As previously reported, it was rumoured that Amazon were planning toe bring the Kindle eBook reader to the UK and these rumours have been proved correct – the Amazon Kindle will be available to buy in the UK  from October 19!

The Kindle will be sold in around 100 countries including the UK, will retail at around £175 ($279) and will be sold exclusively via the amazon.uk website.

The Amazon Kindle eBook Reader

Up until now the Kindle has only been available in the US, and Amazon reckon to have sold almost a million units since it was launched in 2007. Unlike the US version which uses the company’s own Whispernet technology, the UK and European version of the Kindle will use the 3G mobile network to enable customers to download new titles wirelessly, although details of the deal and which mobile networks are involved remain secret.

It is expected that Amazon’s UK Kindle Store will carry over 200,000 individual English language titles from publishers including, Penguin, Faber & Faber and Harper Collins. There will also be a selection of magazines and newspapers available to download and subscribe to.

Main Features

  • Less than 10mm thick with a 6” e-ink display
  • 2GB of internal memory
  • QWERTY keyboard to add notes to text
  • Battery life of many weeks on a single charge
  • USB synching for people out of coverage area

Useful Links

Buying the UK version of the Amazon Kindle

As yet, you can not buy the Kindle from Amazon’s UK site – buyers are redirected to the main .com site where the order is processed before the Kindle is shipped from the US. The Kindle retails at $279 which is about £175 GBP and there will be a shipping charge of around $3.99 (£2.50). A selection of over 280,000 English language titles will be available to download via the 3G mobile network with best sellers costing around £8 or less. There will be no extra charges for the actual download, nor is their any airtime contract to worry about.

Your Kindle will come with a US style power adapter which is suitable for voltages between 110v ~ 240v (the UK system is 230v). You’ll need an adapter which allows 2 pin terminals to be used in a 3 pin socket although the Kindle also comes with a mini USB cable for connecting to a PC or laptop which can also be used to recharge the unit. The Kindle is not a power hungry device so this could well be a satisfactory method of recharging.

European Coverage

eBook titles are downloaded via the 3G or GPRS mobile networks and generally take less than 60 seconds. Titles are priced individually but there is no airtime cost or line rental charge for the actual download.

Kindle Coverage Map

All book titles, magazines and newspapers are currently priced in $ US Dollars (XE Currency Convertor)

The Kindle has a 1 year warranty (details)

Kindle International Licence Agreement

Ordering & Shipping Information

Your international shipment will be subject to customs duty and VAT. Duty is assessed on the declared value of the goods pus transport costs. The duty is calculated on a range of classifications but it’s expected that the Kindle will incur a charge of 3.7%. Depending on the exchange rate at the time this may fall below a threshold of £7 in which case the duty may be waived but VAT will still apply. Overall though, you should expect to pay an extra £26. For more information about this please see the HMRC website