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kindle confusion


newcruz54

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i just got a kindle and will be taking it with me on my cruise. it has wi-fi and 3G. i'm not sure what the difference is (very illiterate about these things), but i'm wondering, if i don't sign up for wifi on the ship, will the 3G capability still let me download books? i'm not sure this question even makes sense, but thanks for your help

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i just got a kindle and will be taking it with me on my cruise. it has wi-fi and 3G. i'm not sure what the difference is (very illiterate about these things), but i'm wondering, if i don't sign up for wifi on the ship, will the 3G capability still let me download books? i'm not sure this question even makes sense, but thanks for your help

 

Personally, to avoid any problems, I think your best bet is to load up on the books you want to read BEFORE the cruise.

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i just got a kindle and will be taking it with me on my cruise. it has wi-fi and 3G. i'm not sure what the difference is (very illiterate about these things), but i'm wondering, if i don't sign up for wifi on the ship, will the 3G capability still let me download books? i'm not sure this question even makes sense, but thanks for your help

 

Difference between 3G and Wifi is that you need to have a service provider (i.e. ATT/Sprint or Verizon. You would be using the kindle over the cellular network. Since, you are going to be on the ship the cost for this could be expensive.

 

WiFi is usually free in most areas but also on the ship you have to pay for this service. This is because they use satellite to connect the ship to the internet.

 

I would recommend you just downloading any and all the books or programs you want prior to the cruise. Or when you are in port find a location with free WiFi access.

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Also, be sure to turn wireless of on your Kindle while on the ship.

 

I bring my Kindle on cruises... I usually download a few books before boarding... it's like bringing an entire library with me. LOVE it!

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Your 'connection' for downloading books is totally separate from either wifi or 3G. My sister has neither on her Kindle, but was able to retrieve a book she accidentally deleted while we were in the Caribbean,and research books by one of the enrichment speakers while in the Atlantic (on a TA). EM

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i just got a kindle and will be taking it with me on my cruise. it has wi-fi and 3G. i'm not sure what the difference is (very illiterate about these things), but i'm wondering, if i don't sign up for wifi on the ship, will the 3G capability still let me download books? i'm not sure this question even makes sense, but thanks for your help

 

I don't know where you are from but if it is the US, then your 3G (whisper net as amazon calls it) works like a cell phone. You turn it on and download any new books you've purchased or those that you've archived. If you are not in the US and you use the 3G you will pay extra for any downloads plus if you are on the ship and you turn the 3G on you will pay the hefty roaming charges. If you have the international 3G you'll still pay roaming charges.

 

If you turn on the wireless you will need to have an internet connection. On the ships, you pay to connect to the internet.

 

We always travel with our Kindles but don't turn the wireless or 3G on when we are away from home. I typically take my laptop on cruises for emails etc. If I want to purchase a new Kindle book while onboard, I download the book to the laptop & transfer it to the Kindle via USB.

 

If you subscribe to the daily paper on Kindle, then you will end up paying quite a bit to download it daily to the Kindle. We download our papers to the laptop in pdf format because it's quicker and then either read it on the laptop or transfer to the kindle via USB.

 

My advice is to enjoy the Kindle while cruising, but be sure to have all of your reading materials loaded in it before you leave home and don't turn on the 3G or the wireless.

 

By the way, if you accidentally turn on the 3G you will be accumulating hefty charges without knowing it. If you accidentally turn on the wireless nothing will happen unless you actually connect to the ship's wireless service.

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Your 'connection' for downloading books is totally separate from either wifi or 3G.

 

Actually, it's not. What Amazon calls "Whispernet" is a 3G connection, either through AT&T or Sprint for the US versions.

 

My sister has neither on her Kindle, but was able to retrieve a book she accidentally deleted while we were in the Caribbean,and research books by one of the enrichment speakers while in the Atlantic (on a TA).

 

Every Kindle ever released to date has either wifi, 3g, or both. If it didn't, you wouldn't be able to download anything. The earlier ones have 3G only.

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I don't know where you are from but if it is the US, then your 3G (whisper net as amazon calls it) works like a cell phone. You turn it on and download any new books you've purchased or those that you've archived. If you are not in the US and you use the 3G you will pay extra for any downloads plus if you are on the ship and you turn the 3G on you will pay the hefty roaming charges. If you have the international 3G you'll still pay roaming charges.

 

If you turn on the wireless you will need to have an internet connection. On the ships, you pay to connect to the internet.

 

We always travel with our Kindles but don't turn the wireless or 3G on when we are away from home. I typically take my laptop on cruises for emails etc. If I want to purchase a new Kindle book while onboard, I download the book to the laptop & transfer it to the Kindle via USB.

 

If you subscribe to the daily paper on Kindle, then you will end up paying quite a bit to download it daily to the Kindle. We download our papers to the laptop in pdf format because it's quicker and then either read it on the laptop or transfer to the kindle via USB.

 

My advice is to enjoy the Kindle while cruising, but be sure to have all of your reading materials loaded in it before you leave home and don't turn on the 3G or the wireless.

 

By the way, if you accidentally turn on the 3G you will be accumulating hefty charges without knowing it. If you accidentally turn on the wireless nothing will happen unless you actually connect to the ship's wireless service.

 

Yes it will. The battery will go dead very quickly.

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By the way, if you accidentally turn on the 3G you will be accumulating hefty charges without knowing it. If you accidentally turn on the wireless nothing will happen unless you actually connect to the ship's wireless service.

 

Unless you have a subscription or something that requires a delivery charge while roaming, the 3G is free through Amazon, so there wouldn't be any charges accumulated. But it may not work at all, either, so it is best to download what you want to read before you leave.

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Yes it will. The battery will go dead very quickly.

 

I've left the wireless radio on my Kindle 3 on for a week at a time before the battery reaches less than 50%. It may be less on the ship if the Kindle is constantly pinging for a signal, but it's still not going to drain in an hour or two.

 

Of course it's a good idea to bring your charger with you anyway, even if you plan on leaving the wireless off.

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Difference between 3G and Wifi is that you need to have a service provider (i.e. ATT/Sprint or Verizon. You would be using the kindle over the cellular network. Since, you are going to be on the ship the cost for this could be expensive.

 

Unlike a cell phone, Amazon pays for the 3G connection on Kindle devices. Users don't pick the service provider and don't accrue any charges.

 

There are perfectly good reasons to leave the wireless off, such as maximizing battery life, but cost isn't one of them.

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I've left the wireless radio on my Kindle 3 on for a week at a time before the battery reaches less than 50%. It may be less on the ship if the Kindle is constantly pinging for a signal, but it's still not going to drain in an hour or two.

 

Of course it's a good idea to bring your charger with you anyway, even if you plan on leaving the wireless off.

 

Exactly. If you leave the wireless on while out to sea or in the air, it keeps looking for a signal. Ergo.........dead battery. I know this from experience. Happens once; you learn quickly. And of course you always need to travel with a charger. If you read a lot, you need charging more frequently.

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Unless you have a subscription or something that requires a delivery charge while roaming, the 3G is free through Amazon, so there wouldn't be any charges accumulated. But it may not work at all, either, so it is best to download what you want to read before you leave.

 

My kindle 3g is free only in the US. Perhaps an international version is different, but even then I thought that since the 3G- (kindle whispernet) is through Sprint (typically), when on the ship it automatically goes through the Princess mobile set up which charges a hefty roaming fee which is why most of us keep our cell phones turned off while on board.

 

I do know one time that I downloaded a book on the kindle while in MX and amazon charged me $1.99 for the download. That charge was totally separate from the book charge and was clearly indicated as a connection charge.

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My kindle 3g is free only in the US. Perhaps an international version is different, but even then I thought that since the 3G- (kindle whispernet) is through Sprint (typically), when on the ship it automatically goes through the Princess mobile set up which charges a hefty roaming fee which is why most of us keep our cell phones turned off while on board.

 

I do know one time that I downloaded a book on the kindle while in MX and amazon charged me $1.99 for the download. That charge was totally separate from the book charge and was clearly indicated as a connection charge.

 

Right, as I said, "something that requires a delivery charge" -- such as downloading a book while roaming, depending on which Kindle you have.

 

What I was trying to get across was this -- unlike most cell phones (especially smart phones with widgets, auto-downloading email, etc.) -- you are not going to incur any fees just by leaving your Kindle 3G turned on. You never actually pay any connection fees for the Kindle, unlike a cell phone. You will never get a bill from AT&T or Sprint from using the Kindle's 3G. Amazon only charges you if you buy something. You are not going to go home and have a $500 bill like some iPhone users we've all read about. If you used the web browser on your Kindle (as clunky as it is) or looked up something in Wikipedia, you aren't going to be charged for it.

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I have about 100 books and magazines on my Kindle WiFi. Now called the Amazon Kindle WiFi E Ink Display. Cost $139.

 

I don't download books away from home unless in a free WiFi situation.

 

The new Kindles announced yesterday will add a lot to this discussion but I'm not planning to get a new machine for a while.I adore my Kindle.

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The 3G in the U.S. uses the T-Mobile network.

 

WiFi can be found free in most foreign ports.

 

WiFi on the ship, as well as telephone connections are very expensive.

 

Kindle does have an international version that provides free delivery in many countries, but if you were using it while aboard, you will still pay the ship's fee for using their tower, and the downloads will be very slooooooowwwww. Not 3G, more like an old 11K Baud modem -- think about 1985.

 

Everyone is correct that if you leave 3G or WiFi on, you will deplete your battery much more quickly. The trick is to leave them off except when you are ordering or downloading a book, then turn it back off as soon as you are finished. Don't worry though, we all know that because we have left one or the other on and our batteries went dead. When it does happen, turn the feature off, and charge the battery.

 

I simply downloaded a bunch of books before I left, as suggested earlier, and never finished all of them during the cruise.

 

If you just have U.S. 3G service, you can always download to a computer in a foreign port, and connect your Kindle to the computer and download the book into your Kindle that way.

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I have a US 3G/wifi version Kindle. I have downloaded books for free on 3G (no wifi available) in China, Tanzania, and in the Black Sea (I think Romania but can't remember where I did it on my last cruise). When I turn my Kindle on overseas, I get a notice about fees - they apply to periodical subscriptions and things like document delivery via Kindle email. NOT to books you order through Amazon. Those will be free. This is my current (February, May, June and September 2011) experience;)

 

I keep my wifi turned off most of the time due to battery issues. When I order a book, I turn it on.....Because I have to (kindle asks for it) not because I expect to be able to download using that method....

 

FYI - The Kindle section of Amazon has lots of info.

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I don't know where you are from but if it is the US, then your 3G (whisper net as amazon calls it) works like a cell phone. You turn it on and download any new books you've purchased or those that you've archived. If you are not in the US and you use the 3G you will pay extra for any downloads plus if you are on the ship and you turn the 3G on you will pay the hefty roaming charges. If you have the international 3G you'll still pay roaming charges.

 

If you turn on the wireless you will need to have an internet connection. On the ships, you pay to connect to the internet.

 

We always travel with our Kindles but don't turn the wireless or 3G on when we are away from home. I typically take my laptop on cruises for emails etc. If I want to purchase a new Kindle book while onboard, I download the book to the laptop & transfer it to the Kindle via USB.

 

If you subscribe to the daily paper on Kindle, then you will end up paying quite a bit to download it daily to the Kindle. We download our papers to the laptop in pdf format because it's quicker and then either read it on the laptop or transfer to the kindle via USB.

 

My advice is to enjoy the Kindle while cruising, but be sure to have all of your reading materials loaded in it before you leave home and don't turn on the 3G or the wireless.

 

By the way, if you accidentally turn on the 3G you will be accumulating hefty charges without knowing it. If you accidentally turn on the wireless nothing will happen unless you actually connect to the ship's wireless service.

 

 

Excellent description!

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I could not get my wireless to connect on my kindle on my recent cruise. I was almost out of battery power on the last day. Packed my charge in my checked luggage:mad:. I had just enough power left to get home. Phew! I thought I might have to buy a regular book at the airport!:p

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I used my Kindle druking a recent 29-day cruise from RIO to FLL.

There is no chance that you would be accidentally billed for any Kindle downloads at least on HAL. The ship's cellular system simply blocked amazon.

This is also important because of the following: The OP has 3G, in addition to wi-fi. The beauty of 3G, particulary in the Caribbean, is that you can sit in one of the loungers on the lower promenade deck and, free of charge, scan the web, send and receive emails and even read the Cruise Critic. Of course you must have a compatible signal from the shore but that was surprisingly often available in the Caribbean. All this is covered by your basic contract with amazon, i.e. that they provide you with free 3G service.

On land, your 3G works almost everywhere in big cities.

While we were on the Amazon, a learned that the historian Manning Marable had died. I had met him. The story also said that his monumental bio of Malcom X would be released in a few days. So from the lower promenade deck of the Veendam I pre-ordered a Kindle copy which automatically downloaded a few days later while were were still on the Amazon.

We are off to the Mediterranean in a few days. I know my Kindle will be handy until we get to the Atlantic. Fortunately, HAL provides at least free access to the New York Times.

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On land, your 3G works almost everywhere in big cities..

Or, you know, the middle of nowhere.....

 

There is some misinformation here. It would be best to check on Amazon for information on travel with your Kindle - here's the page on Travel with your Kindle - there's also a link to a 3G coverage map: http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200375590

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