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Kindle - Wow!


Simon-the-censored
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Just to add my experience so far...I haven't yet purchased my Kindle (target Easter) but I have downloaded the App for Mac and have 'purchased' several of the free books downloaded to my Mac App. I am in France, have my Amazon.co.uk account with a french email address, am permanently in France. I have set my delivery address to a friend in the UK (neighbour here who will be bringing over the Kindle when I buy it), the credit card is a french one, although having only downloaded free books hasn't been implicated yet. I did have to click on the 'have moved' option to change from .com to the UK Kindle shop. No problems so far with free books. Can't wait to get the Kindle.

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[quote user="Simon-come-lately"]Cathy Hi - that just can't be right. 

It's got to be something to do with how the Kindle is ordered and registered.

Simon :-)[/quote]

It was delivered to a UK address and registered to a UK address.  I started using it in the UK (buying books and reading them) and it was only when I arrived in France and tried buying books that the problem started.

Frustratingly, I am still awaiting a call from the investigative team for both of my accounts.  I was told 2 working days and that has now expired for one of the accounts and so I assume that I shall be contacted tomorrow.  When they phone, I shall find out more and let you know.

I have looked at a number of Internet sites and the application of the rule does seem inconsistent.

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Do sincerely hope that you have now sorted it out.  I am a total Kindle convert and, especially over Christmas when one of my presents was 'flu, I read endless books and used it constantly, never worrying that I would shortly run out of something to read whilst I was stuck in bed.  I am never going to be able to add to the zillions of Simon's reasons for buying a Kindle, suffice it to say that I love "proper" books and so the K is a different experience and an idea that took some getting used to.  However, I was totally fed up with hauling loads of books in the car,in luggage, on trains for the two of us on holidays, taking books to (quite expensive) swap shops which were often closed!!!! and finding it increasingly difficult to house them as I hate to give them up (they are like good friends) even after two or three readings.

From all that I have read on these postings, (unless I have failed to get to grips with all the content) it seems to me that the problem Cathy has now was started simply by her buying her Kindle through amazon.com. Everyone I know who lives in France buys stuff from amazon.co.uk.   For the Kindle - and perhaps for other stuff as well - the .com address is the one to which you are directed and which deals with any country outside of England.  No good for me, didn't want to pay in dollars, didn't want to have to set up any other account, didn't want to pay more than advertised in the UK. I just wanted something that was postage free and could be delivered to a friend or relative in England so that I could pick it up when I chose.  I regularly buy books (yes, real books) for my grandchildren from amazon.co.uk and they are delivered to them and anyone I choose, in England, paid for by me in France with a Visa card and a French billing address. They are more than happy to take my money and they did this when I ordered my Kindle.  I  have never experienced any problems buying and downloading books when I choose, or reading reviews or downloading free chapters to see if I like a book before I decide to buy.     If the K goes wrong in future then I will use the UK address for any communication with amazon.co.uk.

The only fisticuffs which I have ever had was when I bought a new Dyson cleaner from them.  I have always bought most of my electrical stuff in France, even though it's more expensive, because I am haunted by the picture of having to return, for example, a very heavy item to a store in the UK if it chooses to break down on the other side of the Channel. However, the large upright Dysons are very  hard to find here  -the French generally like to drag their cleaners rather than push them about, and Amazon was offering this model at a very good price, so I decided to have it delivered to my home here in France. Oh, bad idea.   I later attempted to "register" the machine under the guarantee with them so that I could use their brilliant helpline if I had any teething problems with the machine.  The woman who dealt with my call was slightly surprised at my hostility on hearing her say that this was not possible since I lived in France! [:@]   I told her that she would already  have that on record since they didn't seem to have anything in their rules to prevent them relieving me of a substantial sum of money, taking an additional charge for delivery and to then having a carrier bring it to my home.  Suddenly (and this never appeared in print, small or otherwise) she was telling me that if it broke and  even if I  agreed to send it back, carriage paid to the UK, for some repair, I couldn't do this from France. Living in France affected my guarantee. (Grrrrrrrrrrrrr !!)  I told her precisely what I thought of such an idea and she eventually said that she was sorry but this was how their systems worked.  She ultimately was so fed up with my telephone ranting that she asked if maybe I couldn't register it to an address in England.   I did, a month later, and this was not queried and handled without any further fuss.  Now I know that if I am here in France, dealing with a UK company, it's often far simpler to have an item delivered directly to an English address...........most stores can do this without any bother or thinking "oooh, foreign country,what do I do now?" Every purchase of mine looks like a present for someone else in England and I normally avoid a delivery charge.  All I need to have is a bit of patience until I go back to England or someone coming this way can deliver an item for me.  Simples ! 

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Well my Kindle has just arrived and I went into Amazon.com and changed my settings and got a message "congratulations, you can now shop at Amazon UK."  I'm a bit loath at this stage to download too much as I don't want to get Cathy's problem, especially as I'll be at the registered address next week and could do a mega download from the UK then which would keep me going for some time to come.  Cathy, did you get the same message as me, or have you always had trouble with the UK site, or was it not evident until you'd downloaded a few books?
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I've hit my first snag since I bought my K at Christmas - bought two books today; the first arrived on my K ages after the email message, listed as a sample; the second hasn't arrived yet. I'll wait till tomorrow to ask what's going on!

Hope all goes well with your downloading in UK cooperlola, although i can't think why it shouldn't!  [:)]

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I signed up with Onspeed the other day (having dumped Expatshield because I was fed up with all the ads and other problems) so thus far have just downloaded a few books via the computer, in the hopes that the poxy server will continue to fool Amazon's software.  However, being a coward, I have stopped at five as I don't want to end up in the same boat as Cathy.  So far so good.....  I'm not in the UK for a few days and don't want to take any risks.
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I bought my Kindle from Co Dot UK (not Dot Com) and I got it delivered to the UK.  I downloaded a couple of books when I was there in the UK.  When I arrived back in France, I had a message saying that I had downloaded while in the UK and that I would need to provide some proof about being British such as passport, military card etc.

I tried to download books in France on Co Dot UK but was prevented from doing so (documented on this Forum).  I contacted them and they told that they would let me buy 5 books only and I am STILL awaiting the investigative team to contact me.  They promised me it would only be 2 days some time ago last week.  I have been having daily radiotherapy and so it's difficult, at the moment, to be in touch with them to find out why they haven't contacted me.

When Amazon do contact me, I shall find out why this has happened to me and not anyone else.  So, Coops, I don't really know what to advice.  What you are doing sounds sensible.

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[quote user="Russethouse"].....but has different technology that may not be so appealing[/quote]

The nook has the same technology plus has the benefit of being able to read the industry standard ebook format, epub.

So you're not limited to buying just from amazon. You can buy from anywhere and just load the book on via your pc and away you go.

It's like the kindle is an ipod and every other music player is an mp3 player. I know which I'd prefer.
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Even the "E Ink Screen with Pearl Technology" and no back light ?

Sorry but its so rare that I want a book and Amazon don't have it that I'm happy to stay with my plan of buying one. (Though as I'm in the UK I shouldn't have any problems)

I'm interested in the pricing of some books though, apparently as downloads are not actually books they attract VAT, a few are dearer via Kindle, others are cheaper, sometimes by a good bit......

 

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I emailed about my book download problem last night, and on beginning to read my K in bed found that the second book had arrived, which was

several hours after I'd ordered it - it's usually there as soon as I turn my K on.

 

There was a helpful email waiting for me this morning saying they'd put it right, and suggested anybody with any problems should get in touch.

Apparently if anything seems to be missing in future, it might be in the archive section instead - but I don't know why!

 

I was impressed with how quickly my minor problem was put right; unfortunately Cathy's ongoing big problem with her K doesn't seem to be

getting sorted though. 

 

Here's part of the message if anyone else is having difficulties with anything at this minute:
 
 

 ''Our dedicated customer service team is available all of the time and we want to insure everyone is having a wonderful Kindle experience.

You and your friends can reach us by Freephone directly by clicking the Contact Us option in the right-hand column of our Kindle Support

pages at:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/kindlesupport

When you visit our website and select Contact Us, click on the "Phone" tab, enter your number, and we’ll call you right back.

Contacting us through the website allows you to verify security before a call is placed and ensures we have your account information ready

when we call you. If you’re unable to take advantage of the Contact Us feature, you can call us directly at Freephone 0800 496 2449

or +44 203 356 6212 if you're calling from outside the U.K.''

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Obviously to me this is just the beginning of another fad (what next? a separate device for filofax or even maps? [Www]) things will become more competitive no doubt, I feel my laptop and i-phone already cover e-books through internet (and the free Kindle). However for those that don't, and have been disappointed then send your Kindle back to Amazon and get yourself down to Asda to buy a device that is not tied to a single supplier asda.com/View-Quest-5in-eBook-Reader - £52 with enough change to buy a few books, Kerchinnngggg[:D]

 

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Like the ipod is just fad ? [:)][:)]

Its horses for courses.... I've seen a Kindle and know people who are happy with it so I'm likely to go for that, plus I buy nearly all my books from Amazon we are pleased with their service and with four book buyers in this house being a Prime member more than pays for itself (On Friday at 4pm Mr RH ordered " Periodic Tales" we had it by 10am the next day!)

However if I was Cathy I probably would ask for a refund and go for something else.....its a mess....at a time when she least needs to be dealing with it.

 

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[quote user="Russethouse"] Like the ipod is just fad ? [:)][:)] [/quote]

ABSOLUTELY, though the I-phone does phone, camera, internet etc, how many do you need? ones that add to grief ?
or ones that aren't part of some Machiavellian commercial rip-off and just do what it says on the tin.
If I were Cathy now I would say I'm not your victim, Enough, I have my laptop and can get as much to read as I need in the meanwhile.
Then tell Amazon take it back now. and then get a replacement elsewhere . . . In any event isn't it sense to take a fresh look at the options before committing again? Good Luck with whatever you decide Cathy[:)]

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Thanks, Cathy, the more info' I have the better prepared I'll be if my Kindle rejects me!

I must say it is very pleasant to read with so although I do have a netbook and of course could download virtual books to it for travelling I am not sorry I bought this also.  It is also great to be able to read sans specs again (I can pretend I'm no longer fat and 56 for a while!) whereas I find a normal computer screen a strain by comparison, even when altering font sizes.

As for i-pods...  Well, this could start a whole new "mine's better than yours" playground argument couldn't it?  I'm not sorry I have my Classic because it holds so much music and has great accessories, but for the handbag my tiddly little mp3 which cost £30 in Auchan is just far better - lighter and reads any sorts of files so one is not shackled to i-Tunes - a far more insidious thing than Amazon, who at least give good service (with exceptions of course, Cathy) and make it clear that Kindles are for Kindle books and that's why they're cheap (unlike i-pods.)

On that note, I agree with the others, Cathy.  Just tell Amazon it's not fit for purpose and send it back.  In spite of the fact that they do tell you when you buy it that it will only work with .com if you live in mainland Europe, my own experience with them is that they rarely quibble when you return stuff.  In that respect they are good to deal with.

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I agree, go on Cathy, tell the "Book Police" where to put their so-called questions and "investigation".   I have re-read your posts but am still bemused as to what it is you're supposed to have done. These are not government officials, you have bought something online and paid for it, if  they now have a problem with it working for you exactly wherever and whenever you want it to, downloading whatever you choose and in whatever quantity you choose, then they should expect to  have to refund your money without any further ado.  How shaming and how dare they?!?!?!?!  [:@]
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