Manage Your Kindle Content and Books

Ready to learn how to easily manage your Kindle content and books without having to email documents to each of your Kindle devices?

Maybe you just got a new Kindle. Perhaps you mistakenly deleted a book and want it back. Or maybe you want to send a few of your favorite books to your phone so you can read them with a Kindle app.

Whatever the reason, we often need to download previously purchased books to our Kindles. Fortunately, it’s easy. In today’s post, I’ll show you how to download content from the cloud to your Kindle using the Amazon website, while remembering that you can also retrieve your books from the cloud using your Kindle.

First, visit the Amazon website and sign in to your account. Near the top of the screen, choose Manage Kindle Content and Devices.

A list of books will appear, any of which you can choose to send to your Kindle reader, phone, computer, etc. In my case, you can see that I love to read Jack Ketchum, Kealan Patrick Burke, Thomas Harris, Dawn Lee McKenna, and some writer named Dan Padavona. Eh-hem.

Choose the book you wish to send to your device by clicking on the button indicated by the arrow. Clicking causes the book to pop up, along with download and delivery choices. Choose “Deliver.”

Finally, choose a device to send your book to, and you’re done.

Easy, isn’t it?

Of course, Amazon also makes it easy to email documents to your Kindle, but I’ve found manually transferring by USB to be quicker and more reliable.

Okay, but if you prefer emailing documents to your Kindle?

How to Send Documents to Your Kindle Reader

Amazon’s Kindle e-readers are primarily known for displaying e-books, but they can also be useful tools for reading personal documents. Whether it’s a draft of your latest story, an article you want to read later, or a PDF for work, you can send these documents to your Kindle so they’re available for reading anytime, anywhere. Here’s how:

1. Know Your Kindle Email Address

Every Kindle device or app has its own unique email address. To find it:

1. Go to Amazon’s website and log in to your account.
2. Hover over ‘Accounts & Lists’ and click on ‘Manage Your Content and Devices’.
3. Go to the ‘Devices’ tab. Here, you’ll see a list of your devices. Click on the device to view its specific email address.

2. Add Your Email to the Approved List

For security reasons, Amazon requires you to pre-approve any email address that sends documents to your Kindle.

1. In ‘Manage Your Content and Devices’, go to the ‘Settings’ tab.
2. Scroll down to ‘Approved Personal Document E-mail List’.
3. Click ‘Add a new approved e-mail address’ and enter the email you’ll be sending documents from.

3. Sending the Document

Once you’ve set up the approved email, it’s time to send your document.

1. Open your email client or service.
2. Compose a new email to your Kindle email address.
3. Attach the document you want to send. Kindle supports a variety of formats, including .MOBI, .PDF, .DOC, .DOCX, and others.
4. Leave the subject line as “Convert” if you want Amazon to automatically convert a non-Kindle format (like DOCX) into Kindle format. If you’re sending a .MOBI or .PDF and want it to remain in its original format, you can leave the subject blank.
5. Send the email.

4. Synchronize Your Kindle

Once you’ve sent the email:

1. Ensure your Kindle is connected to Wi-Fi.
2. On your Kindle device, go to the main screen, then tap or select ‘Sync’ or ‘Sync & Check for Items’ (the wording may vary depending on your Kindle model).

5. Locate the Document on Your Kindle

After synchronizing, the document should appear in your Kindle library. If you converted the document, its appearance might be slightly different, but it will be optimized for e-reader viewing.

6. Use the ‘Send to Kindle’ Application

Amazon provides a ‘Send to Kindle’ application for both Windows and macOS. With this app, you can send documents directly to your Kindle by right-clicking on them on your computer and choosing ‘Send to Kindle’. This is a convenient method for frequent document transfers.

Tips:

• Be mindful of document size. While most documents are small, larger files might take more time to appear on your Kindle.
• PDFs retain their formatting on Kindle, but they might be harder to read because of the fixed layout. If readability is an issue, consider converting them to MOBI format using the email method or third-party tools.
• Some complex documents with lots of images or special formatting might not convert perfectly. Always check the converted document on your Kindle to ensure it meets your expectations.

The ability to send documents to your Kindle can transform your e-reader into a versatile tool, not just for books but for a variety of reading materials.

Troubleshooting: When Your Document Doesn’t Appear Immediately

If you’ve followed the above steps but your document doesn’t show up on your Kindle immediately, don’t panic. Here’s what you can do:

1. Check Wi-Fi Connection: Ensure that your Kindle is connected to a stable Wi-Fi network. Sometimes a weak or interrupted connection can delay the document transfer.
2. Resend the Document: Occasionally, there might be issues with the initial email send. Try sending the document once more.
3. Check Your Approved Email List: Confirm that the email you’re sending from is on the approved list in your Amazon account settings. Documents sent from unapproved email addresses won’t be delivered.
4. Review Document Format and Size: The Kindle supports specific file formats and has a file size limit for email attachments (typically 50 MB). Ensure your document adheres to these standards. If the document is too large, consider compressing it or splitting it into smaller sections.
5. Storage Space: Make sure your Kindle has enough free space. If it’s nearing its storage capacity, consider deleting some items.
6. Restart Your Kindle: As with many electronic devices, a simple restart can often resolve minor issues. Turn off your Kindle and then turn it back on, then attempt another sync.
7. Check the ‘Document’ Section on Kindle: Sometimes, sent items might not appear with regular books. Instead, they might be categorized under ‘Documents’.
8. Amazon Cloud Storage: Go to Amazon’s “Manage Your Content and Devices” page. The document might have been sent to your cloud storage rather than the device directly. From there, you can choose to download it to your Kindle.

If all else fails, Amazon’s customer support is knowledgeable about Kindle devices and can often assist with any issues you might encounter.

And that’s how you manage your Kindle content and books via USB and email. I hope you found this article useful.

If you’re deciding if you should purchase a Kindle, or if your phone, computer, or tablet is good enough, I lay out the pros and cons of each advice in this article.