Thanks again for your comments Matthew!