Amazon won't provide warranties for Kindles

[NadiaWadia]

Did you know that the new basic Kindle (the one at £69) has no extended warranty available for it, unlike the Kindle Keyboard, Kindle Touch, etc?

SquareTrade (the company that sells the warranties for the other models), will not provide one. And they won't say why.

I find this a bit alarming, as i have just got one for my birthday. How long do they expect it to last, then? Amazon obviously have no confidence in their own product.

However, have since found that if you buy it from Argos, you can get an Argos extended warrranty, which while not as good as the SquareTrade ones (only provides one replacement, then the policy stops, whereas SquareTrade will give you up to 3) is at least better than nothing.

So if you want the basic Kindle, and want an extended warranty, DON'T buy from Amazon the company that makes them. Crazy!

Well, lots of people, myself included, have received excellent customer service from amazon and had there basic kindle replaced for free virtually the next day even after accidental damage.

They replaced mine for free even out of the warranty period. They don't really make their money on the kindles as such; they're more a means of ensuring a revenue stream from ebooks, so it's in amazon's interests for you to have a working kindle!

Amazon.co.uk say that they have a limited 12 month warranty on the basic kindle. You can get extended warranties on Kindle Touch, Keyboard and Fire. and Is it just an extended warranty that you are concerned about?

So shouldn't your title more accurately say "Amazon don't provide extended warranties for basic Kindles" ?

Well yes, but it's less snappy!

Just find it very odd that they haven't got together with SquareTrade and arranged for an exended warranty. I see they provide one for the equivalent Kindle on Amazon.com (American site).

Is it just a bureaucratic mix-up, or a sign that they beleive the product won't last for more than a year?

In fact they have a 2-year warranty listed on the website which I assumed was suitable for my Kindle. Rang SquareTrade to check this was OK, and they told me if I could put it in my basket to go ahead and buy it. Only just found out (from reading customer reviews on the Kindle) that this warranty only applies to grey Kindles, which aren't sold anymore, at least by Amazon. Mine is one of the new black ones.

So had to ring SquareTrade again, who checked and admitted this was the case. Are refunding my money. So this warranty available through the Amazon website doesn't actually cover any model of kindle they are actually selling.

Tis all a big mix-up, and you would think a big company like Amazon would sort this, especially as we are approaching Xmas shopping period.

I always like to have an extended warranty for electonic items, and find it wierd that Amazon aren't selling one.

Amazon have just replaced my kindle free of charge well outside it's warranty period. They have previously replaced it twice when I damaged it. I find extended warranties are a waste of money, my household insurance covers electronic items if I damage them but have not needed to claim as Amazon have been wonderful.

But they are not wonderful to everyone, from what I hear. Did you see last week's WatchDog? Maybe it depends on how much you spend on e-books? Do you spend a lot?

Re: my problem with the warranty, SquareTrade have now got their act together and produced a suitable warranty for the black kindles. Best of all it lasts for 3 years instead of 2! So I bought this, and am going to cancel the 2 year Argos one (still within cooling-off period, so that's OK).

As to warranties in general, I lurve them as it gives me peace of mind. Don't want to have to constantly argue with retailers when a product goes wrong outside the first 12 months. Eg I seem to be really heavy on kettles, they seem to expire at 18 months on average. Then I just pop to Argos with my warranty and pick up a new one. Can't remember the last time I had to actually pay for a kettle! But then you must have better household insurance than me.

Yes I guess the amount of books I have might count. I don't spend a lot but have got over 600 books so that might count. Wouldn't honestly bother with a kettle as they're fairly cheap in the first place and I don't expect them to last. Had my fingers burnt with a warranty on a washing machine that cost us more in the end than buying a new machine.
My household insurance covers accidental damage which is what I'm more concerned about.